Iván Balliu

Iván Balliu

Balliu playing for Barcelona B in 2012
Personal information
Full name	Iván Balliu Campeny
Date of birth	(1992-01-01) 1 January 1992 (age 32)
Place of birth	Caldes de Malavella, Spain
Height	1.72 m (5 ft 8 in)
Position(s)	Right-back
Team information
Current team	Rayo Vallecano
Number	20
Youth career
2000–2004	Girona
2004–2011	Barcelona
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps	(Gls)
2011–2013	Barcelona B	54	(0)
2013–2015	Arouca	58	(0)
2015–2019	Metz	104	(1)
2019–2021	Almería	62	(1)
2021–	Rayo Vallecano	97	(1)
International career‡
2008	Spain U16	3	(1)
2008	Spain U17	3	(0)
2017–	Albania	11	(0)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 21:53, 10 March 2024 (UTC) ‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 20 November 2023

After starting out at Barcelona B, he went on to compete professionally in Spain, Portugal and France.

Balliu represented his native Spain at youth level before declaring for Albania, for which he qualified via his father. He was first included in an Albanian senior squad in 2017, making his debut in October of that year.

Barcelona

Born in Caldes de Malavella, Girona, Catalonia to an Albanian father and a Spanish mother, Balliu joined FC Barcelona's youth system in 2004, aged 12. He made his senior debut in the 2010–11 season, playing two Segunda División games with the reserves and starting against Girona FC for a 2–0 away win. In that year, he was also captain of the treble-winning Juvenil A team.

Arouca

On 30 May 2013, Balliu's contract expired and he was told by Barcelona that he would be released. One month later, he signed with F.C. Arouca in Portugal for two seasons, making his Primeira Liga debut on 1 September in a 1–0 home victory over Rio Ave FC (90 minutes played).

Metz

Balliu joined French club FC Metz on 17 July 2015, on a two-year deal. He scored his first goal as a professional on 16 October, helping the hosts come from behind in the 2–2 home draw with Clermont Foot.

After contributing 24 appearances in his first season to help his team to return to Ligue 1 after a one-year absence, Balliu's first match in the competition occurred on 13 August 2016, in a 3–2 home win over Lille OSC.

Almería

On 12 August 2019, Balliu agreed to a two-year contract with UD Almería of the Spanish second division. He scored his first goal in his country of birth on 7 March 2020, helping the hosts defeat Deportivo de La Coruña 4–0.

Rayo Vallecano

Balliu moved to newly-promoted Rayo Vallecano on 14 July 2021, on a two-year deal. He made his La Liga debut on 15 August at the age of 29, playing the entire 3–0 defeat at Sevilla FC. His first goal came the following 9 January, when he closed the 1–1 home draw against Real Betis.

Of Albanian descent on his father's side, Balliu was eligible to represent Albania, speaking of his interest in an interview on 24 October 2016. On 22 August 2017 he received Albanian citizenship, thus becoming eligible to play for the national team. He was handed his first call shortly after when newly appointed coach Christian Panucci selected him for the 2018 FIFA World Cup qualifiers against Liechtenstein and Macedonia on 2 and 5 September, and earned his first cap also during that stage, playing the first half of the 3–0 loss against Spain in Alicante on 6 October.

On 17 June 2017, Balliu married Marta Soler.

Club

As of match played 20 May 2022