Álex Grimaldo


Alejandro "Álex" Grimaldo García is a Spanish professional footballer who plays as a left wing-back for club Bayer Leverkusen and the Spain national team.

Club career

Barcelona

Born in Valencia, Valencian Community, Grimaldo joined Barcelona's youth system in 2008. He made his official debut for the B-team on 4 September 2011, starting in a 4–0 away win against Cartagena at the age of 15 years and 349 days and becoming the youngest player ever to appear in a Segunda División game, before he was surpassed by Lamine Yamal in 2023.
On 23 February 2013, Grimaldo suffered a serious knee injury, being ruled out for the remainder of the season. He returned to action in January of the following year, appearing in 14 matches to help his team finish in third position.
On 13 September 2014, Grimaldo scored his first professional goal, netting his side's last in a 3–2 success at Alavés. In a campaign which saw the team relegated, he netted four times in 36 matches; he and Sergi Palencia were sent off on 25 April 2015, in a 2–1 win over Ponferradina at the Mini Estadi.

Benfica

On 29 December 2015, as his contract was about to expire, Grimaldo signed with Portuguese champions Benfica until 2021, for €1.5 million. Barcelona has the right to a percentage of a future sale.
Grimaldo played his first game with his new team on 26 January 2016, coming in as a 62nd-minute substitute for Sílvio in a 6–1 away routing of Moreirense for the Taça da Liga. He debuted in the Primeira Liga on 29 February, featuring the full 90 minutes in a 2–0 home win against União da Madeira; he only appeared once more in the latter competition until the end of the season, filling in for suspended Eliseu in a 4–1 victory over Nacional also at the Estádio da Luz that sealed the club's third consecutive national championship. He remained in the team for the 2016 [Taça da Liga Final|league cup final] on 20 May, the 6–2 defeat of Marítimo at the Estádio Cidade de Coimbra.
Grimaldo's first full season began on 7 August 2016, as he started in a 3–0 win against Braga for the Supertaça Cândido de Oliveira in Aveiro, assisting Franco Cervi for the opening goal. On 2 October he scored his first goal for the club, a free kick to conclude a 4–0 home triumph over Feirense; on 28 May 2017, he played the full 90 minutes in 2017 [Taça de Portugal Final|the final] of the Taça de Portugal, won after defeating Vitória de Guimarães 2–1.
Grimaldo's maiden appearance in the UEFA Champions League took place on 13 September 2016, when he played the entire 1–1 group stage home draw to Beşiktaş. His first goal in the competition came during the same stage but on 2 October 2018, in a 3–2 away win over AEK Athens; he repeated the feat against the latter opponent on 12 December in the return fixture, his 30-meter free kick in the 88th minute helping to a 1–0 victory.

Bayer Leverkusen

On 21 May 2023, Grimaldo signed a four-year contract with German club Bayer Leverkusen on a free transfer. On 12 August, he debuted in a DFB-Pokal match against FC Teutonia Ottensen. On 15 September, he scored his first goal for the club, a direct free kick from the edge of the box away at Bayern Munich in a 2–2 draw. On 14 April 2024, Leverkusen beat Werder Bremen 5-0 to secure the first Bundesliga title in the club's history. Grimaldo assisted the fifth goal of the game.
Grimaldo was named in the 2023–24 Bundesliga's team of the season, finishing as the top assist provider in the Bundesliga with 13 assists and being involved in more goals than any other Leverkusen player despite playing as a left-back. Grimaldo was later nominated for the 2024 Ballon d'Or for his performances in Leverkusen's unbeaten league and cup double.
On 13 September 2025, Grimaldo scored two free-kicks in a 3-1 win over Eintracht Frankfurt, in Kasper Hjulmand's first match as Leverkusen coach. This was the first time in over a decade that a player had scored two free-kicks in one Bundesliga game. On 18 October, Grimaldo scored another brace, in a 4-3 win over Mainz 05|Mainz]. He was nominated for the Bundesliga Player of The Month award for October.

International career

Grimaldo won his first call-up for the Spain under-21 team on 5 February 2013 before he had turned 18, playing the second half of a 1–1 friendly draw in Belgium.
On 10 November 2023, Grimaldo received his first call-up to the Spain senior national team, for UEFA [Euro 2024 qualifying Group A|Euro 2024 qualifiers] against Cyprus and Georgia. Six days later, he made his debut as a starter against Cyprus, assisting Mikel Oyarzabal for Spain's second goal in a 3–1 away victory.
In May 2024, he was named in Spain's 26-man squad for the UEFA Euro 2024. Grimaldo was widely expected to be a starter, but Marc Cucurella was ultimately preferred, though Grimaldo did play in the 1-0 win over Albania and the 4-1 win over Georgia.

Honours

Benfica
Bayer 04 Leverkusen
Spain U19
Spain
Individual