In July 2007 Deportivo de La Coruña completed the signing of José Andrés Guardado Hernández (Guadalajara, Jalisco, 28 September 1986), a left winger from Atlas, for around €7 million on a five-year contract. That transfer began fourteen seasons in European football, spread across Spain, Germany and the Netherlands, which the Mexican midfielder combined with almost two decades in the Mexico national team, whom he captained.
Youth career at Atlas
Guardado joined the Atlas academy in 1993, aged seven, and came through all of its age groups. He made his Mexican top-flight debut on 20 August 2005 in a 3-2 win over Pachuca under coach Daniel Guzmán. In two years with the first team he played 64 league games and scored 6 goals. His form on the left flank soon earned him a national team call-up and, after the 2006 World Cup, attention from European scouts. The nickname he picked up in those years, «el Principito» (the Little Prince), stayed with him throughout his career.
Five seasons at Deportivo
At Riazor he established himself as a winger and as a wide midfielder. With Deportivo he won the 2008 UEFA Intertoto Cup and also went through relegation to the Spanish second division in 2011. He stayed at the club and was part of the side that won the second-tier title in 2011-12, bouncing straight back. Over his five seasons in A Coruña he played 137 league games and scored 23 goals.
Valencia, Leverkusen and PSV
In May 2012 he signed a four-year deal with Valencia, arriving on a free transfer. He made his debut on 19 August 2012 in a 1-1 draw away to Real Madrid. At Mestalla he was often moved back to left-back and his role was inconsistent, so in January 2014 he joined Bayer Leverkusen on loan, with a purchase option the German club did not take up. In August 2014 Valencia loaned him to PSV Eindhoven, where he debuted against Vitesse on the 31st of that month. In Eindhoven he played as a central midfielder and became so important that PSV signed him permanently in March 2015. With the Dutch club he won back-to-back Eredivisie titles in 2015 and 2016, as well as the Johan Cruyff Shield in 2015 and 2016.
Seven seasons at Real Betis
In July 2017 he returned to Spain, joining Real Betis for around €2.5 million. At the Benito Villamarín he settled in as a deep-lying playmaker, tasked with bringing the ball out from the back and organising the team. On 23 April 2022 Betis won the Copa del Rey against Valencia on penalties, the biggest trophy of his time in Seville. He was named club captain for the 2023-24 season and became the non-European player with the most appearances in the club's history. In January 2022 he passed 500 games in Europe, a figure no Mexican footballer had reached before. On 18 January 2024 he terminated his contract with Betis after 218 competitive appearances, 5 goals and 17 assists.
Return to Mexico with León
That same month, January 2024, he joined Club León, making his debut on 27 January already wearing the captain's armband. In November 2024 he announced his retirement, but reversed the decision two months later and stayed with the team through the 2025 Clausura. He played his final match on 11 May 2025, a 2-1 quarter-final defeat to Cruz Azul in that tournament.
Mexico national team
He made his senior international debut on 14 December 2005 in a friendly against Hungary and scored his first goal on 28 February 2007, also in a friendly, against Venezuela. He played at five World Cups: 2006, 2010, 2014, 2018 and 2022. At Brazil 2014 he scored against Croatia in the group stage, and at Russia 2018 he captained the side. With Mexico he won the Gold Cup in 2011, 2015 and 2019, finished runner-up in 2007 and lifted the 2015 CONCACAF Cup. He also played at the 2007 Copa América, where Mexico finished third, the 2016 Copa América Centenario and the Confederations Cups of 2013 and 2017. He ended his international career as the most-capped player in the national team's history. He announced his retirement from international football on 16 May 2023 and said his official farewell on 15 October 2024 in a friendly against the United States that Mexico won 2-0: he was substituted in the 18th minute, matching his shirt number.
