Xabi Prieto · Biography

In the 2009-10 season Xabier Prieto Argarate won the Spanish second division title with Real Sociedad. It was the only trophy of his career, and it took the club back to the top flight after three years away. Born on 29 August 1983 in San Sebastián, Xabi Prieto played as an attacking midfielder and on the right of midfield, wore the number 10 shirt and spent his entire professional career at Real Sociedad, from 2003 to 2018. According to the club, he made 532 official appearances in the blue and white.

Youth football in San Sebastián

He went to school at the Santo Tomas Lizeoa ikastola and joined the Real Sociedad academy at sixteen. He came through the club's system at Zubieta and played for the reserve side, Real Sociedad B, where he developed into a midfielder with a good touch and an eye for arriving in the box. In 2004 and 2005 he won five caps for the Spain under-21 team.

First-team debut

He made his first-team debut on 8 October 2003, in a Copa del Rey tie away to Real Oviedo, and played the full ninety minutes. Eighteen days later, on 26 October, he made his La Liga debut against Osasuna at Anoeta, coming on for Valery Karpin in the 68th minute of a 1-0 win. From there he gradually earned his place in midfield, and over the following seasons he became a regular starter.

Relegation and three years in the second tier

The 2006-07 season ended with Real Sociedad relegated to the second division. Prieto, who had played 34 matches that year, stayed at the club. He was a starter throughout the three seasons in the second tier: 37 appearances and four goals in 2007-08, 33 appearances and four goals in 2008-09, and 36 appearances and seven goals in 2009-10. In that last campaign Real Sociedad finished first, won the title and returned to the top flight in 2010, with Prieto as one of the key players in the side.

Back in La Liga and the Champions League

Back in the top flight, Prieto became one of the captains in the dressing room. On 6 January 2013 he scored the first hat-trick of his career at the Santiago Bernabéu, with a ninth-minute penalty and goals in the 40th and 76th minutes. Real Madrid still won 4-3, despite playing almost the whole game with ten men after Antonio Adán was sent off. Real Sociedad finished fourth that season and qualified for the Champions League. On 17 September 2013 Prieto made his debut in the competition against Shakhtar Donetsk at Anoeta, a 2-0 defeat.

Playing style and the Basque team

A resourceful player with little pace, Prieto relied on reading the game more than on athleticism. He received the ball between the lines, slowed the tempo when needed and played the final pass. He often started on the right and drifted inside, and for years he was the team's penalty taker. He was never called up to the senior Spain team. For the Basque Country side, which has no official FIFA recognition, he played 14 friendlies between 2004 and 2016.

500 appearances and retirement

In August 2017, before a match against Villarreal, the club marked his 500th official appearance. On 10 April 2018 he announced he would retire at the end of the 2017-18 season, after fifteen years as a professional. He said goodbye to Anoeta on 12 May 2018 in a 3-2 win over Leganés, coming on in the closing minutes, and played his final match on 20 May 2018 at the Camp Nou, a 1-0 defeat to FC Barcelona. He finished with 479 league appearances for Real Sociedad across the first and second divisions. On 7 March 2024 the club announced his return as its institutional representative, reporting to the president's office.