Áron Yaakobishvili Explained

Áron Yaakobishvili (Georgian: აარონ იაკობიშვილი; he|ארון יעקובישווילי; born 6 March 2006) is a Hungarian professional footballer currently playing as a goalkeeper for Barcelona and Barcelona B.

Early life

Yaakobishvili was born in Budapest, Hungary to a Georgian Jewish father; his father was born in Georgia, and is a dual Georgian-Israeli citizen whilst his mother is Hungarian.^{[1] [2]} His elder brother, Antal, is also a footballer, and currently plays for fellow Spanish club Girona.^{[1] [3]}

Club career

Yaakobishvili joined local side Baráti Bőrlabda at the age of six in 2012, before moving to Angyalföldi Sportiskola two years later.^{[2] [3]} He spent a season with MTK Budapest before moving to Spain in 2017 after his mother had accepted a job in Barcelona.^{[3] [4] [5] [6]} On his arrival in Spain, he had a short spell with amateur side Atlètic Sant Just, before being invited on a three-day trial with Barcelona the following year, joining the club after impressing coaches.^{[7] [2]}

Having progressed through Barcelona's La Masia academy, he signed his first professional contract with the club in February 2022.^[8] In March of the same year, he trained with the Barcelona first team.^{[3] [9]} On 11 October 2023, he was named by English newspaper The Guardian as one of the best players born in 2006 worldwide.^[10]

He was first included into the senior team's match day squad on 25 November 2023 for a La Liga game against Rayo Vallecano.^[11] Yaakobishvili made his senior debut for the reserve team Barcelona Atlètic in the third-tier Primera Federación on 27 September 2024 against Tarazona.^[12]

International career

Yaakobishvili has represented Hungary at youth international level. In June 2023, it was reported by Israeli sports journalism outlet Sport 5 that Yaakobishvili and his brother were attempting to gain Israeli citizenship so as to represent the nation at international level.^[1] However, their agent Attila Georgi denied these rumours, stating that the brothers were Hungarian and that they wanted to represent Hungary at international level.^[13]

Notes and References

1. Web site: שוער העתיד של ברצלונה ואחיו שיכולים לשחק בנבחרת ישראל. The future goalkeeper of Barcelona and his brother who can play for the Israeli national team. Moti. Pashchatsky. Elhanan. Malamud. 22 June 2023. 1 August 2023. sport5.co.il. he.
2. Web site: „Nem lőnek elég erőset!” – Lewandowskiékkal készült a Barca Magyar kapusa. "They don't shoot hard enough!" - Barca's Hungarian goalkeeper trained with Lewandowski. 17 May 2023. 1 August 2023. nb1.hu. hu.
3. Web site: Magyar futballista edzett az FC Barcelona első csapatával. Hungarian football player trained with the first team of FC Barcelona. 25 March 2022. 24 October 2022. magyarnemzet.hu. hu.
4. Web site: Labdarúgás: büszkeségünk, Yaakobishvili Áron. Football: our pride, Áron Yaakobishvili. 25 March 2022. 24 October 2022. asidse.hu. hu.
5. Web site: ¿Quién es Aron Yaakobishvili?. Who is Aron Yaakobishvili?. Adrià. Fernández. 24 March 2022. 24 October 2022. sport.es. Spanish.
6. Web site: Yaakobishvili Áron: “Úgy érzem tudom kezelni, hogy itthon én vagyok a barçás srác”. Áron Yaakobishvili: "I feel like I can handle the fact that I'm the guy with the bar at home". 23 May 2023. 1 August 2023. eurobarca.hu. hu.
7. Web site: Yaakobishvili, el jove porter que s'ha entrenat amb el primer equip del Barça. Yaakobishvili, the young goalkeeper who has trained with the Barça first team. 24 March 2022. 24 October 2022. ccma.cat. Catalan.
8. Web site: Barcelona: új szerződést kapott a magyar tehetség. Barcelona: the Hungarian talent received a new contract. Benjámin. Nagy. 5 February 2022. 24 October 2022. nb1.hu. hu.
9. Web site: Aron Yaakobishvili, un porter de 15 anys amb el primer equip del Barça. Aron Yaakobishvili, a 15-year-old goalkeeper with Barça's first team. 24 March 2022. 24 October 2022. beteve.cat. Catalan.
10. Web site: Next Generation 2023: 60 of the best young talents in world football. Marcus. Christenson. Steven. Bloor. Garry. Blight. 11 October 2023. 11 October 2023. theguardian.com.
11. Web site: Soccerway. Rayo Vallecano v Barcelona game report. 25 November 2023.
12. Web site: Soccerway. Tarazona v Barcelona Atlètic game report. 27 September 2024.
13. Web site: Cáfol a menedzser: a Yaakobishvili testvérek nem váltanak országot. The agent denies: the Yaakobishvili brothers are not changing countries. 28 June 2023. 1 August 2023. sportal.blikk.hu. hu.