Pau Torres

Pau Torres
Pau Francisco Torres (born 16 January 1997) is a Spanish professional footballer who plays as a centre-back for Premier League club Aston Villa and the Spain national team.
He began his career with Villarreal, making 173 competitive appearances and winning the 2021 Europa League; he was also loaned to Málaga. In July 2023, he signed with Aston Villa.
Torres made his full debut for Spain in 2019, scoring in his first game. He was part of the squads at Euro 2020 and the 2022 World Cup.
Club career
Villarreal
Born in Villarreal, Province of Castellón, Valencian Community, Torres played youth football with Villarreal. He made his league debut with the reserves on 21 August 2016, starting in a 1–0 Segunda División B away loss against Cornellà.
Torres scored his first senior goal on 8 October 2016, the first in a 2–2 home draw with Badalona. His maiden competitive appearance for the first team took place on 20 December, when he came on as a late substitute for Víctor Ruiz in the 1–1 home draw against Toledo in the round of 32 of Copa del Rey; by doing so, he became the first player born in Villarreal to debut for the club in 13 years.
Torres played his first match in La Liga on 26 November 2017, replacing fellow youth graduate Manu Trigueros late into a 2–3 home loss to Sevilla. He made his UEFA Europa League debut ten days later, starting and finishing the 0–1 group stage defeat against Maccabi Tel Aviv also at the Estadio de la Cerámica.
On 6 August 2018, Torres was loaned to Málaga for one year. He only missed four Segunda División games during his spell as the side reached the promotion play-offs and, subsequently, was recalled by his parent club.
Torres subsequently cemented his place in Villarreal's starting XI, playing every minute in the league. In October 2019, he was rewarded with a contract extension until 2024, and the same month scored his first goal in the Spanish top tier, opening a 2–1 loss at Osasuna.
Torres contributed nine appearances in the 2020–21 UEFA Europa League as the tournament ended in a first-ever European victory for the team, under manager Unai Emery. This included the final, a penalty shootout win over Manchester United after a 1–1 draw.
Aston Villa
On 12 July 2023, Torres signed for Aston Villa for a reported fee of £31.5 million, rejoining coach Emery. He made his Premier League debut on 12 August, replacing the injured Tyrone Mings during the first half of an eventual 5–1 loss at Newcastle United. He scored his first goal on 8 October, in a 1–1 away draw against Wolverhampton Wanderers.
International career
Torres got his first call up for the Spain national team by Robert Moreno on 4 October 2019, for UEFA Euro 2020 qualifiers against Norway and Sweden. He did not debut until 15 November when he scored in a 7–0 rout of Malta for the already qualified hosts, within a minute of replacing Sergio Ramos; Dani Olmo also scored on his first cap in that game, the first time that two Spaniards did so in exactly 30 years.
Torres was included in Luis Enrique's 24-man squad for the finals. He was also selected for the Olympic team that won a silver medal at the Summer Olympics in Tokyo.
Career statistics
Club
International
Spain score listed first, score column indicates score after each Torres goal.
Honours
Villarreal
UEFA Europa League: 2020–21
Spain U23
Summer Olympics silver medal: 2020
Spain
UEFA Nations League runner up: 2020–21
Individual
UEFA Europa League Squad of the Season: 2020–21
References
External links
1997 births
Living people
People from Villarreal
Spanish men's footballers
Footballers from the Province of Castellón
Men's association football defenders
La Liga players
Segunda División players
Segunda División B players
Villarreal CF B players
Villarreal CF players
Málaga CF players
Premier League players
Aston Villa F.C. players
UEFA Europa League winning players
Spain men's under-21 international footballers
Spain men's under-23 international footballers
Spain men's international footballers
UEFA Euro 2020 players
2022 FIFA World Cup players
Olympic footballers for Spain
Footballers at the 2020 Summer Olympics
Olympic medalists in football
Olympic silver medalists for Spain
Medalists at the 2020 Summer Olympics
Spanish expatriate men's footballers
Expatriate men's footballers in England
Spanish expatriate sportspeople in England