Antoni Lima

Antoni "Toni" Lima Solà (born 22 September 1970) is a retired professional footballer who played as a central defender.

In this Spanish name, the first or paternal surname is Lima and the second or maternal family name is Solà.

Toni Lima
Lima in 2007
Personal information
Full name Antoni Lima Solà
Date of birth (1970-09-22) 22 September 1970
Place of birth Gavà, Spain
Height 1.91 m (6 ft 3 in)
Position(s) Centre-back
Team information
Current team
 Arsenal (scout)
Youth career
1986–1989 Barcelona
1989–1990 Damm
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
1988–1989 Barcelona C 3 (0)
1990–1991 Real Madrid B 8 (0)
1991–1992 Hospitalet 34 (7)
1991 Español 2 (0)
1992–1995 Palamós 100 (9)
1995–1996 Poli Almería 30 (1)
1996–1997 Murcia 21 (1)
1997–1998 Poli Almería 34 (0)
1998–1999 União Madeira 7 (0)
1999–2000 Hospitalet 30 (1)
2000–2001 Gavà 24 (0)
2001 Ionikos 3 (0)
2002–2003 Gavà 54 (6)
2003–2004 Palamós B 31 (0)
2004–2006 Palamós 56 (4)
2006 Amurrio
2006–2008 Ibiza-Eivissa B
2007–2008 Ibiza-Eivissa
International career
1997–2009 Andorra 64 (1)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals

Early life

Born in Gavà, Barcelona, Catalonia to an Andalusian father and a Catalan mother,[1] Lima's family moved to Andorra when he was nine years old.[2]

Club career

Lima had a brief spell with Real Madrid Castilla, then signed with RCD Español, for which he played two La Liga games.[3][4] In 1992, he stayed in his native region and spent three seasons with Palamós CF in the Segunda División, being relegated in the last.[5]

After another season in the second division, with CP Almería, Lima spent the remainder of his Spanish career in the Segunda División B or lower. He also had two abroad experiences: in 1998 he joined C.F. União, appearing rarely as the Portuguese second-tier team was also relegated. Three years later, also with no impact whatsoever, he represented Ionikos F.C. in the Super League Greece.[6]

Lima retired at SE Eivissa-Ibiza in 2008 at the age of 37, having acted as the club's director of football still as an active player.[7] He later worked with Premier League sides Manchester United and Arsenal as well as Inter Milan of Serie A as scout,[8][6] and Deportivo Alavés as director of international football.[9]

International career

Lima won 64 caps for Andorra over a 12-year period.[10] On 10 June 2009, in his last international, a 6–0 loss to England for the 2010 FIFA World Cup qualifiers at Wembley Stadium, he wore the captain's armband.[11]

In September 2005, Lima was subject of some controversy during a World Cup qualification match against the Netherlands. When Ruud van Nistelrooy missed a penalty, the defender celebrated directly in front of the Dutch player. Moments later, the striker scored from open play and ran straight over to Lima with his arms raised, being booked for his action in an eventual 4–0 win.[12][13]

International goal
Scores and results list Andorra's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Lima goal.
List of international goals scored by Antoni Lima
No. Date Venue Opponent Score Result Competition
116 October 2002Vasil Levski National Stadium, Sofia, Bulgaria Bulgaria1–21–2Euro 2004 qualifying[14]

Personal life

Lima's younger brother, Ildefons, is also a footballer and a defender. He too spent most of his career in the lower leagues of Spain, and the pair shared teams at Ionikos.[15][16]

References
  1. Doral, Alba (7 April 2019). "Ildefons Lima i el mapamundi" [Ildefons Lima and the world map]. Diari d'Andorra (in Catalan). Retrieved 29 December 2019.
  2. "Fiebre Maldini: Ildefons Lima, orgullo de Andorra | Movistar+" [Fiebre Maldini: Ildefons Lima, pride of Andorra | Movistar+] (in Spanish). Archived from the original on 21 December 2021. Retrieved 29 December 2019 – via YouTube.
  3. Canovas, M.C. (28 October 1991). "Otro aire, pero los mismos fallos" [Another allure, but the same mistakes]. Mundo Deportivo (in Spanish). Retrieved 3 June 2016.
  4. Astruells, Andrés (4 November 1991). "Sarrià se levanta en armas" [Sarrià is up in arms]. Mundo Deportivo (in Spanish). Retrieved 3 June 2016.
  5. Subirana, Pere (12 June 1995). "Adiós con derrota" [Goodbye with loss]. El País (in Spanish). Retrieved 4 January 2023.
  6. Duaso, Víctor (28 June 2019). "Dels The Red Devils a 'El Glorioso'" [From the Red Devils to 'The Glorious One']. Bondia (in Catalan). Retrieved 4 January 2023.
  7. Vidal, C.; Palomo, R. J. (29 January 2008). "El Murcia cede al Eivissa al ariete Pico" [Murcia loan forward Pico to Eivissa] (in Spanish). Info Balear. Retrieved 3 June 2016.
  8. "El Arsenal ficha a Toni Lima, descubridor de Neymar y Coutinho en Europa" [Arsenal sign Toni Lima, finder of Neymar and Coutinho in Europe]. Sport (in Spanish). 17 August 2021. Retrieved 4 January 2023.
  9. "Lima, nuevo responsable del Área Internacional" [Lima, new man in charge of International Department]. Noticias de Álava (in Spanish). 28 June 2019. Retrieved 4 January 2023.
  10. Mamrud, Roberto. "Antonio Lima Solá – International Appearances". RSSSF. Retrieved 3 June 2016.
  11. Griffiths, Frank (10 June 2009). "Andorra loses 6–0 to England but prevents ridicule". USA Today. Retrieved 6 May 2015.
  12. Rockwell, Taylor (5 June 2014). "The seven levels of soccer vengeance". Paste. Retrieved 8 February 2021.
  13. Egerton, Nathan (10 March 2021). "Haaland's sh*t-talking is not a patch on Van Nistelrooy's revenge celebration". Planet Football. Retrieved 26 March 2021.
  14. "Italia e Inglaterra en apuros; Alemania rozó el ridículo" [Italy and England in trouble; Germany nearly ridiculed]. ABC Color (in Spanish). 17 October 2002. Retrieved 7 October 2020.
  15. "Andorra – El milagro contra Macedonia" [Andorra – The miracle against Macedonia] (in Spanish). Pablo Aro Geraldes. 3 February 2007. Retrieved 3 June 2016.
  16. Blanco, Jordi (13 November 2014). "Ildefons Lima, un andorrano en Wembley" [Ildefons Lima, an Andorran in Wembley] (in Spanish). AM 14. Archived from the original on 25 June 2016. Retrieved 3 June 2016.
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