| Fran Vélez | |
| Full Name: | Francisco Manuel Vélez Jiménez |
| Birth Date: | 23 June 1991 |
| Birth Place: | Tarragona, Spain |
| Height: | 1.82 m |
| Position: | Defender |
| Currentclub: | Aris |
| Clubnumber: | 4 |
| Youthyears1: | 2007–2009 |
| Youthclubs1: | La Floresta |
| Youthyears2: | 2009–2010 |
| Youthclubs2: | Gimnàstic |
| Years1: | 2010–2013 |
| Caps1: | 38 |
| Goals1: | 4 |
| Years2: | 2010–2012 |
| Caps2: | 29 |
| Goals2: | 3 |
| Years3: | 2011–2012 |
| Clubs3: | → Logroñés (loan) |
| Caps3: | 28 |
| Goals3: | 1 |
| Years4: | 2013–2014 |
| Caps4: | 26 |
| Goals4: | 2 |
| Years5: | 2014–2017 |
| Caps5: | 75 |
| Goals5: | 2 |
| Years6: | 2017–2018 |
| Caps6: | 17 |
| Goals6: | 1 |
| Years7: | 2018–2020 |
| Caps7: | 47 |
| Goals7: | 5 |
| Years9: | 2020–2022 |
| Caps9: | 54 |
| Goals9: | 2 |
| Years10: | 2022–2023 |
| Caps10: | 21 |
| Goals10: | 0 |
| Years11: | 2023– |
| Caps11: | 10 |
| Goals11: | 0 |
| Club-Update: | 16:31, 23 June 2024 (UTC) |
Francisco 'Fran' Manuel Vélez Jiménez (born 23 June 1991) is a Spanish professional footballer who plays for Super League Greece club Aris as a central defender or a right-back.
Born in Tarragona, Catalonia, Vélez began playing football for Club Esportiu La Floresta.[1] In late 2009 he signed a contract with Gimnàstic de Tarragona, where he spent his last year as a junior.
On 10 April 2010, Vélez made his official Nàstic debut, starting against Albacete Balompié in a 1–1 away draw.[2] He made three more appearances during the season in Segunda División, against Real Betis,[3] Cádiz CF (where he was sent off)[4] and UD Las Palmas.[5] In the following campaign he represented CF Pobla de Mafumet, the farm team.
Vélez was loaned to UD Logroñés of Segunda División B in August 2011.[6] He scored his only goal of the season against Real Sociedad B, contributing to a 3–1 home win.[7]
On 14 July 2012, Vélez returned to Nàstic and its main squad.[8] On 26 August he played his first game in his second stint, against Valencia CF Mestalla.[9] He netted his first goal with the club on 7 October, opening the 2–0 home victory over CD Binissalem.[10]
On 2 September 2013, Vélez signed with UD Almería, initially being assigned to the reserves also in the third division.[11] He made his first-team debut on 14 January of the following year, starting as a right-back in a 2–0 home loss to Racing de Santander in the round of 16 of the Copa del Rey (3–1 loss on aggregate).[12]
Vélez's maiden appearance in La Liga took place on 27 April 2014: he started and scored in a 2–1 win at RCD Espanyol, where he featured as a defensive midfielder before being replaced by Jonathan Zongo in the 71st minute.[13] He played a further three matches with the main squad, only contributing four minutes in the last fixture, a 0–0 home draw against Athletic Bilbao.[14]
On 7 June 2014, Vélez was definitely promoted to the first team.[15] On 31 March 2015, he was ruled out for the remainder of the season after suffering a shoulder injury;[16] the season also ended in relegation.
Vélez was regularly used during the following second-tier campaigns, and cut ties with the club on 28 June 2017.[17]
On 1 July 2017, Vélez signed with Polish club Wisła Kraków.[18] He scored his only goal in the Ekstraklasa on 18 March 2018, helping to a 2–0 away victory over Legia Warsaw.[19]
On 25 July 2018, after the player successfully passed his medicals, Aris Thessaloniki F.C. announced the signing of Vélez on a two-year contract.[20] He scored his first goal for the team the following 24 February, heading home in a 1–1 draw at Super League Greece leaders PAOK FC.[21]
Vélez agreed to join Panathinaikos F.C. on 20 February 2020, with the three-year deal being made effective on 1 July.[22] In September 2023, after one season in the Saudi Pro League with Al Fateh SC, the 32-year-old returned to Aris on a two-year contract.[23]
Vélez's older brother, José Antonio, was also a footballer. Both played for Gimnàstic and Pobla.[24]
| Club | Season | League | National cup | Continental | Total | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | |||
| Gimnàstic | 2009–10 | Segunda División | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 4 | 0 | ||
| 2012–13 | Segunda División B | 34 | 4 | 1 | 0 | — | 35 | 4 | |||
| Total | 38 | 4 | 1 | 0 | — | 39 | 4 | ||||
| Pobla Mafumet | 2010–11 | Tercera División | 29 | 3 | — | — | 29 | 3 | |||
| Logroñés | 2011–12 | Segunda División B | 28 | 1 | 3 | 0 | — | 31 | 1 | ||
| Almería B | 2013–14 | Segunda División B | 26 | 2 | — | — | 26 | 2 | |||
| Almería | 2013–14 | La Liga | 4 | 1 | 1 | 0 | — | 5 | 1 | ||
| 2014–15 | La Liga | 17 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 17 | 0 | |||
| 2015–16 | Segunda División | 30 | 0 | 2 | 0 | — | 32 | 0 | |||
| 2016–17 | Segunda División | 24 | 1 | 0 | 0 | — | 24 | 1 | |||
| Total | 75 | 2 | 3 | 0 | — | 78 | 2 | ||||
| Wisła Kraków | 2017–18 | Ekstraklasa | 17 | 1 | 0 | 0 | — | 17 | 1 | ||
| Aris | 2018–19 | Super League Greece | 23 | 1 | 2 | 0 | — | 25 | 1 | ||
| 2019–20 | Super League Greece | 24 | 4 | 5 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 32 | 4 | ||
| Total | 47 | 5 | 7 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 57 | 5 | |||
| Panathinaikos | 2020–21 | Super League Greece | 25 | 2 | 0 | 0 | — | 25 | 2 | ||
| 2021–22 | Super League Greece | 29 | 0 | 6 | 0 | — | 35 | 0 | |||
| Total | 54 | 2 | 6 | 0 | — | 60 | 2 | ||||
| Al-Fateh | 2022–23 | Saudi Pro League | 21 | 0 | 2 | 0 | — | 23 | 0 | ||
| Aris | 2023–24 | Super League Greece | 10 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 13 | 1 | |
| Career total | 345 | 20 | 25 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 373 | 21 | |||
Panathinaikos