Unai Núñez's biography

Unai Núñez (Portugalete, Spain – January 30, 1997) is now a Valencia CF player. The new Valencia defender arrives to support the team’s defensive line with his game reading, anticipation, interception skills, and ability to play out from the back.

CURRENT SEASON

The centre-back from Biscay joins Valencia CF after his spell at Hellas Verona in Serie A, where he played 18 matches (17 in the league and 1 in the Coppa Italia), accumulating 1,355 minutes.

EXPERIENCE IN LALIGA

The Portugalete-born player began his professional development at Athletic Club. At the Basque club, he progressed and stood out through the youth ranks. His outstanding performances with the reserve team earned him a place in the first team during the 2016–17 season.

From that point on, he became one of the most important players for Los Leones, with whom he played 164 matches across six seasons (in two different spells) with the first team. He also won the 2021 Spanish Super Cup against FC Barcelona.

In the 2022–23 season, Unai signed for RC Celta de Vigo. With the Galician side, he competed in 76 matches over two seasons. He later returned to Athletic Club on loan for the 2024–25 campaign. After that, and up to the current 2025–26 season, he has been playing for Hellas Verona in Serie A.

APPEARANCES FOR THE SPANISH NATIONAL TEAM AND EUROPEAN CHAMPION WITH THE U-21s

Núñez has represented Spain at youth levels, featuring for the U-19 and U-21 teams. With the latter, he was crowned European champion in 2019, and his high level of performance led to his debut with the senior national team in a Euro 2020 qualifying match (eventually played in 2021 due to COVID-19) against the Faroe Islands.

Photos: @unainunez