Antonio Barragan will be remembered at Middlesbrough for being part of that 2016 summer recruitment drive that ultimately failed to be enough to keep Boro in the Premier League.

The right-back arrived at the Riverside on a three-year deal from Valencia with Aitor Karanka aiming to bolster the quality of his defensive options ahead of Middlesbrough’s return to the Premier League. Barragan had been a useful squad player during his time with Valencia so it seemed like a signing that might work out for Boro if Karanka could find him a place in the side.

Indeed Barragan actually managed to get off to a decent enough start to his time at the Riverside with him helping Boro cope with one or two defensive injuries in the early stages of the 2016/17 campaign. That saw the defender operate at times at the heart of the defence after Daniel Ayala’s pre-season setback rather than his preferred right-back role.

However, as the season progressed Barragan’s performances started to drop off as did the overall form of Boro as they dropped down the table and ended up being relegated from the Premier League. The right-back was a poor performer in a few crucial games that played a role in Middlesbrough’s relegation with displays in defeats to Arsenal and Bournemouth low points for him.

Following Middlesbrough’s relegation, Garry Monk made the decision to allow Barragan to leave Middlesbrough in the summer of 2017 and make a loan move to Real Betis. That saw him return to Spain after just one season in English football and he made 29 La Liga appearances in 2017/18 providing a respectable six assists in that time.

As a result of Barragan’s decent form for Real Betis in his loan spell, the Spanish club opted to sign him permanently in the summer of 2018 and ended his association with Middlesbrough. During the 2018/19 campaign, the right-back managed to make just 12 stars and 14 appearances in total in the league as he helped his side to a tenth place finish.

 

 

The following campaign would be Barragan’s last one at for Real Betis and he was once again more of a bit-part player for the Spanish side with him managing to make just seven starts and 12 La Liga appearances in total.

In October 2020, Elche made the move to sign Barragan following their promotion to La Liga the previous campaign. The right-back played a vital role in helping the Spanish side avoid the drop by just two points last term with him recording three assists in his 27 league appearances.

So far this season Elche have looked like they are going to be embroiled in another relegation fight in La Liga and Barragan has been useful for them making seven appearances for them in the league. They will need him to have a good season if they are to survive the drop.