Who is Raúl Jiménez? Everything You Need to Know

Quick Facts

Girlfriend: Daniela Basso

Also Known As: Raúl Alonso Jiménez Rodríguez

Age: 32 Years, 32 Year Old Males

Family:

father: Raúl Jiménez Vega

mother: Martha Rodríguez

siblings: Miranda Jiménez, Raúl André

Born Country: Mexico

Football Players Mexican Men

Height: 6'2" (188 cm), 6'2" Males

More Facts

awards: 2014 - Best Play ESPY Award
2014 - Premio Juventud for Most Electrifying Athlete - Sports
2013 - Premio Juventud for Promising New Player - Sports

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Childhood & Early Life

Raúl Alonso Jiménez Rodríguez was born on May 5, 1991, to Raúl Jiménez Vega and Martha Rodriguez, in the quaint lakeside town of Tepeji in Mexico. The eldest of four children, he has two brothers, André and Raul, and a sister named Miranda.

In 2008, he was talent scouted by the Mexican football club, ‘Club América’, as one of their many academy players.

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Career

Raúl Jiménez made his professional debut as a forward for ‘Club América’ on October 9, 2011 against Monarcas Morelia in the Apertura (summer) tournament and scored his first career goal later that month against Puebla. He made a total of eighteen appearances and scored two goals in his debut season for his club.

He was part of the Mexican football team for 2012 London Olympics. His first match was as a substitute against South Korea in the group stages. Mexico went on to win the gold medal after defeating Brazil in the final.

In the 2012-2013, Liga BBVA MX season, he was given a starting spot as one of the two front men in Club América’s 5-3-2 formation. He made sixteen appearances and scored four goals in the 2012 Apertura. He scored another eight goals in the Clausura phase of the tournament. His team was crowned champion in that tournament.

Raúl Jiménez scored against Panama in the World Cup qualifier to help Mexico qualify for the 2014 World Cup. He thus confirmed his place in Mexico’s 23-man squad for mega footballing event and made his debut in the tournament against Brazil.

His final game for Club América was against Tigres UANL on August 9, 2014. A week later, he completed his transfer to Spanish League giants, Atlético Madrid for a reported 11-million Euros.

His debut season for Atlético did not go as planned as he only managed to score one goal in the 2014-2015 season.

In 2015, West Ham, an English Premier League club tried to sign him on loan, but the deal fell through. He instead signed a five-year contract with Benfica, a big club in the Portuguese League (Liga NOS), and joined them on August 13, 2015.

He enjoyed a good start as Benfica player, scoring his first goal against Moreirense. He also played a significant role for his team in the Champion’s League and helped Benfica reach the quarter-final stage. That season, Benfica won both the League and Portuguese League Cup, with Raul being the top scorer in the latter competition.

He played a total of three seasons for Benfica, and the match against Tondela on December 17, 2017, marked his 100th match for the club (in all competitions).

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He joined Wolverhampton, a newly promoted English Premier League side, on a season long loan on June 12, 2018. He scored 17 goals, and made 8 assists in the 2018-2019 season, making him Wolverhampton’s most prolific goal scorer since Steven Fletcher. The club too secured a Europa League spot for the next season.

Wolverhampton made his loan move permanent by paying €38 million to Benfica in April 2019, and thus Raúl Jiménez became the club’s most expensive purchase at the time. He responded in kind with 22 goals and 7 assists across all competitions in that season.

Major Works

To qualify for the 2014 World Cup in Brazil, Mexico needed to win their last qualifier game against Panama to avoid any complications. Raúl Jiménez’s bicycle kick gave them the goal; the goal won the CONCACAF Goal of the Year.

He was central to Mexico’s exploits in the 2019 CONCACAF Gold Cup as he chipped in with goals and assists. He played in all of Mexico’s matches and scored five goals.

Awards & Achievements

He won the 2013 COCACAF Goal of the Year for his brilliant goal against Panama.

Raúl Jiménez was top scorer for Benfica in 2015-16 Taça da Liga tournament.

For his heroics in the 2019 CONCACAF Gold Cup, he was awarded the Golden Ball and featured in the Best XI roster of the tournament.

Family & Personal Life

Raúl Jiménez is in a committed relationship with Mexican starlet, Daniela Basso since 2017. Daniela is a well-known telenovela actress in Mexico. The two were blessed with their first child, a daughter, on July 21, 2020. They welcomed their second child named Ander in May 2022.

His younger brother, Raúl André, too is pursuing his career in football. Currently, he is one of the goalkeeping prospects in the academy team of Club América.

The Jiménez family is quite popular in their hometown, Tepeji and the community leaders there too have recognized the family through awards.

Trivia

Back in Mexico, Raúl Jiménez is known by his nickname ‘Alo’, which is shortened version of his middle name – Alonso.

Raúl Jiménez Biography