Rubén Gracia Calmache, known as Cani, is a Spanish retired footballer. Usually a right midfielder, he also played on the left. During his career, he played almost exclusively with Zaragoza and Villarreal, winning two major titles with the former club and appearing in 327 competitive matches with the latter.
During 2005–06, Cani was one of La Liga's best passers, and at the season's end he signed with Villarreal CF for €11 million. He appeared in 32 games for the 2007–08 runners-up, although he did not score. for the ball in January 2011. In the 2008–09 campaign, after a shaky start, which included not being called to some matches by coach Manuel Pellegrini in spite of being healthy, Cani finished strongly, scoring five times in the last nine appearances, including the final three: Real Madrid, Valencia CF and RCD Mallorca, as Villarreal finished fifth; after the Chilean manager's departure to Real Madrid, he again appeared in the starting XI regularly. Cani continued to be an undisputed starter in 2010–11 – Robert Pires had also left the club. On 9 January 2011, he netted the opener at Real Madrid, with a subtle finish inside the box; already on the bench, he threw a water bottle at opposing manager José Mourinho after the coach celebrated Cristiano Ronaldo's hat-trick in front of his team's bench, being immediately sent off. The one-match suspension was later lifted, and he found the net in the next game, a 3–3 home draw against Sevilla FC for the season's domestic cup, and in the following, scoring from more than 50 metres in a 4–2 home win against CA Osasuna, with the Valencians eventually finishing the league in fourth place; he added three goals in a semi-final run in the UEFA Europa League, including one in each leg of the last-four clash against FC Porto in an eventual 4–7 aggregate loss. On 7 January 2015, Cani joined Atlético Madridon loan for the remainder of the season, after successfully passing a medical. He made his first appearance three weeks later, coming on as a substitute for Arda Turan for the last 27 minutes of a 2–3 home loss to Barcelona for the Spanish Cup quarter-finals.
Later career
On 23 July 2015, Cani terminated his contract with Villarreal and signed a one-year deal with Deportivo de La Coruña the following day. He left at the end of the campaign, contributing with 888 minutes to a 15th-place finish. On 6 July 2016, Cani returned to his first club Zaragoza after agreeing to a two-year deal. Roughly one year later, despite featuring regularly during the second division season, the 36-year-old announced his retirement.
International career
In the run up to the 2006 FIFA World Cup, Spain manager Luis Aragonés called up Cani to a senior team get-together, however he was ultimately not part of the squad at the finals and never won a cap.
