Celta in 2009 Joselu played his two first professional matches for local
Celta Vigo in the
second division, late in the
2008–09 season. Since the age of 18, at about the same time he made his debuts with the main squad, he played with
the B-team in the
third level. In late summer 2009, Joselu was purchased by
Real Madrid, being immediately loaned to his former team for a further campaign. He was relatively used during
the division two campaign, but only scored four goals as the team finished in 12th position.
Real Madrid in 2011 Joselu was
Real Madrid Castilla's top scorer in the
2010–11 season, alongside
Álvaro Morata, but the team failed to win promotion in
the playoffs. On 21 May 2011, he made his first-team – and
La Liga – debut, coming on as a
substitute for
Karim Benzema for the last ten minutes of a home fixture against
Almería: he scored almost immediately from a
Cristiano Ronaldo cross, making it 8–1 to the hosts. On 20 December 2011, in his second official appearance for the main squad, Joselu replaced Benzema in the 77th minute of the home match against
Ponferradina, for
the season's
Copa del Rey. He scored the goal to make the match 4–1 two minutes later, in an eventual 5–1 win. In
his second season with Castilla, Joselu became an essential offensive unit for manager
Alberto Toril, and responded by netting 26 goals (19 in the
regular season and seven in
the playoffs) which made him the competition's top scorer, as his team were promoted to division two after five years, as champions. He subsequently attracted the attention of several European clubs. Joselu said in 2015 that he did not regret his time at Real Madrid despite his limited first-team opportunities, due to his experiences training with its players and manager
José Mourinho.
TSG Hoffenheim On 8 August 2012, Joselu signed a four-year contract with
TSG Hoffenheim for an undisclosed fee. He made his
Bundesliga debut on 16 September, playing 30 minutes in a 3–5 away loss against
SC Freiburg, and scored his first goal for his new club ten days later, contributing to a 3–0 success at
VfB Stuttgart, and added a brace against
SpVgg Greuther Fürth on 19 October 2012. He played 25 times for 1899 Hoffenheim, scoring five goals as they finished in 16th position.
Loan to Eintracht Frankfurt At the end of his first season with Hoffenheim, Joselu admitted that he struggled to adapt to his new surroundings and was loaned out to Bundesliga rivals
Eintracht Frankfurt for the
2013–14 season. In his
only season there he made 32 appearances, scoring 10 goals. therefore fulfilling a lifelong ambition to play in England's top division. He made his
Premier League debut on 15 August away to
Tottenham Hotspur, as a 59th-minute substitute for
Jonathan Walters; he won a penalty when fouled by
Toby Alderweireld, converted by
Marko Arnautović as Stoke came from 2–0 down to draw 2–2. On 28 December, after coming on in place of compatriot
Bojan, Joselu scored his first goal for the Potters in a 4–3 win at
Everton. He played 27 times for Stoke in
2015–16, scoring four goals as the team finished in ninth position. Towards the end of the campaign, Stoke manager
Mark Hughes stated that Joselu had made a slow start to life in English football.
Loan to Deportivo La Coruña On 31 August 2016, Joselu returned to Galicia to join
Celta's rivals Deportivo La Coruña on a season-long loan deal. He scored his first goals for the team on 10 December, a two-minute brace as a substitute to give them the lead in an eventual 3–2 loss on his return to Real Madrid. Joselu scored six goals in 24 appearances for Deportivo before his season was ended due to an Achilles injury.
Newcastle United On 16 August 2017, Joselu joined Premier League side
Newcastle United on a three-year deal for a fee of £5 million. He made his debut four days later as a 52nd-minute substitute for
Dwight Gayle in a 1–0 loss at
Huddersfield Town, and scored his first goal for the club in a 3–0 home win over
West Ham United on 26 August. Much like his fellow forwards, Joselu's form was inconsistent as Newcastle faltered in the league, but he was still top scorer by January when he scored in a 1–1 draw with
Swansea City, although he also had his penalty saved by
Nick Pope in a 1–1 draw with
Burnley. He ended up finishing the season as third highest top scorer behind Gayle and
Ayoze Pérez. In the
2018–19 season, Joselu was fourth choice behind Pérez and new signings
Salomón Rondón and
Yoshinori Muto. The two league goals he scored all season both came in August in losses to
Tottenham Hotspur and
Chelsea. His final goal for the club came in a FA Cup third round replay victory over
Blackburn Rovers on 15 January 2019, but by March, he was out of the squad altogether.
Alavés On 15 July 2019, Joselu returned to La Liga to join
Alavés on a three-year contract, for an undisclosed fee, reported to be around £2.5 million. On his debut on 18 August, he scored the only goal at home to
Levante, while on 24 November he netted both goals in the last six minutes away to fellow
Basque club
Eibar. In
2020–21, he scored home and away against Real Madrid, including in a 2–1 win at the
Santiago Bernabéu on 28 November for his club's first victory at that venue since May 2000. In Joselu's
final season at the
Mendizorrotza Stadium before the end of his contract in 2022, he was the league's seventh highest scorer with 14 goals in 37 games.
Espanyol in 2022 On 27 June 2022, following Alavés relegation from La Liga, Joselu signed a three-year deal with
Espanyol as a
free agent. He made his debut for the club on 13 August against former club Celta where he scored from a penalty, after being awarded via
VAR for a 2–2 draw. With 16 goals in 34 games for the relegated Catalans, he was La Liga's third highest scorer, behind
Robert Lewandowski of
Barcelona and Karim Benzema of Real Madrid.
Return to Real Madrid on loan On 19 June 2023, Real Madrid announced the return of Joselu on a loan deal until 30 June 2024, with an option to buy at the end of the season. On 12 August 2023, he made his first appearance after the return coming on at the 80th minute in a 2–0 win against
Athletic Bilbao in the league. On 2 September 2023, Joselu scored his first goal of the season against
Getafe in a 2–1 win. On 20 September 2023, Joselu made his first
UEFA Champions League appearance in a
group stage match against
Union Berlin. On 29 November, he scored his first Champions League goal, securing a 4–2 win against
Napoli. On 12 December, he scored a brace in a 3–2 away win over Union Berlin, in which Real Madrid finished top of their Group C with six wins out of six matches. On 14 January 2024, Joselu won his first club career trophy, as he participated in Madrid's
2024 Supercopa de España triumph, scoring the winning goal in the semi-final against
Atlético Madrid and coming on as a substitute in the
final versus Barcelona. On 8 May, Joselu scored two late and decisive goals for Real Madrid in a 2–1 victory against
Bayern Munich in the
Champions League semi-finals second leg to send them through to the
final, which Real Madrid later ended up winning 2–0 against
Borussia Dortmund at
Wembley Stadium in
London. After the season, Madrid picked up the option to sign him permanently for the price of 1.5 million euros.
Al-Gharafa On 28 June 2024, it was announced that Joselu had joined
Qatar Stars League side
Al Gharafa from Real Madrid on a two-year deal, exactly one day after the Spanish club signed the player. Joselu made his debut for
Gharafa against
Al-Khor on August 9 2024, He scored his first goal for the club against
Qatar SC in the 72nd minute. Joselu was instrumental in Gharafa's success helping them reach a third-place finish in the
Qatar Stars League and scoring 15 goals in 30 matches. He also contributed in winning the
2025 Emir Cup. In the final, Joselu scored a spectacular header which doubled his side’s advantage in the 18th minute, leaping to power in a precise header from a loose ball, enabling
Al-Gharafa to win over
Al-Rayyan. ==International career==