The central defender, the second most-capped player in Ecuador's history at the time, had previously played in Europe with Eredivise side Vitesse Arnhem.
Espinoza, who featured for his country at both the 2002 and 2006 World Cup finals, won two league titles with LDU Quito and has also captained Cruzeiro.
The player's nickname is La Sombra, or "The Shadow".
The defender had long been tracked by a number of clubs and it was Cardiff's failure to reach the top flight which prompted their decision to cash in.
He began his career with Wycombe Wanderers, though he was also on the books of Portsmouth and Bournemouth as a youngster, making 159 appearances for the Chairboys before moving to Ninian Park for £275,000 in the summer of 2006.
Johnson was Cardiff's Player of the Year in 2007-08 as they lost to Portsmouth in the final of the FA Cup.
The player became one of the finest performers in the Championship in 2008-09, named in the divisional team of the year and again being named the Bluebirds' Player of the Year.
That led to interest from the Premier League and he moved to Birmingham after 119 appearances and 12 goals for Cardiff.
The striker had begun his career at El Nacional, where he impressed with his power and goalscoring ability.
The son of one of Ecuador's all time top scoring players, Ermen Benítez, he was a member of the Ecuador national team at the 2006 FIFA World Cup and his speed, elusiveness, and skill with the ball made him one of the standout performers.
Scoring nearly a goal every other game for Ecuador, Benitez has forged himself a decent reputation at international level and he made an unexpected move to Santos Laguna of the Primera División de México and quickly established himself as one of the best foreign strikers in the league.
Benitez starred in the Mexican Clausura in 2008, where he led the team to the title and was voted the best player of the season; and in June, 2009, he signed a three-year contract for Birmingham.
The Russia international made the move after a five-year stint with CSKA. He joined them in 2004 from Spartak Tambov. He made his debut for Tambov in 2001 and scored 26 goals in 74 games for the Russian third division outfit.
But it was at CSKA where he cemented his place as a wide man with a deft left foot, lightning pace and exceptional dribbling ability - scoring 15 goals in 139 appearances for the club.
He can play left-back but is comfortable in any position on that wing and it was as a more attacking midfielder that he won the UEFA Cup in 2005 after scoring during a 3-1 win over Sporting Lisbon in the final.
Zhirkov made his Russia debut in 2005 against Italy and has since made 31 appearances for his country - the majority of which have come under Chelsea's former interim boss Guus Hiddink.
He was named in the Euro 2008 'Team of the Tournament' after an impressive contribution throughout the competition as a wing-back when Russia were the surprise package in making the semi-finals. They lost to eventual winners Spain.
Zhirkov won the Russian Premier League twice with CSKA in 2005 and 2006 and has three Russian Cups to his name, in 2005, 2006 and 2008.
Real Madrid are not interested in signing Cesc Fabregas from Arsenal, according to the club's sporting director Miguel Pardeza.
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Cesc Fabregas: Seemingly not Berna-bound.
The Spanish giants insist they will not bid for the Arsenal playmaker even if they fail in their quest to land Liverpool's Xabi Alonso.
Real have consistently been linked with a move for Fabregas but it seems former club Barcelona are favourites to snare him if he does leave the Emirates.
"He is a great player, there's no doubt about that. But at this moment he is not an target for Real Madrid. The club are working on other alternatives,'' he said.
Pardeza also confirmed negotiations with Liverpool over Alonso had reached an impasse, but that they still hadn't given up hope of resolving the situation.
"Madrid must not discard an option until it's totally gone. Now there is an insurmountable financial barrier, but it's something that could change. We're looking for alternatives, although there aren't many.''
Madrid have already spent close to £200million on four new signings - Cristiano Ronaldo, Kaka, Karim Benzema and Raul Albiol - this summer but are still looking to add a couple more players as they seek a return to winning ways after ending last season empty-handed.
Two of those new arrivals, Ronaldo and Benzema, were part of the Madrid squad that started pre-season training today.
Also taking to the pitches at Madrid's Valdebebas training ground this morning were new coach Manuel Pellegrini, who replaced Juande Ramos in June after five seasons at Villarreal, as well as Ezequiel Garay and Alvaro Negredo.
Centre-back Garay was signed from Racing Santander last summer but remained on loan at the Cantabrian club, while highly-rated striker Negredo has spent the last two seasons on loan at Almeria.
A selection of youth team players were amongst the 29 players who trained today, while Mohamadou Diarra and Ruud van Nistelrooy, who both missed most of last season with injury, also took part in the session.
However, the club's other two big summer signings to date, Kaka and Albiol, along with Iker Casillas, Sergio Ramos, Javi Garcia and Dani Parejo were all absent as they are still holidaying due to their international commitments this summer.
On Monday, Madrid will travel to Ireland for a training camp that lasts until July 22.
Once Madrid complete that trip, during which they will face Shamrock Rovers in a friendly, the team return to the Spanish capital to take part in the Peace Cup from July 26 to August 2, after which they are scheduled to head to North America for matches in Toronto and DC United on August 7 and 9.
Madrid have also organised a match against Borussia Dortmund on August 19, before facing AC Milan in the Santiago Bernabeu Trophy on August 25 ahead of the start of the new Primera Division season.
Madrid's season will open with a home game against Deportivo La Coruna.
A natural leader, the Belgian international can play at left-back but plies his trade mainly in the heart of defence where his power and strength are an obstacle for most opposition players.
Although he began his career at Germinal Ekeren in Belgium, in 2000 he joined the academy of Dutch side Ajax.
Learning under some of the best coaches in Europe, Vermaelen made his debut for the Amsterdam side at the age of 18 and made 143 appearances for them as he worked his way up to become club captain.
He made his debut for Belgium in March 2006 and has cemented his place as a regular at international level, while also forging a reputation as one of the brightest, young defensive talents in Europe.
Choosing to join the Gunners in the summer of 2009, Vermaelen signed for an initial fee of €10m and will provide competition for the likes of Kolo Toure and William Gallas in the centre of Arsenal's defence.
