Andoni Zubizarreta facts for kids
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Zubizarreta in 2013
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| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Date of birth | 23 October 1961 | ||
| Place of birth | Vitoria-Gasteiz, Spain | ||
| Height | 1.87 m | ||
| Playing position | Goalkeeper | ||
| Youth career | |||
| 1976–1978 | Aretxabaleta | ||
| 1978–1979 | Alavés | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps† | (Gls)† |
| 1979–1980 | Alavés B | 32 | (0) |
| 1980–1981 | Alavés | 0 | (0) |
| 1981 | Bilbao Athletic | 7 | (0) |
| 1981–1986 | Athletic Bilbao | 169 | (0) |
| 1986–1994 | Barcelona | 301 | (0) |
| 1994–1998 | Valencia | 152 | (0) |
| Total | 661 | (0) | |
| National team | |||
| 1979–1980 | Spain U18 | 12 | (0) |
| 1981 | Spain U19 | 1 | (0) |
| 1979–1984 | Spain U21 | 17 | (0) |
| 1984 | Spain amateur | 1 | (0) |
| 1985–1998 | Spain | 126 | (0) |
| 1993–1997 | Basque Country | 4 | (0) |
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Andoni Zubizarreta Urreta (born 23 October 1961) is a Spanish former football player. He was a famous goalkeeper.
For many years, he was the player with the most appearances for the Spanish national team. He played very successfully for Athletic Bilbao and Barcelona. He played in over 950 official games during his club career. He also held records for the most appearances and "clean sheets" (games without letting in a goal) in La Liga, Spain's top football league.
Zubizarreta played for Spain in seven big international tournaments. These included four World Cups and three European Championships. He won the European Cup with Barcelona in 1992. He also won six La Liga titles, two with Athletic Bilbao and four with Barcelona.
Contents
Club Career Highlights
Starting Out in Basque Country
Andoni Zubizarreta was born in Vitoria-Gasteiz, Spain. He grew up in Aretxabaleta, where he started playing football. After a short time at another local club, Alavés, he joined Athletic Bilbao. He played for Athletic Bilbao for six seasons.
He made his first appearance in La Liga on 19 September 1981. He quickly became the main goalkeeper for Athletic Bilbao. He helped the team win two national championships in a row.
Success with Barcelona
In 1986, Zubizarreta moved to Barcelona. This was a record transfer fee for a goalkeeper at the time. He quickly became Barcelona's starting goalkeeper. He rarely missed a game. He helped Barcelona win four league titles in a row.
In 1992, he helped Barcelona win their first ever European Cup. They won the final 1–0 against Sampdoria.
Finishing at Valencia
After the 1993–94 UEFA Champions League final, where Barcelona lost to AC Milan, Zubizarreta left the club. He finished his playing career at Valencia. He continued to play at a high level. He retired after the 1997–98 season, when he was almost 37 years old. He played in over 1,000 official games in total.
Working as a Director
After retiring from playing, Zubizarreta became a "director of football." This role involves managing the club's football operations, like signing new players. On 2 July 2010, he became Barcelona's director of football. Before that, he worked for Athletic Bilbao in the same role. He also worked as a commentator for radio and TV.
He left Barcelona in January 2015. Later, in October 2016, he joined Ligue 1 team Marseille in France as their director. He left Marseille four years later. In April 2024, he became the director of football for Porto in Portugal.
Playing for Spain
Zubizarreta played his first game for Spain on 23 January 1985. It was a friendly match against Finland. He played 125 more games for Spain over the next 13 years.
He played for Spain in four FIFA World Cups in a row: 1986, 1990, 1994, and 1998. The 1998 World Cup was his last big tournament. He also played in UEFA Euro 1988 and 1996. He was always the starting goalkeeper in these tournaments.
For a long time, he held the record for the most games played for the Spanish national team. Another goalkeeper, Iker Casillas, later broke this record. Zubizarreta also played some games for the unofficial Basque Country regional team.
How He Played
People called Zubizarreta "Zubi." He was known as one of the best goalkeepers in the world during his best years. Many consider him one of Spain's and Barcelona's greatest goalkeepers ever. He was very consistent and calm. He had excellent positioning, meaning he was always in the right place. He focused on being effective rather than flashy. He could also make amazing saves.
He was smart and a strong leader in goal. He helped organize his team's defense. This made his defenders feel calm and confident. He was also known for working hard and playing for a very long time.
However, Zubizarreta was not very good at playing the ball with his feet. Barcelona's coach, Johan Cruyff, wanted his goalkeepers to be good at passing. This weakness was often criticized by his coach. It eventually led to him leaving Barcelona in 1994.
Honours
Athletic Bilbao
- La Liga: 1982–83, 1983–84
- Copa del Rey: 1983–84
- Supercopa de España: 1984
Barcelona
- La Liga: 1990–91, 1991–92, 1992–93, 1993–94
- Copa del Rey: 1987–88, 1989–90
- Supercopa de España: 1991, 1992
- European Cup: 1991–92
- UEFA Cup Winners' Cup: 1988–89
- UEFA Super Cup: 1992
Individual
- Don Balón Award: 1986–87
- Ricardo Zamora Trophy: 1986–87
- La Liga Team of The Year: 1986–87, 1989–90, 1990–91, 1992–93
See Also
In Spanish: Andoni Zubizarreta para niños
- List of men's footballers with 100 or more international caps
- List of men's footballers with the most official appearances
- List of Athletic Bilbao players (+200 appearances)
- List of FC Barcelona players (100+ appearances)
- List of La Liga players (400+ appearances)
