Txiki Begiristain facts for kids
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Begiristain in 2016
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| Personal information | ||||||||||||||||
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| Full name | Aitor Begiristain Mujika | |||||||||||||||
| Date of birth | 12 August 1964 | |||||||||||||||
| Place of birth | Olaberria, Spain | |||||||||||||||
| Height | 1.71 m (5 ft 7 in) | |||||||||||||||
| Position(s) | Winger, forward | |||||||||||||||
| Youth career | ||||||||||||||||
| Segura | ||||||||||||||||
| Easo | ||||||||||||||||
| 1980–1982 | Real Sociedad | |||||||||||||||
| Senior career* | ||||||||||||||||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) | |||||||||||||
| 1982 | San Sebastián | 9 | (2) | |||||||||||||
| 1982–1988 | Real Sociedad | 187 | (23) | |||||||||||||
| 1988–1995 | Barcelona | 223 | (63) | |||||||||||||
| 1995–1997 | Deportivo La Coruña | 43 | (4) | |||||||||||||
| 1997–1999 | Urawa Red Diamonds | 61 | (16) | |||||||||||||
| Total | 523 | (108) | ||||||||||||||
| International career | ||||||||||||||||
| 1984–1988 | Spain U21 | 19 | (4) | |||||||||||||
| 1988 | Spain U23 | 1 | (0) | |||||||||||||
| 1988–1994 | Spain | 22 | (6) | |||||||||||||
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Medal record
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| *Club domestic league appearances and goals | ||||||||||||||||
Aitor "Txiki" Begiristain Mujika (born on August 12, 1964) is a Spanish former professional footballer. He played as a left winger or forward.
Txiki is best known for his time playing for Real Sociedad and Barcelona. With Barcelona, he won eight major titles. These included four La Liga championships and the 1992 European Cup.
Begiristain also played for the Spanish national team. He represented his country in one World Cup and one European Championship. After he stopped playing, he became a director of football. He worked for Barcelona for seven years and for Premier League club Manchester City for 12 years.
Contents
Playing Career Highlights
Starting at Real Sociedad
Txiki Begiristain was born in Olaberria, a town in the Basque Country, Spain. He started his professional football journey with Real Sociedad in 1982 when he was 18. He quickly became an important player for the team.
In his first season, he played 16 games in La Liga, Spain's top football league. He helped his team reach the Copa del Rey final in 1987. In that final, he scored a goal against Atlético Madrid. Real Sociedad won the cup after a penalty shootout.
In the 1987–88 season, his team finished second in both the league and the cup. Soon after, Txiki joined Barcelona.
Becoming a Barcelona "Dream Team" Star
Begiristain scored in his very first league game for Barcelona. It was a 2–0 win against Espanyol. In his first year, he played 38 games and scored 12 goals. He also helped Barcelona win the UEFA Cup Winners' Cup in 1989.
He was part of the famous Barcelona team known as the Dream Team. This team won many trophies. During his seven seasons at Barcelona, Txiki played over 300 official matches. He scored 63 goals in the league. His best season was 1992–93, when he scored 15 goals. Barcelona won four league titles in a row during this time. He even scored three goals in a single game (a hat-trick) twice.
Later Years in Spain and Japan
In 1995, Txiki joined Deportivo de La Coruña. He helped his new team win the Supercopa de España. He scored a goal in the away game against Real Madrid, which helped Deportivo win 2–1.
In his last season in Spain, 1996–97, he played ten times. He scored a goal that helped Deportivo finish third in the league. By this time, he had played over 600 competitive matches in Spain. He had also scored more than 100 goals.
Txiki finished his playing career in 1999. He played for three years with the Urawa Red Diamonds in Japan's J1 League. He was 35 years old when he retired.
International Matches for Spain
Begiristain played 22 games for the Spanish national team and scored six goals. His first game was a friendly match against Czechoslovakia in February 1988.
He played for Spain in the UEFA Euro 1988 tournament. He also played in the 1994 FIFA World Cup. His last game for Spain was in the 1994 World Cup. It was a 3–0 win against Switzerland, and he scored the final goal from a penalty.
Life After Playing Football
After retiring as a player, Begiristain worked as a TV commentator. In 2003, he became the director of football for his former club, Barcelona. He held this important role for seven years.
On October 28, 2012, Begiristain joined Manchester City in England. He took on the same role as director of football. During his time at Manchester City, the team won the national league championship seven times. They also achieved a special "treble" in the 2022–23 season, winning three major trophies. He also helped bring in many talented players and his former teammate, Pep Guardiola, as manager.
In October 2024, Begiristain announced he would leave Manchester City in June 2025. He spent 12 years helping the club succeed.
Honours and Achievements
Txiki Begiristain won many titles during his career:
With Real Sociedad
- Copa del Rey: 1986–87
- Supercopa de España: 1982
With Barcelona
- La Liga (Spanish League): 1990–91, 1991–92, 1992–93, 1993–94
- Copa del Rey: 1989–90
- Supercopa de España: 1991, 1992, 1994
- European Cup: 1991–92
- UEFA Cup Winners' Cup: 1988–89
- UEFA Super Cup: 1992
With Deportivo La Coruña
- Supercopa de España: 1995
With Spain U21
See also
In Spanish: Txiki Begiristain para niños
- List of FC Barcelona players (100+ appearances)
- List of La Liga players (400+ appearances)
