Andoni Zubizarreta

Andoni Zubizarreta

Zubizarreta in 1996
Personal information
Full name	Andoni Zubizarreta Urreta
Date of birth	(1961-10-23) 23 October 1961 (age 55)
Place of birth	Vitoria, Spain
Height	1.87 m (6 ft 2 in)
Playing position	Goalkeeper
Youth career
1976–1978	Aretxabaleta
1978–1979	Alavés
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps	(Gls)
1979–1980	Alavés B
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		629	(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)
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only.

Andoni Zubizarreta Urreta (Basque pronunciation: [andoni s̻uβis̻areta ureta], Spanish: [anˈdoni θuβiˈθareta uˈreta]; born 23 October 1961) is a retired Spanish footballer who played as a goalkeeper.

The all-time most capped player for the Spanish national team for several years, he played with individual and team success for Athletic Bilbao and Barcelona (eight years with the latter, he would later work with the club in directorial capacities), appearing in more than 950 official professional matches during his club career.

Zubizarreta represented Spain in seven major international tournaments, four World Cups and three European Championships, starting in six of those.

Born in Vitoria-Gasteiz, Álava, Zubizarreta spent his childhood in Aretxabaleta in Gipuzkoa, where he began his football career. After a brief passage at another Basque club, Deportivo Alavés, he joined Athletic Bilbao, where he would spend the following six seasons.

Zubizarreta's debut in La Liga occurred on 19 September 1981 as manager Javier Clemente handed him a start in a 0–2 away loss against Atlético Madrid, one month shy of his 20th birthday. He went on to be an undisputed starter for the remainder of his spell, being an instrumental part in the team's conquests, most notably the back-to-back national championships.