Rafael Iriondo
Rafael Iriondo Aurtenechea (24 October 1918 – 24 February 2016) was a Spanish football player and manager. He played as a forward. He won a total of 286 games and scored over 88 goals over the course of 15 seasons. He played for Athletic Bilbao and Real Sociedad. He became a manager, working for nearly 30 years and being in charge of both clubs.
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Rafael Iriondo Aurtenechea | ||
| Date of birth | 24 October 1918 | ||
| Place of birth | Guernica, Spain | ||
| Date of death | 24 February 2016 (aged 97) | ||
| Place of death | Bilbao, Spain | ||
| Height | 1.71 m (5 ft 7 in) | ||
| Playing position | Forward | ||
| Youth career | |||
| Gernika | |||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 1939–1940 | Atlético Tetuán | ||
| 1940–1953 | Athletic Bilbao | 258 | (79) |
| 1953 | Barakaldo | 3 | (1) |
| 1953–1955 | Real Sociedad | 28 | (9) |
| 1955 | Indautxu | 1 | (0) |
| Total | 290 | (89) | |
| National team | |||
| 1946–1947 | Spain | 2 | (1) |
| Teams managed | |||
| 1955–1956 | Indautxu | ||
| 1958–1959 | Alavés | ||
| 1961–1962 | Barakaldo | ||
| 1968–1969 | Athletic Bilbao | ||
| 1970 | Español | ||
| 1971–1972 | Zaragoza | ||
| 1972–1974 | Real Sociedad | ||
| 1974–1976 | Athletic Bilbao | ||
| 1976–1978 | Betis | ||
| 1980 | Rayo Vallecano | ||
| 1981–1982 | Betis | ||
| * Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only | |||
Early life
Iriondo was born in Guernica, Spain.
Career
Iriondo began his career in 1939 with the football team Atlético Tetuán.
After 328 official games for Athletic with 115 goals, Iriondo moved to another team in the region, Barakaldo CF, in 1953. After a couple of months, however, he returned to the top division and joined Real Sociedad. He retired shortly after the end of the 1954–55 season.
Iriondo started coaching quickly after retiring, with modest SD Indautxu in the second division.[1] He continued in his native Basque Country in the following years, with Deportivo Alavés and Barakaldo.[2]
Iriondo retired in 1982 after coaching Real Betis.
Death
Iriondo died on 24 February 2016 in Bilbao, Spain from respiratory failure. He was aged 97.
References
- ↑ Historia (History) Archived 2017-04-06 at the Wayback Machine; Indautxu's official website (in Spanish)
- ↑ Entrenadores (Managers); Barakaldo's official website (in Spanish)
Other websites
- National team data Archived 2012-03-14 at the Wayback Machine (in Spanish)
- Rafael Iriondo at National-Football-Teams.com
- Spain stats at Eu-Football