Agustín Guisasola

Agustín Guisasola Zabala (born 22 July 1952) is a Spanish retired footballer who played as a defender.

In this Spanish name, the first or paternal surname is Guisasola and the second or maternal family name is Zabala.
Agustín Guisasola
Guisasola in 1977
Personal information
Full name Agustín Guisasola Zabala
Date of birth (1952-07-22) 22 July 1952
Place of birth Eibar, Spain
Height 1.82 m (5 ft 11 1⁄2 in)
Position(s) Defender
Youth career
Eibar
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
1969–1971 Eibar
1971–1983 Athletic Bilbao 256 (17)
National team
1970 Spain U18 1 (0)
1971 Spain U23 2 (0)
1971–1975 Spain amateur 6 (0)
1980 Spain 1 (0)
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only

During a 13-year professional career he played in more than 300 competitive matches for Athletic Bilbao, winning one La Liga championship.[1]

Club career

Born in Eibar, Gipuzkoa, Guisasola made his senior debut with local SD Eibar at the age of 17, going on to play one-and-a-half seasons in Tercera División there. In late January 1971 he was bought by Basque giants Athletic Bilbao, making his official debut on the 31st in a 2–0 La Liga home win over RC Celta de Vigo, with his team eventually finishing fifth and qualifying for the UEFA Cup.

Midway through the 1971–72 campaign, manager Ronnie Allen was fired, but Guisasola was by now an essential defensive unit for Athletic. During his spell with the club he started as a full back, moved to central defender, was also deployed as a defensive midfielder and finished again in the defensive wings; in two consecutive seasons under Milorad Pavić he scored ten league goals combined, with Bilbao also winning the 1973 edition of the Copa del Rey.

In 1975–76, Guisasola played very little under coach Rafael Iriondo, who also tried to reconvert him in to forward. He regained his importance after the latter's departure, helping the side to two finals in 1977 (both lost, the UEFA Cup against Juventus F.C. and the domestic cup against Real Betis) and being named by L'Équipe Europe's best stopper.[2]

During the better part of his career, Guisasola struggled with weight problems, and his production was highly inconsistent in his final years. An injury to starter José Ramón Alexanko – later of FC Barcelona fame – propelled him to the starting XI once again, and he helped Athletic finish seventh in the 1979–80 season; as they won the league in 1983, under Javier Clemente, he only contributed with four appearances (151 minutes).[2]

Guisasola retired in May 1983 at almost 31, having appeared in 334 official matches for Athletic Bilbao, with neighbouring Real Sociedad being invited to his testimonial match.[3] Subsequently, he lost all connection to the football world.

International career

On 26 March 1980, Guisasola played his first and only game with the Spain national team, starting in a 0–2 friendly loss to England at the Camp Nou.

Honours

Athletic Bilbao

References
  1. "Los cachorros son casi leones" [The pups are almost lions] (PDF). Mundo Deportivo (in Spanish). 23 May 1975. Retrieved 7 December 2015.
  2. Vivanco, Joseba (17 June 2013). "Un defensa con toda la barba" [Full-bearded defender]. Gara (in Spanish). Retrieved 6 April 2017.
  3. "El campeón de Liga, hoy en el Manzanares" [The League champions, today at Manzanares]. El País (in Spanish). 1 June 1983. Retrieved 11 January 2011.
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