Roberto López Ufarte
 López Ufarte as a Real Sociedad player | |||
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Roberto López Ufarte | ||
| Date of birth | 19 April 1958 | ||
| Place of birth | Fes, Morocco | ||
| Height | 1.70 m (5 ft 7 in) | ||
| Position(s) | Forward | ||
| Youth career | |||
| Real Unión | |||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 1974–1975 | Real Unión | ||
| 1975–1976 | San Sebastián | ||
| 1975–1987 | Real Sociedad | 363 | (101) |
| 1987–1988 | Atlético Madrid | 27 | (8) |
| 1988–1989 | Betis | 28 | (3) |
| Total | 418 | (112) | |
| International career | |||
| 1975–1976 | Spain U18 | 10 | (4) |
| 1976–1977 | Spain U21 | 3 | (0) |
| 1977–1982 | Spain | 15 | (5) |
| Managerial career | |||
| 2000–2001 | Real Sociedad B | ||
| *Club domestic league appearances and goals | |||
Roberto López Ufarte (born 19 April 1958) is a Spanish former professional footballer who played as a forward.
Nicknamed The little devil, most of his 15-year career was spent at Real Sociedad where he remained 12 seasons, winning four major titles including two La Liga championships.[1] He also represented in the competition Atlético Madrid and Betis, amassing totals of 418 matches and 112 goals.
López Ufarte appeared for Spain at the 1982 World Cup.
Club career
[edit]López Ufarte was born in Fes, Morocco. His parents, from Andalusia and Catalonia, moved abroad in search of work, and arrived in Morocco (then part of Spain) in 1944 during the Second World War. They returned to Irun (Basque Country) after about 22 years in Morocco. After making his early footballing efforts at neighbouring Real Unión he signed for Real Sociedad, making his La Liga debut in the 1975–76 season, playing his first game in the competition on 30 November 1975 in a 2–0 derby away loss against Athletic Bilbao aged only 17. From then on he became an essential first-team member, scoring 16 goals in 63 matches in the side's back-to-back league titles.[2]
López Ufarte left the Txuriurdin in 1987, after another solid season: 33 games and ten goals in the league, and the conquest of the Copa del Rey. He scored 129 goals in 474 official appearances during his spell.[2]
After one season with Atlético Madrid (third place), López Ufarte closed his career at Real Betis at the age of 31, after struggling with knee injuries and seeing his team relegate to the Segunda División.[3][4] He then acted as assistant manager to several coaches at his first professional club,[5] following which he returned to Real Unión as director of football.[6]
International career
[edit]López Ufarte won 15 caps for the Spain national team in five years. His debut came on 21 September 1977, scoring in 2–1 friendly win in Switzerland.[7]
López Ufarte appeared for the nation at the 1982 FIFA World Cup which was held on home ground, playing his last match in a 1–2 second group-stage loss against West Germany.[8]
International goals
[edit]| # | Date | Venue | Opponent | Score | Result | Competition[9] |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | 21 September 1977 | Wankdorf, Bern, Switzerland |  Switzerland |
1–2 | 1–2 | Friendly |
| 2. | 14 October 1981 | Luis Casanova, Valencia, Spain |  Luxembourg |
1–0 | 3–0 | Friendly |
| 3. | 14 October 1981 | Luis Casanova, Valencia, Spain | Luxembourg |
3–0 | 3–0 | Friendly |
| 4. | 18 November 1981 | Stadion ŁKS, Łódź, Poland |  Poland |
0–1 | 2–3 | Friendly |
| 5. | 16 June 1982 | Luis Casanova, Valencia, Spain |  Honduras |
1–1 | 1–1 | 1982 FIFA World Cup |
Honours
[edit]Real Sociedad
See also
[edit]- List of La Liga players (400+ appearances)
- List of Real Sociedad players
- List of Spain international footballers born outside Spain
References
[edit]- ^ F. Mendiola, Jorge (12 March 2011). "Griezmann y López Ufarte, 'les petits diables' cara a cara" [Griezmann and López Ufarte, 'les petits diables' face to face]. El Diario Vasco (in Spanish). Retrieved 28 December 2016.
- ^ a b Vázquez de Balmaseda, Ignacio (5 May 2016). "Leyendas de la Real: López Ufarte" [Real legends: López Ufarte] (in Spanish). Vavel. Retrieved 28 December 2016.
- ^ Méndez, Juan (3 July 1988). "López Ufarte firmó con el Betis por dos temporadas" [López Ufarte signed with Betis for two seasons]. El País (in Spanish). Retrieved 2 March 2022.
- ^ Ríos, Ricardo (3 July 1989). "No hubo milagre en Sevilla" [No miracle in Seville]. Mundo Deportivo (in Spanish). Retrieved 2 March 2021.
- ^ Muñoz-Baroja, Juan (26 October 1999). "La Real destituye a Bernd Krauss" [Real dismiss Bernd Krauss]. El País (in Spanish). Retrieved 2 March 2022.
- ^ "López Ufarte: "Nos falta experiencia para cerrar los partidos"" [López Ufarte: "We don't have enough experience to close a match"]. Marca (in Spanish). 20 January 2010. Retrieved 31 August 2018.
- ^ De la Riva, Mario (5 September 2016). "Los 11 jugadores nacidos fuera de España con más partidos" [The 11 players born outside of Spain with the most matches]. As (in Spanish). Retrieved 28 December 2016.
- ^ "World Cup 1982 finals". RSSSF. Retrieved 25 February 2015.
- ^ "López Ufarte". European Football. Retrieved 28 December 2016.
External links
[edit]- Roberto López Ufarte at BDFutbol
- Roberto López Ufarte at National-Football-Teams.com
- Roberto López Ufarte – FIFA competition record (archived)
 | ||
- 1958 births
- Living people
- Moroccan people of Spanish descent
- Spanish people of Catalan descent
- Spanish men's footballers
- Footballers from Fez, Morocco
- Footballers from Irun
- Men's association football forwards
- La Liga players
- Tercera División players
- Real Unión footballers
- Real Sociedad B footballers
- Real Sociedad footballers
- Atlético Madrid footballers
- Real Betis players
- Spain men's youth international footballers
- Spain men's under-21 international footballers
- Spain men's international footballers
- 1982 FIFA World Cup players
- Basque Country men's international footballers
- Spanish football managers
- Tercera División managers
- Real Sociedad B managers
- Real Sociedad non-playing staff