11 Facts About Andoni Zubizarreta

Andoni Zubizarreta Urreta is a Spanish former professional footballer who played as a goalkeeper.

Andoni Zubizarreta won the European Cup with Barcelona in 1992 and six La Liga titles, two with Athletic and four with Barcelona.

Andoni Zubizarreta 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.

Milan in the final, Andoni Zubizarreta was deemed surplus to requirements and finished his career at Valencia CF, still playing at a high level.

Andoni Zubizarreta was named Barcelona's director of football by president Sandro Rosell on 2 July 2010, taking over from former club and national teammate Txiki Begiristain.

On 5 January 2015, Andoni Zubizarreta was sacked as Barcelona director of football by club president Josep Maria Bartomeu.

Andoni Zubizarreta went on to collect a further 125 caps in the following 13 years.

Andoni Zubizarreta played matches with the unofficial Basque Country regional side.

Andoni Zubizarreta was highly consistent, level-headed and effective, with an excellent positional sense above all things, and he favoured an efficient rather than spectacular style although he was capable of producing decisive saves due to his good shot-stopping abilities.

Andoni Zubizarreta stood out for his intelligence, composure and charismatic leadership in goal, which enabled him to organise his back-line and inspire a sense of calm and confidence in his defenders; he was known for his work-rate and longevity, as well as his ability to rush off his line.

In spite of Barcelona's passing-based playing style under Johan Cruyff, which saw his defenders and goalkeepers given more responsibilities in terms of retaining possession and playing the ball out from the back, Andoni Zubizarreta was not particularly adept with the ball at his feet.