Last update 25 March, 2014 by Alberto Llopis
Pichichi was the first great scorer in football history. In Spain, the top scorer in a team trophy and the top scorer in the league is given the name Pichichi. But as you probably know our readers, a trophy scorer of Athletic Bilbao is due to early last century. That's why, in Hanged by football, we want to get a little more in his biography, to know a little more about it, to learn more about Pichichi.
Rafael Moreno Aranzandi, as it was called really, was born on 23 May 1892, in Bilbao. He was the nephew of the writer Miguel de Unamuno, And according to the legend, received the nickname “Pichichi” of the older boys in his neighborhood, with which he insisted on playing. characteristic player, always he wore a white scarf tied around his head.
He was one of the first players to excel in the world of football. The chronicles of his time old Pichichi had a spectacular physical, good dribbling ability, scored from crushing head, which already I had merit seeing balls of his time and an unerring shot. When Pichichi debuted at Athletic Bilbao, League did not yet exist and played a kind of regional championship, besides Cup Spain. In total, between the two scorer scored competitions 101 goals in 157 parties, almost nothing.
Besides, He passed into history 21 of August of 1913, being the first player to score a goal “Cathedral”, at San Mames, the opening day. It was part of the Spanish team that won silver in Antwerp 1920, the birthplace ” Red fury“. Also, he helped win four titles Athletic Cup(1914, 1915, 1916 y 1921).
debuted in 1911 and just ten years later, in 1921, he retired as a player to start exercising as arbitrator, but his career as trencilla would not last long. In 1922, due Typhus, Pichichi, he would die at the age of 29 years, leaving a legend despite having left football soon and this world.
In 1962, el Athletic, He decided to pay tribute and built a bust placed in one of the stands of the old stadium San Mames. It existed from the time the tradition that every team visiting “Cathedral” for the first time, pays tribute to the bust of Pichichi, depositing the opposing team captain next to Athletic in that game, a bouquet of flowers in front of the figure of the mythical Basque player. Incidentally Bust, continues in the new San Mames. In addition, as we said at the beginning, the newspaper Marca, He put his name to the trophy top scorer in the league in tribute, nickname that has already been the history for any player can be the top scorer, as was Pichichi, the first goalscorer in history.
