| Fullname | Armando Merodio Pesquera |
|---|---|
| Birth date | 23 August 1935 |
| Birth place | Barcelona, Spain |
| Death date | 21 June 2018 (aged 82) |
| Death place | Bilbao, Spain |
| Height | 1.80 m (5 ft 11 in) |
| Position | Striker |
| Youthclubs 1 | Gallarta |
| Youthclubs 2 | Getxo |
| Youthclubs 3 | Amurrio |
| Years 1 | 1954–1956 |
| Clubs 1 | Barakaldo |
| Caps 1 | 22 |
| Goals 1 | 4 |
| Years 2 | 1956–1963 |
| Clubs 2 | Athletic Bilbao |
| Caps 2 | 88 |
| Goals 2 | 35 |
| Years 3 | 1963–1965 |
| Clubs 3 | Murcia |
| Caps 3 | 55 |
| Goals 3 | 13 |
| Years 4 | 1965–1966 |
| Clubs 4 | Recreativo |
| Caps 4 | 9 |
| Goals 4 | 2 |
| Years 5 | 1966–1967 |
| Clubs 5 | Indautxu |
| Caps 5 | 15 |
| Goals 5 | 3 |
| Totalcaps | 189 |
| Totalgoals | 57 |
| Nationalyears 1 | 1953 |
| Nationalteam 1 | Spain U18 |
| Nationalcaps 1 | 4 |
| Nationalgoals 1 | 1 |
Armando Merodio Pesquera (23 August 1935 – 21 June 2018) was a Spanish footballer who played as a striker.
Football career
Born in Barcelona, Catalonia, where his father (known as 'Txikito Gallarta') was a pelota player,[1] Merodio's family moved back to the Basque Country when he was three years old.[2] He started his professional career with Barakaldo CF but soon signed with Athletic Bilbao, being eligible to represent the club due to learning his football skills in the territory.[3]
Merodio made his La Liga debut on 11 March 1956, scoring in a 2–1 home win against Atlético Madrid. His input during the season, however, was restricted to a further two games as the team won the league and also the Copa del Rey; on 16 January 1957, in the subsequent edition of the European Cup, he found the net in a 5–3 defeat of Manchester United in the quarter-finals' first leg, losing 5–6 on aggregate.[4]
During the 1958–59 campaign, Merodio scored 11 times over four consecutive league games (Athletic won 9–0, 9–0, 8–1 and 7–0).[1] He eventually left the club in 1963 with 104 official appearances and 39 goals, joining Real Murcia also in the top division, playing there for two seasons and suffering relegation in his second.[2]
Merodio closed out his career in 1967 at nearly 32, after one-year spells in the second level with Recreativo de Huelva and SD Indautxu, the latter also in the Basque region. He died on 21 June 2018 in Bilbao, aged 82.[5][2]
Honours
Athletic Bilbao[a]
- ^ He played only the last few league matches in the title season and did not take part in either Cup final, but was credited as a winner of the trophies by the club.[2]
References
- ^ "Nunca nadie marcó tantos goles" [Nobody ever scored so many goals] (in Spanish). El Mundo. 22 February 2016. Retrieved 12 February 2018.
- ^ "Death: Armando Merodio". Athletic Bilbao. 21 June 2018. Retrieved 25 June 2018.
- ^ "Voluntad de tradición" [Will of tradition] (in Spanish). El Correo. 27 May 2001. Retrieved 23 April 2006.
- ^ Prada, Jon (8 March 2012). "Athletic de Bilbao – Manchester United 1956–1957. Un duelo épico en la historia de la Copa de Europa" [Athletic Bilbao – Manchester United 1956–1957. An epic duel in the history of the European Cup] (in Spanish). Vavel. Retrieved 12 February 2018.
- ^ "Armando Merodio Pesquera" (in Spanish). El Correo. 22 June 2018. Retrieved 9 July 2018.