Iñigo Larrainzar
Spanish footballer
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Iñigo Larrainzar Santamaría (born 5 June 1971) is a Spanish former professional footballer who played mainly as a right-back.
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Iñigo Larrainzar Santamaría | ||
| Date of birth | 5 June 1971 | ||
| Place of birth | Pamplona, Spain | ||
| Height | 1.73 m (5 ft 8 in) | ||
| Position | Right-back | ||
| Youth career | |||
| Osasuna | |||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 1989–1990 | Osasuna B | 20 | (2) |
| 1990–1993 | Osasuna | 115 | (9) |
| 1993–2003 | Athletic Bilbao | 251 | (6) |
| 2003–2005 | Córdoba | 40 | (0) |
| Total | 426 | (17) | |
| International career | |||
| 1990 | Spain U20 | 1 | (0) |
| 1991 | Spain U21 | 5 | (0) |
| 1991–1992 | Spain U23 | 4 | (0) |
| 1994 | Spain | 1 | (0) |
| 1995–2000 | Basque Country | 4 | (0) |
| 2003 | Navarre | 1 | (0) |
| * Club domestic league appearances and goals | |||
Also a central defender on occasion, his older brother Domingo, often referred to as Larrainzar I, was also a footballer, and both played at Osasuna.[1][2]
Club career
A product of hometown CA Osasuna's youth academy and reserve team, where he played alongside future Athletic Bilbao teammate José Mari, Pamplona-born Larrainzar made his first-team – and La Liga – debut on 21 March 1990 in a 1–0 away loss to Rayo Vallecano, and was definitely promoted to the main squad for the following season; aged 19, he was instrumental, as was brother Domingo, in helping the Navarrese side to finish fourth and qualify for the UEFA Cup.[3]
In the summer of 1993, Athletic Bilbao paid 200 million pesetas to acquire Larrainzar's services, then the second-highest figure by the club, and he was an undisputed starter in the following campaigns.[2] In 1997–98, alongside youth graduate Aitor Larrazábal who played on the opposite flank, he featured in 34 matches and scored two goals to help the Basques to a runner-up place, with direct qualification for the UEFA Champions League.
After some years battling for first-choice status with younger Jesús María Lacruz, who also represented Osasuna (although they did not coincide),[4] and also dealing with injuries,[5][6] Larraínzar moved south for Córdoba CF in the Segunda División,[7] where he played a further two seasons. He retired at the age of 34, with 366 top-flight appearances to his credit.[8]