Pichichi (soccer player)

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Pichichi
Bust in memory of Pichichi

Pichichi (Basque Pitxitxi ), bourgeois Rafael Moreno Aranzadi (born May 23, 1892 in Bilbao ; † March 1, 1922 ibid), was a Spanish football player . The striker played for Athletic Bilbao and was one of the first great goalscorers in Spanish football history. In his honor, the top scorer of the Primera División has received the Pichichi trophy since the 1952/53 season .

Career

Pichichi began his football career in 1911 at Athletic Bilbao and quickly became one of Spain's best strikers. He was easily identified on the field by his white hat.

Until 1928 there was no national league football in Spain, so that the best teams mainly competed in the cup competition, the Copa del Rey . With Athletic Bilbao Pichichi won this cup four times, of which 1914 to 1916 three times in a row and in 1921. In a total of 17 cup games with his participation, he scored ten goals. Pichichi was also the first player to score at Athletic Bilbao's new stadium, San Mamés . It was the 1-0 in the opening game against Racing de Irún on August 21, 1913 (final score: 1: 1).

Pichichi played five international matches for the Spanish national team , all at the 1920 Olympic Games in Antwerp . He made his debut in a 1-0 win against Denmark on August 28, 1920, his last game was the game for second place, which Spain won 3-1 against the Netherlands on 5 September with a goal from Pichichi, among other things . Spain won the silver medal.

In 1921 Pichichi ended his career. A year later, on March 1, 1922, he died of typhus at the age of only 29 . In 1926, Athletic Bilbao erected a bust of Pichichi in the San Mamés Stadium. The custom developed for teams that are visiting the stadium for the first time to place a bouquet of flowers on this bust.

In 1953, the sports magazine Marca created an award for the top scorer of the Primera División , which was named Pichichi Trophy in honor and in memory of Pichichi .

In Spanish usage, el pichichi developed into the term for top scorer in general. The term has been included in the 23rd edition of the Diccionario de la lengua española since 2014 .

Web links

Commons : Pichichi  - collection of images, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Internet edition of the 23rd edition.Retrieved on January 4, 2019 (Spanish).
personal data
SURNAME Pichichi
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Moreno Aranzadi, Rafael (real name); Pitxitxi
BRIEF DESCRIPTION spanish soccer player
DATE OF BIRTH May 23, 1892
PLACE OF BIRTH Bilbao
DATE OF DEATH March 1, 1922
Place of death Bilbao