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Emilio
Butragueño
(Spain)
Nicknamed
“The Vulture”, Emilio Butragueño went on to
become one of the most lethal strikers in the Europe
in the 1980s. He was a smart player and always seemed
to be in the right place at the right time scoring
most of his goals from inside the penalty box. He was
born in Madrid and started playing for Real, the club
he was about to serve for most of his career. Emilio
formed a deadly partnership with Mexican Hugo Sanchez
during many successful seasons.
Butragueño scored a
goal in his international debut for Spain against
Wales in October 1984, just months after Spain
finished second in the European Championship. He was a
regular in the team by the 1986 World Cup in Mexico as
Spain looked like serious title contenders. They
progressed rather easily from their first round group
and met Denmark in the second round, a replay of the
semifinal at Euro 84. Butragueño experienced one of
his finest days as soccerplayer as he became the first
man since Eusebio in 1966 to score four goals in a
World Cup match as Spain ran out 5-1 winners against
one of the tournament favourites. A defeat to Belgium
on penalties in the following round ended Spain’s
dream of a first World Cup title.
Emilio failed to show
his real class in Italy four years later and did not
manage to score a single goal in the four games he
played as Spain reached the second round. He was then
the new team captain and took more responsibility in
the defensive work and let Julio Salinas do the
running up front. It was to be the last tournament he
played for Spain. At clublevel, Butragueño had much
more success winning five straight league
championships with Real Madrid during the second half
of the eighties. He left Real in 1995 for a career in
Mexican soccer and retired a couple of years later.
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