Jesús Castro (Spanish footballer)

Jesús Antonio Castro González (23 January 1951 – 26 July 1993) was a Spanish footballer who played as a goalkeeper.

In this Spanish name, the first or paternal surname is Castro and the second or maternal family name is González.

Jesús Castro
Personal information
Full name Jesús Antonio Castro González
Date of birth (1951-01-23)23 January 1951
Place of birth Oviedo, Spain
Date of death 26 July 1993(1993-07-26) (aged 42)
Place of death Pechón, Spain
Height 1.83 m (6 ft 0 in)
Position(s) Goalkeeper
Youth career
1966–1968 Ensidesa
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
1968–1985 Sporting Gijón 417 (0)
International career
1971 Spain U23 6 (0)
1969–1974 Spain amateur 16 (0)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals

He appeared in 315 La Liga games over 14 seasons with his only club, Sporting de Gijón.[1]

Club career

Born in Oviedo, Asturias, Castro spent his entire professional career with neighbouring club Sporting de Gijón, signing on 11 March 1968 from local amateurs CD Ensidesa. He totalled 64 Segunda División appearances in his first three seasons, including all 38 games in 1969–70 to help the team to promote to La Liga as champions.

Castro made his debut in the top flight on 13 September 1970, in a 2–0 away loss against RC Celta de Vigo.[2] He finished the campaign with 25 matches, in an eventual 12th-place finish.

From 1971 until 1985, Castro all but competed in the top tier. Following the emergence of fellow youth graduate Juan Carlos Ablanedo[3] and a herniated disc injury from which he never recovered and that led to him becoming the first Spanish player to be eligible for a disability grant,[4] he retired at the age of 36. Over the course of three separate editions, he appeared in eight UEFA Cup games.

Personal life

Castro's older brother, Enrique (generally known as Quini), was also a footballer. A striker, he too spent several years with Sporting, also representing FC Barcelona and Spain.[5][6] With 763 appearances between the siblings in the Spanish top flight, they ranked second in this list behind Julio and Patxi Salinas at the time of their retirement.[7]

Death

On 26 July 1993, aged 42, Castro rescued two English boys and their father from drowning in the beach of Pechón, in Cantabria. He managed to do so but, exhausted, died shortly after.[8][9][1]

Honours

See also

References
  1. Casado, Edu (24 January 2014). "Quién fue… Jesús Castro: otro héroe que sacrificó su vida por la de dos desconocidos" [Who was… Jesús Castro: another hero who sacrificed his life for that of two strangers]. 20 minutos (in Spanish). Retrieved 18 March 2016.
  2. "2–0: El Gijón no fue enemigo de cuidado para el Celta de Vigo" [2–0: Gijón posed no real threat to Celta de Vigo]. Mundo Deportivo (in Spanish). 14 September 1970. Retrieved 18 March 2016.
  3. Rosety, Manuel (1 September 2013). "Una leyenda en la portería gijonesa" [A legend in Gijón's goal]. El Comercio (in Spanish). Archived from the original on 9 July 2014. Retrieved 18 March 2016.
  4. Galaz, Mábel (6 January 1989). "Maceda estudia solicitar una pensión por invalidez permanente a la Seguridad Social" [Maceda considering Social Security pension request due to permanent disability]. El País (in Spanish). Retrieved 18 March 2016.
  5. "Los inicios de Quini y Castro" [The beginnings of Quini and Castro]. El Comercio (in Spanish). Retrieved 16 March 2016.
  6. "El Ayuntamiento rendirá homenaje a Quini a partir de mañana con una exposición y la inauguración de un parque" [City Hall will pay homage to Quini as of tomorrow with exhibit and opening of park] (in Spanish). Europa Press. 12 June 2008. Retrieved 18 March 2016.
  7. Viñarás de Blas, Vidal (1 February 2017). "Hermanos de Primera" [Top-class brothers] (in Spanish). Cuadernos de Fútbol. Retrieved 29 March 2023.
  8. Braña, Mario (27 July 1993). "Castro, ex portero del Sporting, se ahoga tras salvar a un niño" [Castro, former Sporting goalkeeper, drowns after rescuing boy]. El País (in Spanish). Retrieved 16 March 2016.
  9. "Avilés se volcó en el ultimo adiós al ex portero Castro" [Avilés closed ranks in last goodbye to former goalkeeper Castro] (PDF). La Vanguardia (in Spanish). 29 July 1993. Retrieved 18 March 2016.
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