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LUÍS MARÍA LÓPEZ-REKARTE
Date of Birth: 23 March, 1962
Nationality: Spain (international in 1988)
Period at Deportivo: 1991 - 1996
Transfer: (1991, from FC Barcelona)
Clubs: Deportivo (1991-1996), FC Barcelona (1988-1991), Real Sociedad (1985-1988), Alavés
Sold: (1996, Mallorca)
Height: 175 cm
Weight: 73 kg
Position: Defender (right)
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 Compared to other players, LÓPEZ-REKARTE was quit old when he made his debut in the Primera División. The Basque player was already twenty-three when he debuted on 31 August, 1985 during a match of his Real Sociedad against Celta de Vigo (1-1). His coach was John Toshack, who later would lead Deportivo for one-and-a-half campaign. Colleagues at the time were quality players like Bakero and Beguiristain, who later triumphed at FC Barcelona. But he also shared the dressing room with Uralde and Mújica, who moved with him to Deportivo in 1991. And there was Elduayen, who would join the Galician club two years after him.
López-Rekarte was a strong defender, who had started his career at Alavés before he moved to Real Sociedad during the eighties. After making his debut for them, he quickly conquered a starting position and played a total of twenty-six Liga matches that campaign, missing some because of minor injuries. His highlight must have been on 12 January, 1986 in the home match against Las Palmas. With two minutes remaining, and a 5-0 score on the board, he picked up the ball in Sociedad’s area and started running with it. After he had crossed the whole pitch, and beaten many rivals, he produced the sixth goal for his team. The crowd in San Sebastián went crazy…
In the two seasons after it he played another sixty-six Liga matches for Real Sociedad, and with them conquered the second place in 1988. Cruyff’s Barcelona was convinced about his qualities, he played four matches with the Spanish national team that year, and together with Bakero and Beguiristain joined the Catalan club that summer. His debut he made in their first Liga match, on 3 September, 1988 against Espanyol (2-0), but he had to limp off injured after just thirty-three matches. But he kept his place in the first eleven, and reached a total of twenty-five matches that season. Basque-oriented Barcelona, also containing Zubizarreta and Julio Salinas, won the Cup Winners’ Cup that season by a 2-0 final win against Sampdoria. Julio Salinas scored their first goal, before substitute López-Rekarte decided the tie.
In 1990 the Copa del Rey was added to his palmares, while Barcelona finished third in the Liga. López-Rekarte played twenty-ones matches that season, but he kept suffering small injuries while the competition kept mounting. This culminated in only thirteen matches during the season 1990/1991, facing heavy competition of new signing Andoni Goicoechea. López-Rekarte didn’t start a Liga match until the final day of the season. At that moment Barcelona had already been proclaimed champions, and would win four Ligas in a row. But three of them would be achieved without López-Rekarte.
 At the age of twenty-nine he didn’t want to be benched anymore, and accepted an offer of recently promoted Deportivo. It proved to be a perfect marriage, as López-Rekarte would be their right defender until 1996. Many Deportivo supporters won’t have too think long to repeat the names of Liaño, Nando, Ribera, Voro, Djukic and López-Rekarte: the defence of Deportivo which was vital for their status of ‘Superdepor’.
Between 1991 and 1996, López-Rekarte ruled the right side and played a total of 149 Liga matches for Deportivo. His debut was unlucky, as on 31 August, 1991 an injury obligated coach Boronat to substitute him. In his first two seasons he was sent off three times, but people forgave hem that. He produced his second Liga goal for Deportivo against his former club, Real Sociedad, in February, 1993.
López-Rekarte achieved two second places with Deportivo in 1993 and 1994, and played the full ninety matches on that fatal day of 14 May, 1994. During the season 1994/1995 Deportivo finished second for a second time in a row, but won the Copa del Rey; the first ever prize of the club, and López-Rekarte was present. Later that summer the Supercopa 1995 was added to the trophy cabinet, after beating Real Madrid 5-1 on aggregate.
But in 1995 the player became thirty-three years old, and his effort had its price. As usual he occupied the right winger, but played less than before. He did reach twenty-seven matches during the season 1995/1996, and scored two goals; his most productive season ever. But at the end of the campaign, Deportivo found itself back at position nine and without qualification for European football.
Nevertheless, López-Rekarte had been part of an unique team which conquered Spain those days. On 26 May, 1996 he was given a standing ovation of the Riazor crowd when he was substituted in the match against his former club Barcelona.
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