Place of birth Laredo, Spain Years Team Height 1.82 m Parents Emilio Amavisca Albo | Playing position Team Apps Weight 68 kg | |
 | ||
Full name José Emilio Amavisca Gárate Date of birth (1971-06-19) 19 June 1971 (age 45) Similar Rafael Alkorta, Francisco Buyo, Rafael Martín Vázquez, Manuel Sanchís Hontiyuelo, Iván Zamorano | ||
José Emilio Amavisca Gárate (born 19 June 1971) is a Spanish retired footballer who played mostly as a left winger.
Contents
He was best known for his Real Madrid stint but played for five other clubs, amassing 381 games and 57 goals in both major levels of Spanish football over the course of 16 seasons (307/34 in La Liga alone).
A Spanish international in the '90s, Amavisca represented the country at Euro 1996.
Club career
Born in Laredo, Cantabria, Amavisca made his professional debuts for Real Valladolid (achieving promotion from Segunda División in 1992–93 and being also loaned to UE Lleida in the same level). In the 1994 summer he signed for La Liga giants Real Madrid, initially being deemed surplus to requirements but going on to score ten league goals in his debut season, mostly playing second striker to Iván Zamorano – both were initially seen as third or fourth-string offensive references by manager Jorge Valdano, as the club ended a four-year domestic title drought.
Amavisca's importance with the Merengues would gradually lessen in the subsequent years, however. In January 1999 he joined fellow league club Racing de Santander, thus returning to his native region, and instantly became an essential offensive figure with the side, although his seven league goals in the 2000–01 campaign were not enough to avoid relegation.
Subsequently, Amavisca moved to Deportivo de La Coruña, appearing in 28 games and netting three times for the 2002 runners-up but being sparingly used in the following two years, barred by veteran Fran and new signing Albert Luque. He retired after one season with RCD Espanyol.
International career
After making his Spain debut on 7 September 1994, in an UEFA Euro 1996 qualifier against Cyprus (90 minutes, 2–1 away win), Amavisca appeared in the tournament's final stages, playing four matches in an eventual quarter-final exit. Due to having fallen out of favour at Real Madrid, he was overlooked for the squad at the 1998 FIFA World Cup.
Previously, Amavisca won the gold medal at the 1992 Summer Olympics in Barcelona.