In is first spell with Sporting Gijón, Quini showed how quick and poweful he was up front and his imeccable finishing
with both his feet and his head impressed. It was no conicidence that he was Pichichi on three different occasions with the
Asturian team.
Barça finally managed to prise him away from Sporting in 1980 after several years of trying. At 31,
he was still very effective and had lost none of his sharpness in front of goal. During his first campaign at Camp Nou he
was kidnapped, but later released unharmed. Three months later he came up against the Sporting team, where he eventually played
for 12 years, in the Copa del Rey final and showed true professionalism to score twice and help the Blaugrana to victory.
At about two o’clock n March 1st, 1981, and after Barcelona defeated Hercules 6-0, a game in which Quini scored
two goal, Quini was kidnpped by two individuals at gun point and taken away in their car starting a 25 day ordeal for both
the player and club. Concerned for Quini’s wife and children, teammates Alexanko, Segura and Club President Nunez all
spent the night at Quini’s home, amid great tension.
The Barcelona players, especially his great friend Schuster,
contemplated refusing playing any further games until Quini’s release but decided to play on without him. His kidnapping
affected the club’s performance resulting in 1 point from the 6 games.
After his release 25 days after his kidnapping,
Quini had good words for her captors and withdrew the indictment against them, while FC Barcelona decided to pursue the case
and ask for thirty-five million pesetas for compensation in damages for having lost the league title that was well on track
before the kidnapping. The lawyer also asked for twenty-three years' imprisonment for kidnappers and two for the abettor.
The judgement delivered on January 15th, sentenced the accused to ten years in prison and to pay five million to the player.
Overall, Quini scored 219 goals in the Spanish First Division, captured the Pichichi Trophy five times, and is considered
by many to be one of the greatest attacking players in Spanish history and the greatest player in Sporting de Gijon history.
Quini
played for Spain in the 1978 and 1982 World Cups, as well as the 1976 and 1980 European Championships.
Trofeo Pichichi
Real
Sporting - 1973/1974 - 20 goles - Primera División
Real Sporting - 1975/1976 - 21 goles - Primera División
Real Sporting
- 1979/1980 - 24 goles - Primera División
FC Barcelona - 1980/1981 - 20 goles - Primera División
FC Barcelona - 1981/1982
- 26 goles - Primera División
On February 7, 2008 Quini was operated for a cancerous condition and is now recovering from that procedure. This unleashed
the solidarity of the Spanish fans who flooded the former players with comments of support and affection.
