A lot of outfield players have gone in goal, but not many goalkeepers have started a game in La Liga at centre-back
By Euan McTear for These Football Times
One of the sweetest moments in football comes when an outfielder has to don the gloves and finish a match in goal. It does not happen often but it is always thrilling. But what about when the opposite occurs? What about when a goalkeeper is forced to play outfield? That is much rarer. There have been a few examples over the years. Fabien Barthez and Shamal George spent some time outfield during friendlies. David James and Ray Wood even went up front during competitive fixtures – Wood doing do in the FA Cup final. However, Oscar Wirth went further than that. He completed 90 minutes at centre-back for Real Valladolid in La Liga in 1987.
Wirth had already enjoyed an interesting career when he joined Valladolid in the summer of 1986. Not only had he played for all of the “big three” clubs in Chile – Universidad Católica, Colo-Colo and Universidad de Chile – but he had also represented his country at the 1982 World Cup in Spain and had a stint with German club RW Oberhausen.
Continue reading...from The Guardian https://ift.tt/2EzOs17
via
0 Comments