Antón Achalandabaso Zabala, better known as Antón (4 April 1898 – 1 October 1939), was a Spanish footballer who played as a defender for Athletic Bilbao in the early 1920s. He is best known for being the first-ever player-coach in the history of Real Valladolid, when he captained and coach said club in the early 1930s.
Biography
Antón Achalandabaso was born in the Biscayan town of Erandio on 4 April 1898, Achalandabaso began his career playing as a defender at his hometown club Athletic Bilbao, making his debut on 20 February 1921, aged 23. In total, he played seven official matches for Bilbao between 1921 and 1923, all of which in the Biscay Championship, thus being a member of the Bilbao squad that won the championships 1920–21 and 1922–23.
In 1925, Achalandabaso joined Racing de Santander, where he apparently retired after just one season. He then appeared in Valladolid in 1926, where he played, to pass the time, in the ranks of Español, Ferroviaria, and then Real Valladolid, which at the time played in the Tercera División under István Plattkó. In 1930, however, Plattkó decided to change teams, so he was replaced by Achalandabaso, who held that position for three seasons until 1934, when he was dismissed after failing to lead the team to the Segunda División. During these three years, he also captained Valladolid on the field, thus becoming the club's first-ever player-coach.
In the 1934–35 season, Achalandabaso once again performed the functions of a player-coach, this time for Avilés Stadium of the Second Division.
Death
Achalandabaso died on 1 October 1939, at the age of 41.
Honours
- Athletic Bilbao
- North Regional Championship:
- Champions (2): 1920–21 and 1922–23
References
