Esteban Echevarría

Esteban Echevarría Olabarrieta (16 January 1923 – 24 February 1987) was a Spanish footballer who played as a forward for Real Oviedo in the 1940s.

Club career Born on 16 January 1923 in Deusto, Echevarría began his career at his hometown club Indautxu, remaining there until 15 July 1942, when he joined Real Oviedo, then in La Liga. A few months later, on 8 November, he took advantage of Antonio Chas' injury to make his official debut with the first team in a league away match against Sevilla, scoring twice to help his side to a 5–0 victory. He went on to score 14 goals in the first seven matchdays, thus setting a record for the best league start that stood for 72 years, being surpassed only by Cristiano Ronaldo in the 2014–15 season. That season, Echevarría scored 25 goals, finishing behind only Valencia's Mundo, who scored 28.

On 16 September 1944, Echevarría was heading to watch a bullfight during the Fiestas de San Mateo in Oviedo when he got hit by a car and subsequently suffered traumatic pleurisy, which forced him to stay away from the pitch for almost the entire 1944–45 season, and then failed to score a single goal in the 1945–46 season.

His career, however, was halted by another serious injury, this time permanently, leaving Oviedo in 1951, having scored 82 goals for the club, including 64 goals in 81 La Liga matches. He then joined Gimnàstic de Tarragona, where he retired in 1952, aged 29.

Death Echevarría died on 24 February 1987, at the age of 83.