José Luis Riera

José Luis Riera Biosca (26 November 1920 – 20 May 1987) was a Spanish footballer who played as a defender for Atlético Madrid and Real Zaragoza. With them, he won two La Liga titles in 1949–50 and 1950–51. He was called up for 3 Spain national teams between 1945 and 1949.

After retiring, he became a manager, taking charge of the likes of Cádiz CF and Recreativo de Huelva.

Club career Early career Born in Barcelona, Riera stood out since he was a child for his corpulence and size, thus playing as a defender in various regional teams, such as Mirandés, Ripoll, and , but his progress was halted by the outbreak of the Spanish Civil War in 1936. When the war ended in 1939, he played one season for RCD Mallorca and then signed for CE Constància, which at that time was playing in the Segunda División. He formed a defensive trio with Alfonso Aparicio and Alfonso Silva, which went down in history both at Atlético and in Spanish football as the so-called "Iron Curtain".

Riera remained at Atlético for a total of 9 seasons, in which he managed to win the League title twice, in 1949–50 and 1950–51, the Copa Eva Duarte in 1951, In total, Riera played 181 games with Atlético Madrid, including 152 in the League and 27 in the Copa del Rey, scoring just a single goal, which came in a league fixture.

International career Riera made his international debut for Spain in a friendly match against Portugal on 20 March 1949, at the age of 28, starting in a 1–1 draw. and UE Lleida (1969–70).

Riera later stood out as a great technical secretary.

Death Riera died in Madrid on 20 May 1987, at the age of 67. Those who saw him play always remember his mustache and his forcefulness and speed in marking with the Atlético Madrid shirt.

Honours Atlético Madrid 1941–47 FEF President Cup: La Liga: 1949–50, 1950–51 Copa Eva Duarte: 1951