Roberto López Ufarte (born April 19, 1958 in Fes, Morocco) is a former Spanish footballer, who played as a forward.

Nicknamed The little devil, most of his career was spent at Real Sociedad. His parents (from Catalonia and Andalusia) moved abroad in search of work, and returned to Irún (Basque Country) when their son was eight.

[edit] Club career

A product of Real Sociedad's youth ranks, after making his early footballing efforts at neighbours Real Unión, López Ufarte made his first division debuts in 1975-76 (30 November 1975, in a 0-2 derby loss at Athletic Bilbao). From then on, he became an essential first-team member, scoring 16 goals in 63 matches in the side's back-to-back league titles combined.

Ufarte left the Basque outfit in 1987, after another solid season: 33 matches, 10 goals in the league, and the domestic cup. He scored 101 goals in 363 games (128-474 overall).

After one season with Atlético Madrid (third-place), López Ufarte closed his career at Real Betis, where he also struggled with knee injuries and saw his club drop down a level, at 31. He then acted as assistant manager to several coaches at his first professional club.

[edit] International career

López Ufarte gained 15 caps for Spain, from 1977 to 1982. His debut came on September 21, scoring in 2-1 friendly win in Switzerland.

Ufarte appeared for the nation at the 1982 FIFA World Cup, on home ground, playing his last match in a 1-2 second group stage loss against West Germany.

[edit] Honours

• Spanish League: 1980-81, 1981-82
• Spanish Cup: 1986-87
• Spanish Supercup: 1983

[edit] External links

• BDFutbol profile
• National team data (Spanish)

v • d • e Spain squad – 1982 FIFA World Cup 1 Arconada • 2 Camacho • 3 Gordillo • 4 Alonso • 5 Tendillo • 6 Alexanko • 7 Juanito • 8 Joaquín • 9 Satrústegui • 10 Zamora • 11 López Ufarte • 12 Urquiaga • 13 Jiménez • 14 Maceda • 15 Saura • 16 Sánchez • 17 Gallego • 18 Uralde • 19 Santillana • 20 Quini • 21 Urruti • 22 Miguel Ángel • Coach: Santamaría