Not the player for your average hall of fame but still one of my favorite FC Barcelona players of all time.
I mean just look at him:
Former Barca defender. Beloved by the fans and a menace in the air. Thats Abelardo in short. Some would point out at his blunder mistakes but it still didn`t ruin his rep in the eyes of Barca fans.
"El Pitu" was his nickname and you`ll never guess where it came from. Apparently, Abelardo was the big fan of the "Smurfs" cartoon (los Pitufos in Spanish). Many would say, a rather strange connection to that rugged face of his, but that would only be an uninformed statement as the former Barca player had his share of soft spots, particularly for his beloved club - FC Barcelona. One episode sticks above others in my memory.
In 2002, Van Gaal was poised to take over Barcelona for the 2nd time and announced that he doesn`t count on "El Pitu". In a tearful interview, Abelardo said that despite he was offered a new contract by FCB boss Gaspart, he wouldn`t sign it as he didn`t want to milk money from the club while knowing he won`t be able to help the squad.
In his 6 years at FC Barcelona, Abelardo won two Primera titles, two Copa del Rey`s and a Cup Winner`s cup, amounting 250 appearances for his club. He also won the gold Olympic medal with Spain in 1992 Olympics.
I mean just look at him:
Former Barca defender. Beloved by the fans and a menace in the air. Thats Abelardo in short. Some would point out at his blunder mistakes but it still didn`t ruin his rep in the eyes of Barca fans.
"El Pitu" was his nickname and you`ll never guess where it came from. Apparently, Abelardo was the big fan of the "Smurfs" cartoon (los Pitufos in Spanish). Many would say, a rather strange connection to that rugged face of his, but that would only be an uninformed statement as the former Barca player had his share of soft spots, particularly for his beloved club - FC Barcelona. One episode sticks above others in my memory.
In 2002, Van Gaal was poised to take over Barcelona for the 2nd time and announced that he doesn`t count on "El Pitu". In a tearful interview, Abelardo said that despite he was offered a new contract by FCB boss Gaspart, he wouldn`t sign it as he didn`t want to milk money from the club while knowing he won`t be able to help the squad.
In his 6 years at FC Barcelona, Abelardo won two Primera titles, two Copa del Rey`s and a Cup Winner`s cup, amounting 250 appearances for his club. He also won the gold Olympic medal with Spain in 1992 Olympics.
