Name: José Ramón Esnaola Laburu



Country: Spain
Club: Real Betis Balompié
Position: *GK
Side: RF/BS
Age: 30-32 years (30/06/1946)

Height: 174 cm
Weight: 73 kg


Attack: 30
Defence: 86
Balance: 78
Stamina: 65
Top Speed: 75
Acceleration: 76
Response: 92
Agility: 78
Dribble Accuracy: 62
Dribble Speed: 60
Short Pass Accuracy: 72
Short Pass Speed: 67
Long Pass Accuracy: 74
Long Pass Speed: 69
Shot Accuracy: 42
Shot Power: 80
Shot Technique: 44
Free Kick Accuracy: 45
Curling: 55
Header: 52
Jump: 92
Technique: 70
Aggression: 65
Mentality: 88
Goalkeeper Skills: 87
Team Work: 78

Injury Tolerance: A
Condition: 8
Weak Foot Accuracy: 5
Weak Foot Frequency: 5
Consistency: 7
Growth Type: Standard/Lasting

CARDS:
S11 - Penalty Saver

SPECIAL ABILITIES:

Attack/Defence Awareness Card: Defence Minded


INFO:
A myth in the history of Real Betis Balompié. Sober, quiet, but at the same time transgressive and visionary. He became the maximum exponent of a new way of understanding the performance of the goalkeeper, breaking the established rules that understood the figure of the goalkeeper as a mere spectator of the game. His usefulness would be given by his intelligence, by his hands and by his feet. Esnaola wanted to participate in the distribution of passes with his feet. On many occasions he would be the beginning of the attacking play of his team, given the great precision with which he executes the passes, serving the ball to the unmarked partner or who is in a position to start the play. With 1.74 in height, it could not been considered that he was a goalkeeper in the usual style of goalkeepers from the north, goalkeepers of stature (such as Iribar). His confidence was earned with the security and attention that he showed, goalkeeper with maximum concentration during the 90 minutes. These were perfectly aligned with a serious personality on the field, with a certain agility and a really precise footwork. He was one of the first players to introduce "scouting" as a part of routine and specific methodology of goalkeeper training. He was also known for the rapid execution in the decision making.

With 20 seasons of a professional career, José Ramón Esnaola was a historic goalkeeper of Real Sociedad and Real Betis. Regarded as one of the most interesting Spanish goalkeepers, when he was at Real Sociedad, he was called up for Spain U23 and once for the senior team, as a substitute of Iribar (1970-71). After 207 official matches with the San Sebastian club, he moved to Real Betis in second division. With the Verdiblancos, he won a promotion to La Liga in his first season and in 1977, he was the hero of the Copa del Rey final. In that match, Esnaola saved three penalties and scored the decisive one against Athletic Club. He was a starter until retirement in 1985, at 38. In his last few seasons he qualified for the UEFA Cup two more times. With 378 league games, he is the 2nd player with most appearances with Betis.