 De la Cruz (standing, third to left) withBarcelona in 1975 | |||
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Jesús Antonio de la Cruz Gallego | ||
| Date of birth | (1947-05-07)7 May 1947 (age 78) | ||
| Place of birth | León, Spain | ||
| Height | 1.71 m (5 ft 7 in) | ||
| Position | Defender | ||
| Youth career | |||
| Júpiter Leonés | |||
| Valladolid | |||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 1966–1970 | Valladolid | 87 | (0) |
| 1970–1972 | Granada | 64 | (0) |
| 1972–1979 | Barcelona | 183 | (6) |
| Total | 334 | (6) | |
| International career | |||
| 1971 | Spain U23 | 1 | (0) |
| 1972–1978 | Spain | 6 | (0) |
| Managerial career | |||
| 1987–1988 | Sabadell | ||
| 1989–1990 | Barcelona C | ||
| 1991–1996 | Barcelona C | ||
| 1998–1999 | Yokohama F. Marinos | ||
| 2003 | Barcelona (interim) | ||
| * Club domestic league appearances and goals | |||
Jesús Antonio de la Cruz Gallego (born 7 May 1947) is a Spanish formerfootballdefender andmanager.
He appeared in 247La Liga games over the course of nine seasons, scoring a total of six goals forGranada andBarcelona. He won three titles with the latter club, including the1979 Cup Winners' Cup.
ASpain international in the 70s, de la Cruz represented his country in the1978 World Cup.
Born inLeón, de la Cruz started his senior career withReal Valladolid in theSegunda División. Even though he suffered relegation at the end of the1969–70 season, he moved straight intoLa Liga withGranada, making his debut in the competition on 13 September 1970 in a 1–1 away draw againstElche.[1]
In early March 1972, de la Cruz signed with fellow top-division clubBarcelona for six millionpesetas, pending a medical that almost went wrong and with the deal being made effective in July.[2] He went on to feature in 247 official matches during his tenure at theCamp Nou,[3] scoring his first goal on 7 January 1973 in a 2–0 win atReal Zaragoza.[4] On 16 May 1979, the 32-year-old came on as a second-halfsubstitute inthe final of theUEFA Cup Winners' Cup inBasel, the 4–3extra time defeat ofFortuna Düsseldorf.[5]
De la Cruz worked as a coach after retiring. This included two brief spells withSabadell, also inCatalonia (which included top-flight relegation in the1987–88 campaign).[6]
In January 2003, following the dismissal ofLouis van Gaal and prior to the appointment ofRadomir Antić, de la Cruz was namedinterim manager at Barcelona.[7] He was in charge of the squad for one league match, the 3–0 away loss toAtlético Madrid.[8]
De la Cruz earned sixcaps forSpain in as many years. His debut arrived on 12 April 1972, in a 0–0friendly draw inGreece.[2]
Selected by coachLászló Kubala for the1978 FIFA World Cup, de la Cruz took part in the 2–1 group stage defeat againstAustria,[9] as the tournament in Argentina ended after three games.
Barcelona
| Team | From | To | Record[10] | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| G | W | D | L | Win % | |||
| Yokohama F. Marinos | 1998 | 1999 | 47 | 29 | 3 | 15 | 061.70 |
| Total | 47 | 29 | 3 | 15 | 061.70 | ||
