| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Isaac Oceja Oceja | ||
| Date of birth | (1915-05-29)29 May 1915 | ||
| Place of birth | Escalante, Spain | ||
| Date of death | 27 September 2000(2000-09-27) (aged 85) | ||
| Place of death | Barakaldo, Spain | ||
| Position | Defender | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 1933–1948 | Athletic Bilbao | 186 | (1) |
| 1948–1949 | Zaragoza | ? | (?) |
| International career | |||
| 1941–1942 | Spain | 4 | (0) |
| Managerial career | |||
| 1948–1949 | Alavés | ||
| 1949 | Zaragoza | ||
| 1954–1960 | Cultural Durango | ||
| 1961–1965 | Cultural Durango | ||
| * Club domestic league appearances and goals | |||
Isaac Oceja Oceja[1] (1915-2000) was a Spanishfootball player and coach. He is most known for the 15 years he spent atAthletic Bilbao.
Born inCantabria but raised from a young age inBiscay,[2][3][4] Oceja's early amateur teams included hometown clubCultural Durango,SD Lemona andCD Basconia.[4] Although naturally right-footed, he learned to play equally well using his left foot and played on that side of the defence upon turning professional withAthletic Bilbao.[2][4] His début inLa Liga was on 6 January 1935, in a game againstReal Madrid where Athletic won 4–1.[4] When theSpanish Civil War interrupted the normal football processes, Oceja spent time playing forBarakaldo CF.[4] Returning toBilbao following the conflict, the club was faced with rebuilding a squad using several young players, and refused to sanction the transfer of the more experienced Oceja toFC Barcelona, an offer which would have greatly increased his salary.[2][4]
He was noted for his elegance on the field and disciplined manner off it. In his career with Athletic he played a total of 239 games (186 in the league), winning a league title in1935–36 and two consecutiveCopas de Generalísimo in1943 and1944, the latter ascaptain.[4] He took no part in the1942–43 La Liga season where his team finished as champions, having been seriously injured (a rupturedmedial meniscus) playing forSpain againstFrance in March 1942,[4] although he recovered to participate in the victorious 1943 Cup campaign, and a doublelower leg fracture caused him to miss out on a likely third Cup final appearance in1945.[2][4] Due to his injury lay-offs, Athletic tied him to a 'pay as you play' contract,[2][4] and Oceja admitted that due to his dissatisfaction with the situation he refused to play in a crucial league clash againstValencia CF in 1947 (having been involved in every other match that season); in his absence,Los Ché won the match and went on to securethe title over Athletic on head-to-head results after finishing level on points.[4]
He received four call-ups for theSpain national team. He made his debut at 12 January 1941 at his 'home' stadiumSan Mamés in afriendly match againstPortugal (2–2), in which his defensive colleague at Athletic Bilbao,Juan José Mieza, also appeared for the first time.[5][2][4]
Oceja retired from playing in 1949 after a short stint atReal Zaragoza. The next season, he assumed the role of coach for theAragonese team, then languishing in theTercera División, and helped them to achieve promotion.[4] His stint atLa Rosaleda did not last long after that achievement, and despite having secured the relevant coaching qualifications, his only later forays into management were two spells with Durango in the lower leagues during the 1950s and 60s.[4]
Athletic Bilbao[2]