Manuel Santacatalina

Manuel Santacatalina
Personal information
Full name Manuel Santacatalina Ferreres
Date of birth 1914
Place of birth Puerto de Sagunto, Spain
Date of death 9 February 1936(1936-02-09) (aged 21–22)
Place of death Puerto de Sagunto, Spain
Position(s) Midfielder
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
1932–1934 SC Puerto Sagunto
1934–1936 Valencia 3 (0)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals

Manuel Santacatalina Ferreres (1914 – 9 February 1936) was a Spanish footballer who played as a midfielder for Valencia CF.

Biography

Nicolás Santacatalina was born in Puerto de Sagunto, Valencian, in 1914,[1][2] as the son of Rosa Ferreres and Eustaquio de Santa Catalina, a hard-working laborer,[3] who had been placed as a baby in the vestibule of the church of Santa Catalina in Alzira, where he was taken in, raised, and baptized with the name of that 14th century church.[1][4][3] It was he who enchanted the sport of football to Nicolás, one of his younger brothers, who later also played top division matches for Valencia.[4]

Santacatalina began his career at his hometown club SC Puerto Sagunto, where he remained until 1934, when he was signed by Valencia.[5] He was a tall, strong midfielder with a somewhat rough style of play, whom Valencia coach Antonín Fivébr tried to refine so that his technique would be similar to that of Carlos Iturraspe.[1] He made his debut in a 4–2 loss to Sevilla in the First Division on 17 March 1935; he only played three league games that season.[1][2]

Santacatalina continued with Valencia to play the following season, but he died unexpectedly of a poorly cured pneumonia on 9 February 1936, at the age of 22, just a few months before the outbreak of the Spanish Civil War.[1][4] According to some media of the time, the illness was caused by a cold water shower after training; this case was quite a shock in the Valencian community and his brother Nicolás had a hard time convincing his parents to let him continue playing football.[1]

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f "Ficha de jugador: Manuel Santacatalina" [Player profile: Manuel Santacatalina]. www.ciberche.net (in Spanish). Retrieved 25 December 2024.
  2. ^ a b "Santacatalina". www.worldfootball.net. Retrieved 25 December 2024.
  3. ^ a b "JUGADOR DEL CASTELLÓN Y DEL VALENCIA: Nicolás Santacatalina fue patrón de pesca y futbolista" [CASTELLÓN AND VALENCIA PLAYER: Nicolás Santacatalina was a fishing captain and footballer]. www.elperiodicomediterraneo.com (in Spanish). 24 June 2006. Retrieved 25 December 2024.
  4. ^ a b c "El orgullo de Santacatalina" [The pride of Santacatalina]. www.sport.es (in Spanish). 29 October 2022. Retrieved 25 December 2024.
  5. ^ "Santacatalina, Manuel Santacatalina Ferreres - Footballer". www.bdfutbol.com. Retrieved 25 December 2024.
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