07.09.2010 11:04

Ex-Barca players at Hèrcules

Edgar Fornós

Barca’s first league rival at the Nou Camp, Hercules, have three ex-Barca players in their squad: defender Rodri, midfielder Rufete and striker Cristian Hidalgo, as well as coach Esteban Vigo.

All four featured for Barca, with Esteban playing most games and also spending time at the club as a coach from 2003. Sergio Rodriguéz, Cristian Hidalgo and Rufete all came up through the club’s youth teams before making their first team debuts and eventually moving on to various clubs before ending up in Alicante.

Player and coach

Esteban Vigo joined Barca in the summer of 1977 and stayed for 10 years in which he won a league title, three Spanish Cups, two European and one Spanish Super Cup. Esteban returned to the club to coach the Barca C team in 2003 and his past as a Barca player is clear in his style as a manager, with his teams opting for attacking football based on keeping possession.

Rufete achieved success at Valencia

After coming up through the various youth teams at the club, Rufete made his first team debut in the final game of the 1995/96 season, a 2-2 draw in La Coruña, with Rexach, newly appointed to succeed Cruyff, as manager. It was after moving to Valencia though, that he won honours with the Spanish national team and also won two league titles, a UEFA Cup and both a European and Spanish Super Cup during his time with the club. He then moved to Espanyol for three seasons before joining Hercules.

Rodri, featured in double winning season

Sergio Rodriguez, better known as Rodri, joined the Juvenil A team from Mataro and then moved up to Barca B before Rijkaard handed him his first tam debut in 2005/06. He played in five games of a memorable double winning season before passing through various clubs and ending up at Hercules.

Opening goal

Cristian Hidalgo will probably never forget the start of the 2004/05 season, when he scored Barca’s first goal of the campaign in a friendly in Banyoles. He’d made a name for himself as a prolific scorer in the C and B teams, but his options in the first team were limited and he eventually enjoyed success with Deportivo.