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Personal Information
| Full Name | Julio Salinas Fernández |
| Date of Birth | September 11, 1962 |
| Nationality | Spanish |
| Height | 1.88 m (6 ft 2 in) |
| Role | Centre-forward |
| Past Team(s) |
Julio Salinas: A Brief Biography
Julio Salinas Fernandez is a Spanish retired professional footballer who played for Spain national team from 1986 to 1996 and various clubs in Spain. He was born on 11 September 1962 in Bilbao, Spain.
A tall, lanky centre forward with admirable skills, Salinas made made 56 appearances for Spain during his ten years long international career. He represented his nation in three World Cups (1986, 1990 and 1994) and two European Championships (1988 and 1996).
Background
Salinas started his professional football career in 1981 with Athletic Bilbao B, the reserve team of Athletic Bilbao. In the 1983-84 season, he won the second division’s Pichichi Trophy award, as he helped Bilbao Athletic finish runners-up. He netted 60 goals in 93 outings and progressed to the senior team of Athletic Bilbao.
Debut and International Career
Salinas made his international debut on 22 January 1986 where he scored his maiden International goal in a 2-0 friendly win against the Soviet Union in Las Palmas. He scored 22 goals for Spain and is remembered because of his missed chance to put Spain into the last-four stage, with 1-1 and less than ten minutes to go, he made a fast-break, with only goalkeeper Gianluca Pagliuca to beat. He failed to score and Italian striker Roberto Baggio sealed the 2-1 final result minutes later.
Club Career
Salinas made his La Liga debut for Athletic Bilbao on 03 October 1982 in a 2-1 loss against Real Zaragoza. He scored his first La Liga goal on 26 March 1983 in a 4-0 win over Celta de Vigo. In his four years long career, he made 68 appearances and scored 13 goals.
He then moved to Atlético Madrid in 1986 and played two seasons for the Spanish club, scoring 31 goals in 75 appearances.
Salinas signed for FC Barcelona for the 1988-89 campaign, where he teamed-up with several other Basque players, including veteran Jose Ramon Alexanko, Jose Mari Bakero, Txiki Begiristain and Ion Andoni Goikoetxea. These players formed the backbone of the legendary Dream Team. He had a brief stay at Barcelona, where he made 146 appearances and scored 60 times.
Retirement
On 19 May 2000, Salinas played his last professional match, scoring in a 2-1 loss against his first team Athletic Bilbao. After retiring, he began working as a sports commentator, first for RTVE and then on LaSexta.
