Sergi López Segú
Sergi López Segú (also Sergio, 6 October 1967 – 4 November 2006) was a Spanish footballer who played mainly as a left defender.
During his career he played professionally for three clubs, namely Barcelona. After some personal problems, Gerard López's (of Barcelona and Valencia fame) older brother committed suicide, at the age of 39.
He appeared in 62 La Liga games over the course of eight seasons (two goals), also representing in the competition Mallorca and Zaragoza.
Football career
López was born in Granollers, Catalonia. In his early years he was a promising talent, and both FC Barcelona and Real Madrid were interested in signing him for its youth squads; the former's scout, Oriol Tort, whom at that time also followed players like Sergi Barjuán and Pep Guardiola, convinced the López family to choose his club.
López started to play in FC Barcelona's cantera, with younger brothers Juli and Gerard following later. He made his first-team debut on 31 January 1988, in a match against UD Las Palmas in the Camp Nou; including Copa del Rey and European matches, he eventually totalled 54 appearances scoring once, and helped Barça win one La Liga championship, two Spanish Cups and the 1988–89 edition of the UEFA Cup Winners' Cup.
In the 1991 summer Sergi moved to RCD Mallorca, but was transferred to fellow top-divisioner Real Zaragoza after only one season. Although he never appeared much he still helped the Aragonese to a domestic cup, adding the dramatic 1995 Cup Winners' Cup against Arsenal; after a small spell with modest CF Gavà in Segunda División B, he retired due to a knee injury.
Honours
- UEFA Cup Winners' Cup: 1988–89, 1994–95
- Spanish League: 1990–91
- Spanish Cup: 1987–88, 1989–90, 1993–94
- Catalonia Cup: 1991
Club statistics
| Season | Club | Competition | Apps | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1987/88 | Barcelona |  La Liga | 0 | 0 |
| 1988/89 | Barcelona | La Liga | 7 | 0 |
| 1989/90 | Barcelona | La Liga | 10 | 0 |
| 1990/91 | Barcelona | La Liga | 0 | 0 |
| 1991/92 | Mallorca | La Liga | 22 | 2 |
| 1992/93 | Zaragoza | La Liga | 16 | 0 |
| 1993/94 | Zaragoza | La Liga | 5 | 0 |
| 1994/95 | Zaragoza | La Liga | 2 | 0 |
| Total | 62 | 2 | ||
Post-retirement and death
After his football career, López moved to Argentina where he married, and where his only child was born. The marriage failed eventually and this, in combination with the early end of his professional career, resulted in clinical depression. While still in Argentina he was taken to a psychiatric hospital, but was forced to return to Spain due to financial problems; he committed suicide by throwing himself under a train on 4 November 2006, at only 39.[1]
López's funeral, held on 6 November, was attended by many notable people from within the world of football. Former teammates Guillermo Amor, Txiki Begiristain, Guardiola, Sergi (Barcelona), Xavier Aguado, Santiago Aragón (Zaragoza) and Josep Serer (Mallorca) were all present, alongside Barcelona president Joan Laporta and player Samuel Eto'o, former Valencia CF president Pedro Cortés and the full squad and staff of AS Monaco FC (to support brother Gerard,[2] who represented the French).
References
- ↑ Fallece Sergi López, ex futbolista y hermano de Gerard, arrollado por un tren (Sergi López, ex-footballer and brother of Gerard, dies, run over by train); 20 Minutos, 4 November 2006 (Spanish)
- ↑ Barça brothers; Barcelona's official website, 29 October 2009