Former Barca defender Josep Seguer dies at 90

Former Barcelona defender Josep Seguer, who played for the Spanish giants between 1943 and 1957, has died at the age of 90, the club said Thursday.

Seguer, who had four international caps for Spain, passed away on Wednesday night, said Barca in a statement. His funeral will be held on Friday in the Catalan coastal town of l’Hospitalet de l’Infant.

“Seguer was both strong and skillful, and it was never easy for opponents to predict his next move, earning himself the peculiar nickname of ‘Diesel’ because of the incredible amount of ground he would cover during a game,” the statement said.

Seguer joined Barcelona’s amateur team in 1940 from CF Parets. After spending the 1942-43 season on loan to Granollers, he returned to Barcelona in 1943 where he remained in the first team until 1957, playing 470 games and scoring 133 goals.

He won five league titles and the Spanish Cup four times while at Barcelona.

Seguer started out as a midfielder but played in several other positions before eventually settling as a defender.

During the 1969-70 season he acted as Barcelona’s caretaker manager, between Salvador Artigas and Victor Buckingham.