Mateo Musacchio

Mateo Musacchio

Musacchio in action for Villarreal
Personal information
Full name Mateo Pablo Musacchio
Date of birth (1990-08-26) 26 August 1990
Place of birth Rosario, Argentina
Height 1.82 m (6 ft 0 in)
Playing position Centre back
Club information
Current team
Villarreal
Number 5
Youth career
25 de Mayo
1999–2006 River Plate
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2006–2009 River Plate 10 (0)
2009–2010 Villarreal B 22 (3)
2010– Villarreal 172 (7)
National team
2006–2007 Argentina U17 15 (1)
2008–2010 Argentina U20 3 (0)
2011– Argentina 4 (0)

* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 2 October 2016.

‡ National team caps and goals correct as of 11 October 2016

Mateo Pablo Musacchio (Spanish pronunciation: [maˈte.o muˈsakjo]; born 26 August 1990) is an Argentine professional footballer who plays for Spanish club Villarreal CF as a central defender.

Club career

A product of Club Atlético River Plate's youth system, Musacchio was born in Rosario, Santa Fe, and he made his first-team debut as a 16-year-old during the 2006–07 season, making four appearances.[1] He was part of the squad that won the Clausura in the following year, but did not feature in any games.

In August 2009, Musacchio moved to Villarreal CF in Spain, initially being assigned to the B-team in the second division.[2] He made his official debut on 5 September in a 1–3 loss at Córdoba CF[3] as the reserves overachieved in their first season ever in the category, eventually finishing seventh.[4]

On 13 February 2010, shortly after ceasing to be a non-EU player,[5] Musacchio made his La Liga debut by playing the last 15 minutes in a 2–1 home win against Athletic Bilbao.[6] From that moment onwards he was permanently promoted to Villarreal's first team, successively surpassing more experienced Iván Marcano and Gonzalo Rodríguez – the latter his compatriot – in the defensive pecking order.[7][8]

International career

Musacchio was first called by the Argentine national team in May 2011, as manager Sergio Batista only selected players under 25 for friendlies with Nigeria and Poland.[9] He made his debut against the former on 2 June, in a 1–4 loss.[10]

Personal life

Musacchio's paternal grandparents were of Albanian origin, being Arbëreshë from the Portocannone community in lower Molise. The surname Musacchio originated from the Muzaka region in south-central Albania, and was widely used in the Albanian community in Italy.[11]

Honours

Club

River Plate

References

  1. River Plate Squad – Closing '07; at Argentine Soccer
  2. "Musacchio jugará en el filial del Villarreal" [Musacchio will play in Villarreal's reserves] (in Spanish). Marca. 31 August 2009. Retrieved 31 August 2009.
  3. "Debut agridulce para Musacchio en el filial" [Bittersweet debut for Musacchio with reserves] (in Spanish). El Periódico Mediterráneo. 7 September 2009. Retrieved 28 January 2014.
  4. "El filial se ve obligado a descender a Segunda B tras el descenso del Villarreal" [Reserves forced to relegate after Villarreal relegation] (in Spanish). Vavel. 14 May 2012. Retrieved 28 January 2014.
  5. "Musacchio y 'Sema' ya son comunitarios" [Musacchio and 'Sema' are already EU players] (in Spanish). Marca. 26 January 2010. Retrieved 21 January 2016.
  6. "Nilmar bautiza la 'era Garrido'" [Nilmar baptizes 'Garrido era'] (in Spanish). Diario AS. 14 February 2010. Retrieved 28 January 2014.
  7. "Jugar en el Bernabéu es un sueño para mí" [To play at the Bernabéu is a dream for me] (in Spanish). Diario AS. 20 February 2010. Retrieved 28 January 2014.
  8. "Musacchio apunta a titular si Godín no está disponible" [Musacchio poised to start if Godín is not available] (in Spanish). Las Provincias. 27 February 2010. Retrieved 28 January 2014.
  9. "Musacchio y Ruben, convocados a la selección argentina" [Musacchio y Ruben, called to Argentine national team] (in Spanish). River Plate. 20 May 2011. Retrieved 28 January 2014.
  10. "Argentina B fue vapuleada por Nigeria" [Argentina B routed by Nigeria] (in Spanish). Info News. 2 June 2011. Retrieved 28 January 2014.
  11. "Calciomercato Roma, Musacchio è il primo rinforzo" [Calciomercato Roma, Musacchio is first addition] (in Italian). Roma Today. 27 April 2012. Retrieved 1 September 2014.
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