Players may refer to:

Television

''Players'' (1997 TV series), an American crime drama

''Players'' (2010 TV series), an American sitcom

''Players'' (G4 TV series), an American video-game related interview show

"Players" (''Angel''), an episode of ''Angel''

"Players" (''Law & Order: Criminal Intent''), an episode of ''Law & Order: Criminal Intent''

''Players'' (Doctor Who), a novel based on the TV series ''Doctor Who''

Other media

''Players'' (album), an album by Too $hort

''Players'' (novel), a 1977 novel by Don DeLillo

''Players'' (Doctor Who), a novel by Terrance Dicks, based on the television series ''Doctor Who''

''Players'' (film), an upcoming Indian Hindi action thriller

''Players'' (1979 film), a film starring Ali McGraw

Players' Theatre, a theatre in London

''The Club'' (play), a play by David Williamson, produced in the U.S. as ''Players''

Organizations and companies

Players Ball, an annual gathering of pimps in Chicago, Illinois

Players Club, an American actors' club

Players' League, a 19th-century American baseball league

Players Music Accessories, a distributor for accessories for musical instruments

Players Software, a brand label used by video-game developer Interceptor Micros

John Player & Sons or simply Player's, a tobacco company

See also

''Pagliacci'' (English: ''Players''), an opera by Leoncavallo

Player (disambiguation)

The Players (disambiguation)

Players Championship (disambiguation)

Coordinates	12°2′36″N77°1′42″N
playername	Gerard Deulofeu
fullname	Gerard Deulofeu Lázaro
dateofbirth	March 13, 1994
cityofbirth	Riudarenes
countryofbirth	Spain
height
position	Forward / Winger
currentclub	Barcelona B
clubnumber	27
youthyears1	2003–2011
youthclubs1	Barcelona
years1	2011–
clubs1	Barcelona B
caps1	2
goals1	0
nationalyears1	2009
nationalteam1	Spain U16
nationalcaps1	4
nationalgoals1	1
nationalyears2	2009–2011
nationalteam2	Spain U17
nationalcaps2	20
nationalgoals2	6
nationalyears3	2011–
nationalteam3	Spain U19
nationalcaps3	10
nationalgoals3	1
pcupdate	28 August 2011
ntupdate	1 August 2011 }}

Gerard Deulofeu Lázaro (born 13 March 1994 in Riudarenes, Girona, Catalonia) is a Spanish footballer who plays for FC Barcelona B as a forward or winger.

Football career

Deulofeu joined FC Barcelona's youth academy in 2003, aged just nine. On 2 March 2011, still registered with the junior team, he made his senior debut, appearing for the B team in a 4–1 win at Córdoba CF in the second division, replacing Eduard Oriol in the 75th minute.

In late April 2011, Deulofeu was called-up to the senior squad for the first time, for a La Liga match against Real Sociedad on the 29th, but eventually did not leave the bench in a 1–2 away loss.

On 3 August 2011, Deulofeu made his Barcelona first-team debut, in a 1–4 friendly loss against C.D. Guadalajara. Three days later, against Club América, he assisted Seydou Keita in the 90th minute, in a 2–0 win.

Honours

;Spain U19

UEFA U-19 Championship: 2011

Club statistics

As of 30 June 2011 0

Club

Season

League

Cup

!colspan="2"

Other

Total

!Apps

!Goals

!Apps

!Goals

!Apps

!Goals

!Apps

!Goals

!Apps

!Goals

rowspan="2" align=center valign=center

Barcelona B

!colspan="2"

1

|

–

1

0

–!!1!!0

Career totals

!1!!0!!0!!0!!0!!0!!0!!0!!1!!0

References

External links

FC Barcelona profile

BDFutbol profile

Transfermarkt profile

Soccerway profile

Official website

Category:1994 births Category:Living people Category:People from Selva Category:Spanish footballers Category:Catalan footballers Category:Association football wingers Category:FC Barcelona Atlètic footballers

ca:Gerard Deulofeu de:Gerard Deulofeu es:Gerard Deulofeu fr:Gerard Deulofeu nl:Gerard Deulofeu ja:ジェラール・デウロフェウ pl:Gerard Deulofeu

Coordinates	12°2′36″N77°1′42″N
playername	Lionel Messi
fullname	Lionel Andrés Messi
dateofbirth	June 24, 1987
cityofbirth	Rosario
countryofbirth	Argentina
height
position	Striker / Winger
currentclub	Barcelona
clubnumber	10
youthyears1	1995–2000
youthyears2	2000–2004
youthclubs1	Newell's Old Boys
youthclubs2	Barcelona
years1	2004–2005
clubs1	Barcelona B
caps1	22
goals1	6
years2	2004–
clubs2	Barcelona
caps2	178
goals2	121
nationalyears1	2005
nationalyears2	2008
nationalyears3	2005–
nationalteam1	Argentina U20
nationalteam2	Argentina U23
nationalteam3	Argentina
nationalcaps1	7
nationalgoals1	6
nationalcaps2	5
nationalgoals2	2
nationalcaps3	60
nationalgoals3	17
medaltemplates	}}

| pcupdate = 13:30, 7 July 2011 (UTC) | ntupdate = 10:17, 17 July 2011 (UTC) }} Lionel Andrés "Leo" Messi (born 24 June 1987 in Rosario, Argentina) is a football player who currently plays for FC Barcelona and captains the Argentina national team as a striker or winger. Considered one of the best football players of his generation, Messi received several Ballon d'Or and FIFA World Player of the Year nominations by the age of 21, and won in 2009 and 2010. His playing style and ability have drawn comparisons to Diego Maradona, who himself declared Messi as his "successor".

Messi began playing football at a young age and his potential was quickly identified by Barcelona. He left Rosario-based Newell's Old Boys's youth team in 2000 and moved with his family to Europe, as Barcelona offered treatment for his growth hormone deficiency. Making his debut in the 2004–05 season, he broke his team record for the youngest footballer to score a league goal. Major honours soon followed as Barcelona won La Liga in Messi's debut season, and won a double of the league and Champions League in 2006. His breakthrough season was in the 2006–07 season; he became a first team regular, scoring a hat-trick in El Clásico and finishing with 14 goals in 26 league games. Messi then had the most successful season of his playing career, the 2008–09 season, in which he scored 38 goals to play an integral part in a treble-winning campaign. This record-breaking season was then eclipsed in the following 2009–10 campaign, where Messi scored 47 goals in all competitions, equalling Ronaldo's record total for Barcelona. He surpassed this record again in the 2010–11 season with 53 goals in all competitions.

Messi has won five La Liga titles, three Champions League titles, scoring in two of those finals, against Manchester United in both 2009 and 2011. He was not on the pitch as Barcelona defeated Arsenal in 2006, but received a winners' medal from the tournament. After scoring 12 goals in the 2010–11 Champions League, Messi became only the third player (after Gerd Müller and Jean-Pierre Papin) to top-score in three successive European Champion Clubs' Cup campaigns. However, Messi is the first one to win the Champions League top scorer titles for three consecutive years after Champions League changed its format in 1992.

Messi was the top scorer of the 2005 FIFA World Youth Championship with six goals, including two in the final game. Shortly thereafter, he became an established member of Argentina's senior international team. In 2006, he became the youngest Argentine to play in the FIFA World Cup and he won a runners-up medal at the Copa América tournament the following year. In 2008, in Beijing, he won his first international honour, an Olympic gold medal, with the Argentina Olympic football team.

Early life

Messi was born in Rosario, Santa Fe, to parents Jorge Horacio Messi, a factory steel worker, and Celia María Cuccittini, a part-time cleaner. His paternal family originates from the Italian city of Ancona, from which his ancestor, Angelo Messi, emigrated to Argentina in 1883. He has two older brothers named Rodrigo and Matías as well as a sister named María Sol. At the age of five, Messi started playing football for Grandoli, a local club coached by his father Jorge. In 1995, Messi switched to Newell's Old Boys who were based in his home city Rosario. At the age of 11, he was diagnosed with a growth hormone deficiency. The traditional River Plate showed interest in Messi's progress, but did not have enough money to pay for treatment for his condition which cost $900 a month. Carles Rexach, the sporting director of FC Barcelona, had been made aware of his talent as Messi had relatives in Lleida, Catalonia, and Messi and his father were able to arrange a trial. Rexach, with no other paper at hand, offered Messi a contract written on a paper napkin. Barcelona offered to pay for Messi's medical bills if he was willing to move to Spain. Messi and his father moved to Barcelona where Messi enrolled in the club's youth academy.

Club career

Barcelona

Messi made his official debut for the first-team on 16 November 2003 aged 16 years and 145 days, in a friendly match against Porto. Less than a year later, Frank Rijkaard let him make his league debut against RCD Espanyol on 16 October 2004 (at 17 years and 114 days), becoming the third-youngest player ever to play for Barcelona and youngest club player who played in La Liga. This record was broken by Bojan Krkić in September 2007. When he scored his first senior goal for the club against Albacete Balompié on 1 May 2005, Messi was 17 years, ten months and seven days old, becoming the youngest to ever score in a La Liga game for Barcelona until it was again broken by Bojan Krkić in 2007, scoring from a Messi assist. Messi said about his ex-coach Rijkaard: "I'll never forget the fact that he launched my career, that he had confidence in me while I was only sixteen or seventeen."

2005–06 season

On 16 September, for the second time in three months, Barcelona announced an update to Messi's contract; this time it was improved to pay him as a first team member and extended until June 2014. Messi obtained Spanish citizenship on 26 September 2005 and was finally able to make his debut in the season's Spanish First Division. Messi's first home outing in the Champions League came on 27 September against Italian club Udinese. Fans at Barcelona's stadium, the Camp Nou, gave Messi a standing ovation upon his substitution, as his composure on the ball and passing combinations with Ronaldinho had paid dividends for Barcelona.

Messi netted six goals in 17 league appearances, and scored one Champions League goal in six. His season ended prematurely on 7 March 2006, however, when he suffered a muscle tear in his right thigh during the second leg of the second round Champions League tie against Chelsea. Rijkaard's Barcelona ended the season as champions of Spain and Europe.

2006–07 season

In the 2006–07 season, Messi established himself as a regular first team player, scoring 14 times in 26 matches. On 12 November, in the game against Real Zaragoza, Messi suffered a broken metatarsal, ruling him out for three months. Messi recuperated from his injury in Argentina, and his return to action came against Racing Santander on 11 February, where he came on as a second-half substitute. On 11 March, ''El Clásico'' saw Messi in top form, scoring a hat-trick to earn 10-man Barcelona a 3–3 draw, equalising three times, with the final equaliser coming in injury time. In doing so he became the first player since Iván Zamorano (for Real Madrid in the 1994–95 season) to score a hat-trick in ''El Clásico''. Messi is also the youngest player ever to have scored in this fixture. Towards the end of the season he began finding the net more often; 11 of his 14 league goals for the season came from the last 13 games. Messi also proved the "new Maradona" tag was not all hype, by nearly replicating Maradona's most famous goals in the space of the single season. On 18 April 2007, he scored two goals during a Copa del Rey semi-final against Getafe CF, one of which was very similar to Maradona's famous goal against England at the 1986 World Cup in Mexico, known as the Goal of the Century. The world's sports press drew comparisons with Maradona, and the Spanish press labelled Messi as "Messidona". He ran about the same distance, , beat the same number of players (six, including the goalkeeper), scored from a very similar position, and ran towards the corner flag just as Maradona did in Mexico 21 years before. In a press conference after the game, Messi's team-mate Deco said: "It was the best goal I have ever seen in my life." Against RCD Espanyol Messi also scored a goal which was remarkably similar to Maradona's 'Hand of God' goal against England in the World Cup quarter-finals. Messi launched himself at the ball and connected with his hand to guide the ball past the goalkeeper Carlos Kameni. Despite protests by Espanyol players and replays showing it was clear handball, the goal stood.

2007–08 season

During the 2007–08 season, Messi scored five goals in a week leading Barcelona to the top four in La Liga. On 19 September he scored once as Barcelona defeated Lyon 3–0 at home in a Champions League match. He scored two goals against Sevilla FC on 22 September and then on 26 September, Messi scored another two goals in a 4–1 victory over Real Zaragoza. Next goal came in 4–1 away win against Levante UD in 29 September 2007. His second Champions League goal of the season came against VfB Stuttgart. On 27 February, Messi played in his 100th official match for Barcelona against Valencia.

Messi was nominated for a FIFPro World XI Player Award under the category of Forward. A poll conducted in the online edition of the Spanish newspaper ''Marca'' had him as the best player in the world with 77 percent of the vote. Columnists from Barcelona-based newspapers ''El Mundo Deportivo'' and ''Sport'' stated that the Ballon d'Or should be given to Messi, a view supported by Franz Beckenbauer. Football personalities such as Francesco Totti have declared that they consider Messi to be one of the current best footballers in the world.

Messi was sidelined for six weeks following an injury on 4 March when he suffered a muscle tear in his left thigh during a Champions League match against Celtic. It was the fourth time in three seasons that Messi suffered this type of injury. After coming back from the injury Messi scored his last goal of 2007–08 season against Valencia on 4 May 2008 in a 6–0 win. When the season was over Messi managed to score 16 goals and assisted 13 times in all competition.

2008–09 season

Upon Ronaldinho's departure from the club, Messi inherited his number 10 jersey. On 1 October 2008, during a Champions League match against Shakhtar Donetsk, Messi scored two goals during the last seven minutes, after coming on as a substitute for Thierry Henry, to turn a 1–0 deficit to a 2–1 victory for Barcelona. The next league game was versus Atlético Madrid, a match billed as a friendly battle between Messi and his good friend Sergio Agüero. Messi scored a goal from a free kick and assisted another as Barça went on to win the match 6–1. Messi netted another impressive brace against Sevilla scoring a volley from and then dribbling round the goalkeeper and scoring from a tight angle for the other. On 13 December 2008, during the first Clásico of the season, Messi scored the second goal in Barcelona's 2–0 win over Real Madrid. He was also named second in the 2008 FIFA World Player of the Year awards with 678 points.

Messi scored his first hat-trick of 2009 in a Copa del Rey tie against Atlético Madrid which Barcelona won 3–1. Messi scored another important double on 1 February 2009, coming on as a second half substitute to help Barcelona defeat Racing Santander 1–2 after being 1–0 down. The second of the two strikes was Barcelona's 5000th league goal. In the 28th round of La Liga, Messi scored his 30th goal of the season in all competitions, helping his team to a 6–0 victory over Málaga CF in the process. On 8 April 2009, he scored twice against Bayern Munich in the Champions League, setting a personal record of eight goals in the competition. On 18 April, Messi notched his 20th league goal of the season in a 1–0 win at Getafe, allowing Barcelona to maintain their six-point advantage at the top of the league table over Real Madrid.

As Barcelona's season was drawing to a close, Messi scored twice (his 35th and 36th goals in all competitions) to cap a 6–2 win over Real Madrid at the Santiago Bernabéu in what was Real's heaviest defeat since 1930. After scoring each goal, he ran towards the fans and the cameras lifting up his Barcelona jersey and showing another T-shirt that read ''Síndrome X Fràgil'', Catalan for Fragile X Syndrome, to show his support for children who suffer from the affliction. Messi was involved in the build-up to Andrés Iniesta's injury time goal against Chelsea in the Champions League semi-final to send Barcelona through to face Manchester United in the final. He won his first Copa del Rey on 13 May, scoring one goal and assisting another two, in a 4–1 victory over Athletic Bilbao. He helped his team win the double by winning La Liga. On 27 May he helped Barcelona win the Champions League by scoring a second goal in the 70th minute giving Barcelona a two goal lead; he also became the top scorer in the Champions League, the youngest in the tournament's history, with nine goals. Messi also won the UEFA Club Forward of the Year: and the UEFA Club Footballer of the Year rounding off a spectacular year in Europe. This victory meant Barcelona had won the Copa del Rey, La Liga and Champions League in the one season, and was the first time a Spanish club had ever won the treble.

2009–10 season

After winning the 2009 UEFA Super Cup, Barcelona manager Josep Guardiola asserted that Messi was probably the best player he had ever seen. On 18 September, Messi signed a new contract with Barcelona, running until 2016 and with a buy-out clause of €250 million included, making Messi, along with Zlatan Ibrahimović, the highest paid players in La Liga, with earnings of around €9.5 million yearly. Four days later, on 22 September, Messi scored two goals and assisted another in Barça's 4–1 win over Racing Santander in La Liga. He scored his first European goal of the season on 29 September in a 2–0 win over Dynamo Kyiv, and then took his goal tally to six goals in seven games in La Liga with a strike during a 6–1 routing of Real Zaragoza at Camp Nou.

Messi was named winner of the 2009 Ballon d'Or on 1 December 2009, beating runner-up Cristiano Ronaldo by largest ever margin of 473 to 233. Afterwards, France Football magazine quoted Messi as saying: "I dedicate it to my family. They were always present when I needed them and sometimes felt even stronger emotions than me."

On 19 December, Messi scored the winner in the final of the 2009 Club World Cup against Estudiantes in Abu Dhabi, giving the club their sixth title of the year. Two days later, he was given the FIFA World Player of the Year award, beating Cristiano Ronaldo, Xavi, Kaká and Andrés Iniesta to the award. This was the first time he had won the award, and he became the first Argentinean to ever receive this honour. On 10 January 2010, Messi scored his first hat-trick in 2010 and his first hat-trick of the season against CD Tenerife in the 0–5 victory, and on 17 January he scored his 100th goal for the club in the 4–0 victory over Sevilla.

Messi then started an impressive run scoring 11 goals in five games. First he scored on the 84th minute against Málaga for a 2–1 win, then he scored two goals against UD Almería in a 2–2 tie. He continued his spree with an impressive week where he scored eight goals; he started by scoring a hat-trick against Valencia CF in a 3–0 home win, then he scored two goals against Stuttgart, in a 4–0 win that secured Barcelona's qualification to the quarterfinals of the Champions League, and finally he scored another hat-trick against Zaragoza in a 4–2 away win, becoming the first Barcelona player to score back-to-back hat-tricks in La Liga. He played his 200th official match for Barcelona against Osasuna on 24 March 2010.

On 6 April 2010, for the first time in Messi's career he scored four goals in a single match, netting the lot in a 4–1 home win over Arsenal in the Champions League quarter-final second leg. This also saw him overtake Rivaldo as Barcelona's all time greatest scorer in the competition. On 10 April, Messi scored his 40th goal of the season when he netted the first goal in a 2–0 away win against title-rivals Real Madrid in El Clásico. On 1 May, Messi played his 50th game of the season and scored two goals on a 4–1 away win against Villarreal. Just three days later, on 4 May, Messi scored two goals in another 4–1 win at home against Tenerife. Messi scored his 32nd goal of the La Liga season on 8 May, during an away win against Sevilla, and in the final match against Valladolid, he scored two goals in the second half to tie Ronaldo's club record of 34 goals in a single league season, set in 1996–97, and to finish four goals behind the all-time record held by Telmo Zarra. He was named La Liga player of the year for the second year in a row on 3 June 2010.

2010–11 season

On 21 August 2010, Messi scored a hat-trick in his first start of the season in a 4–0 victory over Sevilla FC in the Supercopa de España, helping Barcelona secure their first trophy of the season after a 1–3 first leg loss. He also began his league season with a goal, scoring after just three minutes against Racing Santander on 29 August 2010. He then continued his excellent form into the UEFA Champions League group stage match against Panathinaikos where he scored two goals, assisted another two and also hit the frame of the goal on two separate occasions.

On 19 September 2010, Messi suffered an ankle injury due to an ill-advised tackle by Atlético Madrid defender Tomáš Ujfaluši in the 92nd minute of their Round 3 match at the Vicente Calderón Stadium. At first sight it was feared that Messi suffered a broken ankle that could have kept the star player away from the pitch for a minimum of six months, but MRI performed the next day in Barcelona showed he suffered a sprain in the internal and external ligaments of his right ankle. Team-mate David Villa stated "the tackle on Messi was brutal" after watching the video of the play and also added that he believed the Atlético defender "didn't go into the tackle to hurt". The incident caused widespread media attention and brought up the debate of equality in protecting all players in the game.

When Messi recovered he scored in a 1–1 tie against RCD Mallorca. He then scored another brace on the UEFA Champions League against København and helped the team to a 2–0 home win. He continued his impressive scoring run with braces against Zaragoza and Sevilla. After a prolific October, he started November scoring on an away 1–1 tie against København and an away 3–1 win against Getafe where he also assisted team-mates David Villa and Pedro Rodríguez. In the next fixture against Villarreal CF, he scored combining with Pedro, which gave Barcelona a 2–1 lead. He scored another goal and Barcelona won 3–1. This was the 7th consecutive match in which Messi scored, breaking his own previous record of 6. He also achieved the feat of scoring 50 goals in the calender year of 2010 with the 1st goal, while with the second goal, he achieved the same feat again, this time considering the goals he scored wearing a Barcelona shirt in 2010. Against Almería he scored his second hat-trick of the season in an impressive 8–0 away win, the second goal was his 100th La Liga goal. He scored on his ninth game in a row (10th including a friendly against Brazil) on a 3–0 away win against Panathinaikos. Messi's goalscoring run ended on 29 November at El Clásico but Barcelona still managed to win 5–0 with Messi assisting Villa twice. The next match day he scored a brace and gave an assist against Osasuna. He followed with another brace against Real Sociedad. In El Derbi, a match Barcelona won 1–5, he assisted teammates Pedro and Villa to score one goal each. His first goal in 2011 came against Deportivo La Coruña with a free kick on a 4–0 away win, where he once again assisted both Pedro and Villa.

Messi won the 2010 FIFA Ballon d'Or, beating his Barcelona teammates Xavi and Iniesta. Messi had been nominated for the awards for the fourth consecutive year. Only two days after he won the award he scored his first hat-trick of the year and third of the season against Real Betis. He began the second round of the league with a goal, scoring his second penalty against Racing Santander. After scoring the penalty kick, Messi revealed a message on his undershirt that said, "Happy birthday, mami.". He continued his goalscoring form with a brace against Almería in the Copa del Rey semifinal, and followed it up with another brace less than a week later against Hércules CF. On 5 February, Barcelona broke the record for most consecutive league wins with 16 victories after they defeated Atlético Madrid 3–0 at the Camp Nou. Lionel Messi scored a hat-trick to ensure the victory for his side and after the match he stated, "it's an honor to be able to pass a record set by a great like Di Stéfano" and "if the record has been around for so long is because it's very complicated to achieve and we have reached it by defeating a very difficult team who's going through a bad situation, which makes it even more difficult."

After two scoreless games he scored the winner against Athletic Bilbao in which Barcelona won 2–1. The next week he scored the first header of the season against Mallorca on a 3–0 away win. This victory was the equalising a La Liga record set by Basque club Real Sociedad in the 1979–80 campaign with a 19 unbeaten away matches. The record was broken after three days later when Messi scored the only goal on an away victory over Valencia. On 8 March, Messi scored two goals against Arsenal in a UEFA Champions League match at the Camp Nou, helping Barcelona win 3–1 and qualify to the quarter-finals of the competition. After failing to score for a month he scored a brace against Almería; the second goal was his 47th of the season, equalling his club record return of the previous season. He surpassed his record on 12 April 2011 by scoring the winner against Shakhtar Donetsk in a UEFA Champions League game, which put him in the record book as all time top scorer in a single season for Barcelona. He scored his eight goal on El Clásico on a 1–1 tie at the Santiago Bernabéu Stadium. On 23 April, Messi scored his 50th goal of the season against Osasuna in a 2–0 home victory which he came on as a substitute in the 60th minute.

In the first leg of the Champions League semi-finals he gave a memorable performance, scoring twice against Real Madrid in a 2–0 win, the second goal (a dribble past several players) being acclaimed as one of the best ever at that stage of the competition. At the Champions League Final at Wembley, Messi scored the eventual game-clinching goal to give Barcelona their third title in six years and fourth overall.

2011–12 season

Messi started the season in the 2011 Spanish Supercup, scoring three goals and giving two assists for a 5–4 aggregate win against Real Madrid. On his next official match he scored again after a weak back pass from Fredy Guarín and gave an assist to Cesc Fàbregas for a 2-0 win against Porto at the UEFA Super Cup. This was the only official competition where he hadn't score before.

International career

In June 2004, he debuted for Argentina, playing in an under-20 friendly match against Paraguay. In 2005 he was part of a team that won the 2005 FIFA World Youth Championship in the Netherlands. There, he won the Golden Ball and the Golden Shoe, scoring in the last four of Argentina's matches and netting a total of six for the tournament.

He made his full international debut on 17 August 2005 against Hungary at the age of 18. He was substituted on during the 63rd minute, but was sent off on the 65th minute because the referee, Markus Merk, found he had headbutted defender Vilmos Vanczák, who was tugging Messi's shirt. The decision was contentious and Maradona even claimed the decision was pre-meditated. Messi returned to the team on 3 September in Argentina's 1–0 World Cup qualifier away defeat to Paraguay. Ahead of the match he had said "This is a re-debut. The first one was a bit short." He then started his first game for Argentina against Peru; after the match Pekerman described Messi as "a jewel".

On 28 March 2009, in a World Cup Qualifier against Venezuela, Messi wore the number 10 jersey for the first time with Argentina. This match was the first official match for Diego Maradona as the Argentina manager. Argentina won the match 4–0 with Messi opening the scoring.

On 17 November 2010, Messi scored a last-minute goal against South American rivals Brazil after an individual effort to help his team to a 1–0 win in the friendly match, which was held in Doha. This was the first time that he had scored against Brazil at senior level. Messi scored another last-minute goal on 9 February 2011 against Portugal in a penalty kick which he give his side a 2–1 victory in the friendly match, which was held in Geneva, Switzerland.

2006 World Cup

The injury that kept Messi from playing for two months at the end of the 2005–06 season jeopardised his presence in the 2006 World Cup. Nevertheless, Messi was selected in the Argentina squad for the tournament on 15 May 2006. He also played in the final match before the World Cup against the Argentine U-20 team for 15 minutes and a friendly match against Angola from the 64th minute. He witnessed Argentina's opening match victory against Ivory Coast from the substitute's bench. In the next match against Serbia and Montenegro, Messi became the youngest player to represent Argentina at a World Cup when he came on as a substitute for Maxi Rodríguez in the 74th minute. He assisted Hernán Crespo's goal within minutes of entering the game and also scored the final goal in the 6–0 victory, making him the youngest scorer in the tournament and the sixth youngest goalscorer in the history of the World Cup. Messi started in Argentina's following 0–0 draw against the Netherlands. In the following game against Mexico, Messi came on as a substitute in the 84th minute, with the score tied at 1–1. He appeared to score a goal, but it was ruled offside with Argentina needing a late goal in extra time to proceed. Coach José Pekerman left Messi on the bench during the quarter-final match against Germany, which they lost 4–2 on a penalty shootout.

2007 Copa América

Messi played his first game in the 2007 Copa América on 29 June 2007, when Argentina defeated United States 4–1 in the first game. In this game, he showed his capabilities as a playmaker. He set up a goal for fellow striker Hernán Crespo and had numerous shots on target. Tevez came on as a substitute for Messi in the 79th minute and scored minutes later.

His second game was against Colombia, in which he won a penalty that Crespo converted to tie the game at 1–1. He also played a part in Argentina's second goal as he was fouled outside the box, which allowed Juan Roman Riquelme to score from a freekick, and increase Argentina's lead to 3–1. The final score of the game was 4–2 in Argentina's favor and guaranteed them a spot in the tournament's quarterfinals.

In the third game, against Paraguay the coach rested Messi having already qualified for the quarter-finals. He came off the bench in place of Esteban Cambiasso in the 64th minute, with the score at 0–0. In the 79th minute, he assisted a goal for Javier Mascherano. In the quarter-finals, as Argentina faced Peru, Messi scored the second goal of the game, from a Riquelme pass in a 4–0 win. During the semi-final match against Mexico, Messi scored a lob over Oswaldo Sánchez to see Argentina through to the final with a 3–0 win. Argentina went on to lose 3–0 to Brazil in the final.

2008 Summer Olympics

Having barred Messi from playing for Argentina in the 2008 Olympics, Barcelona agreed to release him after he held talks with newly appointed coach Josep Guardiola. He joined the Argentina squad and scored the first goal in a 2–1 victory over Ivory Coast. He then scored the opening goal and assisted Ángel di María in the second to help his side to a 2–1 extra-time win against the Netherlands. He also featured in Argentina's match against rivals Brazil, in which Argentina took a 3–0 victory, thus advancing to the final. In the gold medal match, Messi again assisted Di María for the only goal in a 1–0 victory over Nigeria.

2010 World Cup

Messi played the entire game on Argentina's opening match in the 2010 World Cup, the 1–0 victory against Nigeria. He had several opportunities to score but was repeatedly denied by Vincent Enyeama. Messi started in Argentina's following 4–1 win against Korea Republic; he participated in all of the goals of his team and helped Gonzalo Higuaín score a hat-trick. On the third and last group stage match Messi captained during Argentina's 2–0 win over Greece, again being the centrepoint of Argentina's play and was voted man of the match.

At the Round of 16 he assisted Carlos Tévez for the first goal in a 3–1 win against Mexico. The referee awarded that goal even though it was a clear offside. The World Cup ended for Argentina with a 4–0 loss against Germany in the quarter-finals.

2011 Copa América

Messi took part in the Copa América in Argentina, where he failed to score a goal but notched three assists. He was selected man-of-the-match in matches against Bolivia (1–1) and Costa Rica (3–0). Argentina were eliminated in the quarter-finals in a penalty shoot-out against Uruguay (1–1 a.e.t.), with Messi scoring as the first penalty taker.

Outside football

Personal life

Messi was at one stage romantically linked to Macarena Lemos, also from his hometown of Rosario. He is said to have been introduced to her by the girl's father when he returned to Rosario to recover from his injury a few days before the start of the 2006 World Cup. He has in the past also been linked to the Argentine glamour model Luciana Salazar. In January 2009 he told "Hat Trick Barça", a programme on Canal 33: "I have a girlfriend and she is living in Argentina. I am relaxed and happy". He was seen with the girl, Antonella Roccuzzo, at a carnival in Sitges after the Barcelona-Espanyol derby. Roccuzzo is a fellow native of Rosario.

Messi has two cousins also involved in football: Maxi, a winger for Club Olimpia of Paraguay, and Emanuel Biancucchi, who plays as a midfielder for Spain's Girona FC.

Charity

In 2007 Messi established the Leo Messi Foundation, a charity supporting access to education and health care for vulnerable children. In an fansite interview, Messi said: “Being a bit famous now gives me the opportunity to help people who really need it, especially children." In response to Messi’s own childhood medical difficulties, the Leo Messi Foundation supports Argentine children diagnosed with medical conditions by offering treatment in Spain and covering the transport, hospital and recuperation costs. Messi’s foundation is supported by his own fundraising activity with additional assistance from Herbalife.

On 11 March 2010 Messi was announced as a goodwill ambassador for UNICEF. Messi’s UNICEF ambassador activities are aimed at supporting children’s rights. Messi is supported in this by FC Barcelona, who also have a strong association with UNICEF.

Media

He is featured on the front covers of the video games ''Pro Evolution Soccer 2009'' and ''Pro Evolution Soccer 2011'' and is also involved in promotional campaigns for the games. Messi, along with Fernando Torres, is the face of ''Pro Evolution Soccer 2010'', and was also involved in the motion capturing and the trailer. Messi is sponsored by the German sportswear company Adidas and features in their television advertisements. In June 2010, Messi also signed a three–year contract with Herbalife which further supports the Leo Messi Foundation.

Career statistics

Club

1 6 14 10 23 34 31 2

Club	Season	!colspan="3"	!colspan="3"	!colspan="3"	!colspan="3"	UEFA Super Cup	!colspan="3"	Total
!Apps	!Goals	!Assists	!Apps	!Goals	!Assists	!Apps	!Goals	!Assists	!Apps	!Goals	!Assists	!Apps	!Goals	!Assists	!Apps	!Goals	!Assists	!Apps	!Goals	!Assists
rowspan="8"	Barcelona		7	|	0	1	0	0	1	0	0	—			—			—			9	1	0
2005–06 FC Barcelona season	2005–06	17	|	3	2	1	0	6	1	1	0	0	0	—			—			25	8	4
2006–07 FC Barcelona season	2006–07	26	|	2	2	2	1	5	1	0	2	0	0	1	0	0	0	0	0	36	17	3
2007–08 FC Barcelona season	2007–08	28	|	12	3	0	0	9	6	1	—			—			—			40	16	13
2008–09 FC Barcelona season	2008–09	31	|	11	8	6	2	12	9	5	—			—			—			51	38	18
2009–10 FC Barcelona season	2009–10	35	|	10	3	1	0	11	8	0	1	2	0	1	0	1	2	2	0	53	47	11
2010–11 FC Barcelona season	2010–11	33	|	18	7	7	3	13	12	3	2	3	0	—			—			55	53	24
2011–12 FC Barcelona season	2011–12	1	|	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	2	3	2	1	1	1	0	0	0	4	6	4
Career total	!178!!121!!57!!26!!17!!6!!57!!37!!10!!7!!8!!2!!3!!1!!2!!2!!2!!0!!273!!186!!77

International

5 8 10 9 10 10 8

!National team!!Year!!Apps!!Goals!!Assists
rowspan=7	'''Argentina	2005	|	0	0
2006	|	2	2
2007	|	6	3
2008	|	2	1
2009	|	3	2
2010	|	2	2
2011	|	2	7
Total!!60!!17!!17

International goals

Under–20

:''Scores and results list Argentina's goal tally first.'' 14 June 2005 22 June 2005 24 June 2005 28 June 2005 2 July 2005 2 July 2005

!Goal	!Date!!Venue!!Opponent!!Score!!Result!!Competition
1	|	De Grolsch Veste>Arke Stadion, Enschede, Netherlands		1–0	2–0	2005 FIFA World Youth Championship>2005 World Youth Championship
2	|	Univé Stadion, Emmen, Netherlands>Emmen, Netherlands		1–1	2–1	2005 World Youth Championship
3	|	Arke Stadion, Enschede, Netherlands		3–1	3–1	2005 World Youth Championship
4	|	Stadion Galgenwaard>Galgenwaard Stadion, Utrecht, Netherlands		1–0	2–1	2005 World Youth Championship
5	|	Galgenwaard Stadion, Utrecht, Netherlands		1–0	2–1	2005 World Youth Championship
6	|	Galgenwaard Stadion, Utrecht, Netherlands	Nigeria	2–1	2–1	2005 World Youth Championship

Under–23

7 August 2008 16 August 2008

!Goal	!Date!!Venue!!Opponent!!Score!!Result!!Competition
1	|	Shanghai Stadium, Shanghai, China		1–0	2–1	Football at the 2008 Summer Olympics – Men's tournament>2008 Summer Olympics
2	|	Shanghai Stadium, Shanghai, China		1–0	2–1	2008 Summer Olympics

Senior team

1 March 2006 16 June 2006 5 June 2007 5 June 2007 8 July 2007 11 July 2007 16 October 2007 20 November 2007 align=left 4 June 2008 11 October 2008 11 February 2009 28 March 2009 14 November 2009 7 September 2010 17 November 2010 align=left 9 February 2011 align=left 20 June 2011 align=left

!Goal	!Date!!Venue!!Opponent!!Score!!Result!!Competition
1	|	St. Jakob-Park, Basel, Switzerland		2–1	2–3	Exhibition game>Friendly
2	|	Veltins-Arena>WM-Stadion Gelsenkirchen, Gelsenkirchen, Germany		6–0	6–0	2006 FIFA World Cup>2006 World Cup
3	|	Camp Nou, Barcelona, Spain		2–2	4–3	Friendly
4	|	Camp Nou, Barcelona, Spain	Algeria	4–2	4–3	Friendly
5	|	Estadio Metropolitano de Fútbol de Lara>Metropolitano de Fútbol de Lara, Barquisimeto, Venezuela		2–0	4–0	2007 Copa América
6	|	Polideportivo Cachamay, Puerto Ordaz, Venezuela		2–0	3–0	2007 Copa América
7	|	Estadio José Pachencho Romero>José Pachencho Romero, Maracaibo, Venezuela		2–0	2–0	2010 FIFA World Cup qualification (CONMEBOL)>2010 World Cup qualification
8	|	Estadio El Campín, Bogotá, Colombia	Colombia ||	1–0	1–2	2010 World Cup qualification
9	|	Qualcomm Stadium, San Diego, United States	Mexico	2–0	4–1	Friendly
10	|	Estadio Antonio Vespucio Liberti>Estadio Monumental, Buenos Aires, Argentina		1–0	2–1	2010 World Cup qualification
11	|	Stade Vélodrome, Marseille, France		2–0	2–0	Friendly
12	|	Estadio Monumental, Buenos Aires, Argentina	Venezuela	1–0	4–0	2010 World Cup qualification
13	|	Vicente Calderón Stadium, Madrid, Spain		1–1	1–2	Friendly
14	|	Estadio Monumental, Buenos Aires, Argentina	Spain	1–0	4–1	Friendly
15	|	Khalifa International Stadium, Doha, Qatar	Brazil ||	1–0	1–0	Friendly
16	|	Stade de Genève, Geneva, Switzerland	Portugal ||	2–1	2–1	Friendly
17	|	Estadio Monumental, Buenos Aires, Argentina	Albania ||	2–0	4–0	Friendly

Awards and honours

Club

;Barcelona

La Liga: 5

:: 2004–05, 2005–06, 2008–09, 2009–10, 2010–11

Copa del Rey: 1

:: 2008–09

Supercopa de España: 5

:: 2005, 2006, 2009, 2010, 2011

UEFA Champions League: 3

:: 2005–06, 2008–09, 2010–11

UEFA Super Cup: 2

:: 2009, 2011

FIFA Club World Cup: 1

:: 2009

Argentina

FIFA U-20 World Cup: 1

:: 2005

Olympic Gold Medal: 1

:: 2008

Individual

FIFA Ballon d'Or: 1

:: 2010

Ballon d'Or: 1

:: 2009

FIFA World Player of the Year: 1

:: 2009

FIFA Team of the Year: 3

:: 2008, 2009, 2010

U-21 European Footballer of the Year: 1

:: 2007

La Liga Player of the Year: 3

:: 2009, 2010, 2011

La Liga top goalscorer: 1

:: 2010

Copa del Rey top goalscorer: 1

:: 2011

La Liga Foreign Player of the Year: 3

:: 2007, 2009, 2010

La Liga Ibero-American Player of the Year: 4

:: 2007, 2009, 2010, 2011

European Golden Shoe: 1

:: 2010

UEFA Champions League top goalscorer: 3

:: 2009, 2010, 2011

UEFA Best Player in Europe: 1

:: 2011

UEFA Club Footballer of the Year: 1

:: 2009

UEFA Champions League Forward of the Year: 1

:: 2009

UEFA Champions League Final Man of the Match: 1

:: 2011

UEFA Champions League Final Fans' Man of the Match: 2

:: 2009, 2011

UEFA Team of the Year: 3

:: 2008, 2009, 2010

Footballer of the Year of Argentina: 5

:: 2005, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010

FIFPro World Player of the Year: 2

:: 2009, 2010

FIFPro World Young Player of the Year: 3

:: 2006, 2007, 2008

FIFPro Special Young Player of the Year: 2

:: 2007, 2008

FIFPro World XI: 4

:: 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010

FIFA U-20 World Cup Player of the Tournament: 1

:: 2005

FIFA U-20 World Cup top goalscorer: 1

:: 2005

Copa América Young Player of the Tournament: 1

:: 2007

World Soccer Player of the Year: 1

:: 2009

World Soccer Young Player of the Year: 3

:: 2006, 2007, 2008

FIFA Club World Cup Golden Ball: 1

:: 2009

ESM Team of the Year: 5

:: 2005–06, 2007–08, 2008–09, 2009–10, 2010–11

Onze d'Or: 2

:: 2009, 2010

Bravo Award: 1

:: 2007

Tuttosport Golden Boy: 1

:: 2005

Marca Leyenda: 1

:: 2009

UEFA best goal of the year: 1

:: 2007

References

External links

FC Barcelona profile

BDFutbol profile

Transfermarkt profile

Profile at ESPN

FIFA World Cup profile

Official page at Facebook

Category:1987 births Category:Living people Category:People from Rosario, Santa Fe Category:Argentine people of Italian descent Category:Naturalised citizens of Spain Category:Argentine footballers Category:Association football forwards Category:La Liga footballers Category:FC Barcelona Atlètic footballers Category:FC Barcelona footballers Category:Pichichi Trophy winners Category:Argentina international footballers Category:2006 FIFA World Cup players Category:2007 Copa América players Category:2010 FIFA World Cup players Category:2011 Copa América players Category:Footballers at the 2008 Summer Olympics Category:Olympic footballers of Argentina Category:Olympic medalists in football Category:Olympic gold medalists for Argentina Category:UNICEF people Category:Argentine expatriate footballers Category:Expatriate footballers in Spain

ar:ليونيل ميسي ast:Lionel Andrés Messi az:Lionel Messi bn:লিওনেল মেসি be:Ліанель Месі be-x-old:Ліянэль Мэсі bs:Lionel Messi br:Lionel Messi bg:Лионел Меси ca:Lionel Andrés Messi cv:Месси Лионель cs:Lionel Messi da:Lionel Messi de:Lionel Messi et:Lionel Messi el:Λιονέλ Μέσι es:Lionel Messi eo:Lionel Messi eu:Lionel Messi fa:لیونل مسی fr:Lionel Messi ga:Lionel Messi gl:Lionel Messi ko:리오넬 메시 hy:Լիոնել Մեսսի hi:लियोनेल मेस्सी hr:Lionel Messi id:Lionel Messi is:Lionel Messi it:Lionel Messi he:ליאונל מסי jv:Lionel Messi kn:ಲಿಯೊನೆಲ್‌ ಮೆಸ್ಸಿ ka:ლიონელ მესი kk:Лионель Месси sw:Lionel Messi la:Leonillus Messi lv:Lionels Mesi lt:Lionel Messi hu:Lionel Messi mk:Лионел Меси ml:ലേണൽ മെസി mr:लायोनेल मेस्सी ms:Lionel Messi mn:Лионель Месси my:လီယွန်နယ် မက်ဆီ nah:Lionel Messi nl:Lionel Messi ne:लियोनेल मेस्सी ja:リオネル・メッシ no:Lionel Messi nn:Lionel Messi oc:Lionel Messi mhr:Месси, Лионель uz:Lionel Messi pl:Lionel Messi pt:Lionel Messi ro:Lionel Messi ru:Месси, Лионель sq:Lionel Messi scn:Lionel Messi simple:Lionel Messi sk:Lionel Messi sl:Lionel Messi szl:Lionel Messi ckb:لیۆنێل مێسی sr:Лионел Меси sh:Lionel Messi fi:Lionel Messi sv:Lionel Messi ta:லியோனல் மெஸ்ஸி th:เลียวเนล เมสซี tr:Lionel Messi uk:Ліонель Мессі vi:Lionel Messi zh-yue:美斯 zh:利昂内尔·梅西

Coordinates	12°2′36″N77°1′42″N
playername	Kun Agüero
fullname	Sergio Leonel Agüero del Castillo
dateofbirth	June 02, 1988
countryofbirth	Quilmes, Argentina
height
position	Striker
currentclub	Manchester City
clubnumber	16
youthclubs1	Independiente
youthyears1	1997–2003
years1	2003–2006
years2	2006–2011
years3	2011–
clubs1	Independiente
clubs2	Atlético Madrid
clubs3	Manchester City F.C.
caps1	54
caps2	175
caps3	3
goals1	23
goals2	74
goals3	3
nationalyears1	2005–2007
nationalyears2	2008
nationalyears3	2006–
nationalyears4	2011–
nationalteam1	Argentina U20
nationalteam2	Argentina U23
nationalteam3	Argentina
nationalcaps1	7
nationalcaps2	5
nationalcaps3	30
nationalgoals1	6
nationalgoals2	2
nationalgoals3	13
medaltemplates	}}

| pcupdate = 20:28, 15 August 2011 (UTC) | ntupdate = 17 July 2011 }} Sergio Leonel "Kun" Agüero del Castillo (; born 2 June 1988) is an Argentine footballer who plays as a striker for Manchester City in England's Premier League and the Argentine national team.

On 5 July 2003 he became the youngest player to debut in the Argentine First Division at 15 years and 35 days, breaking the record previously established by Diego Maradona in 1976, who is Agüero's father-in-law due to his marriage to Maradona's daughter, Giannina.

At international level, Agüero represented the Argentina under-20 team at the FIFA U-20 World Cup in 2005 and in 2007 winning both tournaments. Agüero played at the 2008 Beijing Olympics, he scored two goals in the 3-0 semi-final win against Brazil as Argentina went on to win the gold medal. Agüero was selected to represent Argentina in the 2010 FIFA World Cup and the 2011 Copa América.

In 2006, Agüero moved to Europe to play for La Liga side Atletico Madrid in a fee worth €23m from Independiente. Here he made a name for himself, attracting attention from Europe's top clubs by scoring 101 goals in 234 appearances while winning a Copa del Rey and the UEFA Europa League. Agüero moved to Premier League club Manchester City in July 2011 for an undisclosed fee believed to be in the region of £35m.

Club career

Independiente

Sergio Agüero joined the youth system of Club Atlético Independiente aged nine. He then started playing for the Argentine first division team becoming the youngest player to debut in the Argentine First Division at 15 years and 35 days (on 5 July 2003 against Club Atlético San Lorenzo de Almagro), breaking the record previously established by Diego Maradona in 1976. His first goal for the club came in a 2–2 draw against rivals Estudiantes de la Plata on 26 November 2004. Agüero soon became a regular in the first team, earning a place in the Argentina squad for the U-20 World Cup in 2005.

Agüero's most famous goal for Independiente came on 11 September 2005 in a 4–0 win against Racing Club de Avellaneda, where he ran from inside his own half before finishing with his left foot. His outstanding performances during the 2005 Torneo Apertura attracted interest from a number of big name European clubs, and after months of speculation, Agüero announced to television in April 2006 that he intended to leave the club at the end of the season.

Atlético Madrid

In May 2006 Agüero signed for Spanish club Atlético Madrid for an undisclosed fee, reported to be around €23 million, breaking the club's previous transfer record. He caused controversy early in his Atlético career by using his hands to score the winning goal against Recreativo Huelva on 14 October 2006, it was only his second goal for the club, the first coming in a 4–1 away win against Athletic Bilbao on September 17. In the 2007–08 season, Agüero finished third in scoring in La Liga, behind Dani Güiza and Luís Fabiano, with 19 goals, and was runner up in the ''Trofeo Alfredo Di Stéfano'' award. Kun won many plaudits for his man of the match display against Barcelona in March 2008, scoring twice, assisting a goal, and winning a penalty for Atlético in a 4–2 win. He also scored important goals against the likes of Real Madrid, Valencia, Sevilla and Villarreal to help Atlético finish fourth and qualify for the UEFA Champions League for the first time in over ten years.

Agüero was once again a regular goalscorer for Atlético in the 2008–09 season, forming a partnership with Uruguayan striker Diego Forlán, also a former Independiente striker. On September 16, he scored his first Champions League goals in a 3–0 away win at PSV Eindhoven. In March 2009, the duo of Forlán and Agüero scored a brace each in a 4–3 win over league leaders Barcelona. Agüero finished in the top ten runners for the Pichichi Trophy while his teammate Forlán won the trophy. Atlético finished fourth in the league, qualifying for the following season's Champions League.

Despite not being as prolific in front of goal, Agüero had another good season in 2009–10, and was praised for his influential performances as Atlético enjoyed their most successful season in over a decade. On 3 November 2009, he scored twice against Chelsea during a 2–2 draw in the Champions League at the Vicente Calderón. Atlético were knocked out of the competition, but went on to reach the final of the 2009–10 UEFA Europa League, where Agüero assisted both goals in a 2–1 extra time win against English club . He also helped Atlético reach the final of the Spanish Cup, although this time they were not victorious, losing to Sevilla in the Camp Nou on May 19. On 27 August 2010, Atlético Madrid captured the UEFA Super Cup by beating favorites Inter Milan by a score of 2–0. Agüero assisted José Antonio Reyes for the opening goal and then secured the win by scoring the second. On 4 January 2011, Atlético Madrid confirmed via their official website that Agüero had signed a new contract with the club, keeping him at the Vicente Calderón until 2014. The following day he was named as the new vice-captain of Atlético, along with strike partner Diego Forlán.

On 23 May 2011, Agüero announced on his official website that he desired a move away from Atlético Madrid.

Manchester City

On 28 July 2011 Manchester City confirmed that Agüero had signed a five-year contract with the club. The fee was not disclosed, but was reported as £35 million with add-ons taking it to £38m.

Agüero was issued with the number 16 shirt for his first season at City and wears the shirt name Kun Agüero. He was an unused substitute in the Dublin Super Cup match against Inter Milan and the 2011 FA Community Shield against Manchester United with manager Roberto Mancini believing Agüero was not yet fit.

Agüero made his debut for Manchester City on 15 August 2011 in a 4–0 Premier League victory over Swansea City. Agüero came on as a substitute in the 59th minute scoring his first goal for the club within 9 minutes after a tap in from a cross from full back Micah Richards. He then turned provider with an assist after chipping over the oncoming goalkeeper before flicking the ball back into the penalty box and into the path of the goal for David Silva to score. Agüero rounded off his debut by scoring again in injury time with a 30 yard strike. His 30-minute debut gained rave reviews among football journalists, with some suggesting it was one of the best seen in English football.

City continued their strong start winning 3-2 away at Bolton Wanderers with Agüero missing two chances in the penalty box. On the 28 of August, Agüero scored his third league goal in Manchester City's 5-1 rout of Tottenham Hotspur.

International career

Agüero made his senior debut for Argentina in a friendly with Brazil, played at Emirates Stadium, England on 3 September 2006. As a teenager, he represented Argentina at three FIFA World Youth Championships. Together with future 2008 Olympics squad teammates Fernando Gago of Real Madrid and Lionel Messi of Barcelona, they won the 2005 edition in the Netherlands.

2007 FIFA U-20 World Cup

At the 2007 U-20 World Cup in Canada, he scored twice and helped set up three goals in a 6–0 win over Panama in the second game of the group stage of the tournament. Agüero then scored the only goal in Argentina's third match against North Korea from a free kick. Having qualified to the round of 16, he scored two of the three goals against Poland that would eventually give them a 3–1 win to advance to the next round. Argentina defeated Mexico in the quarter-finals and Chile in the semi-finals, and faced the Czech Republic in the finals, a team they drew 0–0 in the group stage. Agüero captained and scored the equaliser in the 62nd minute, leading to a 2–1 victory. In addition, Agüero won the Golden Boot of the tournament, scoring six goals in seven , and the Golden Ball as the best player of the tournament.

2008 Summer Olympics

As a member of the Argentine squad for the 2008 Beijing Olympics, Agüero scored two goals in the space of five minutes in the semi-final 3–0 win over Brazil on 19 August 2008. Argentina went on to win the gold medal, a second in a row at the Olympic tournament.

2010 FIFA World Cup

He was chosen for the 2010 World Cup squad, and made his World Cup debut in Argentina's second group match against Korea Republic on 12 June 2010, replacing Carlos Tévez in the 75th minute. Agüero's impact was immediate as Argentina scored in the next minute. He assisted on Gonzalo Higuaín's hat-trick goal late in the game. Argentina won the game 4–1. However Argentina subsequently lost to Germany in the quarter finals.

2011 Copa América

Agüero was named in the 23-man squad for the 2011 Copa América where Argentina had been drawn into Group A with Bolivia, Colombia and Costa Rica. On 1 July in Argentina's opening group stage match against Bolivia he was substituted on to the field for Ezequiel Lavezzi on 71 minutes and scored an equaliser on 76 minutes to secure a 1-1 draw. On 6 July he was substituted onto the field for Ezequiel Lavezzi on 64 minutes as Argentina drew 0-0 with Colombia in their second group stage fixture. On 11 July in Argentina's third group stage match against Costa Rica, Agüero scored a goal in each half as Argentina won 3-0 and finished in second position of their group.

Style of play

Aguero is a striker and is regarded as an all out centre forward, but can also play as a second striker off another striker, which he often did at Atlético Madrid with Diego Forlán.

Agüero has a diminutive figure with a stocky build, which has led to comparisons with fellow Manchester City striker, Carlos Tevez and past strikers such as Romario and Maradona. Some pundits go as far to say Agüero is Tevez's heir apparent at City and is superior to Tevez. His manager at Manchester City, Roberto Mancini has compared Agüero to former Brazilian striker, Romario.

Agüero is characterised by agility, acceleration and strength, being described as "sharp and clever" by former Argentine player Ossie Ardiles. A view which is shared by Lionel Messi who believes Agüero possesses "immense power, strength and an ­incredible work ethic." Combined with his close control and strength to keep the ball, he is described as a menace in the box.

Nickname

Agüero's nickname "Kun" which features on his shirt derives from his childhood and was first given to him by his grandparents. It came about due to a resemblance to the character Kun-Kun from ''Rozen Maiden'', Agüero's favourite television programme as a child. The player himself has said about it "I have grown to appreciate it because it's unique. It's not everyday an athlete is nicknamed after a cartoon character!"

Personal life

He is married to Giannina Maradona, the youngest daughter of Argentine football legend Diego Maradona, whom he started dating at the end of 2007. On 19 February 2009, Giannina gave birth to a son, Benjamín, in Madrid. Maradona was there for the birth of his first grandson, while Agüero, 20, missed Atlético's training session earlier in the day. Atlético offered their congratulations in a statement on their official website.

Agüero has a tattoo on the inside of his right arm, inscribed in Tengwar—a form of writing invented by J. R. R. Tolkien that was used by the Elves in his works. It translates roughly to ''Kun Agüero'' in the Latin alphabet. He also has a tattoo on his left arm with his son's name and date of birth.

Career statistics

Correct as of 21 May 2011

0 0 5 18 3 19 17 12 20 3

Club	Season	League	Cup	League Cup	Continental	Others	Total
	!Apps	!Goals	!Assists	!Apps	!Goals	!Assists	!Apps	!Goals	!Assists	!Apps	!Goals	!Assists	!Apps	!Goals	!Assists	!Apps	!Goals	!Assists
rowspan="4"	Independiente		1	|	0	–			–			0	0	0	–			1	0	0
Primera División Argentina 2003–04	2003–04	5	|	0	–			–			2	0	0	–			7	0	0
2004–05 Primera División Argentina	2004–05	12	|	0	–			–			0	0	0	–			12	5	0
Primera División Argentina 2005–06	2005–06	36	|	4	–			–			0	0	0	–			36	18	4
colspan="2"> Argentina	–!!colspan="3"
rowspan="5"	Atlético Madrid		38	6	|	4	1	0	–			0	0	0	–			42	7	3
2007–08 La Liga	2007–08	37	|	5	4	2	0	–			9	6	3	–			50	27	8
!colspan="3"	2008–09	37	|	8	1	0	0	–			9	4	2	–			47	21	10
!colspan="3"	2009–10	31	|	3	7	1	3	–			16	6	4	–			54	20	10
!colspan="3"	2010–11	32	|	2	4	3	1	–			4	3	2	1	1	1	41	27	6
colspan="2">Spain	–!!38!!19!!11!!1!!1!!1!!234!!102!!37
	Manchester City	2011–12 Premier League	2011–12	3	|	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	3	3	1
England		!3!!3!!1!!0!!0!!0!!0!!0!!0!!0!!0!!0!!0!!0!!0!!3!!3!!1
Career totals		!233!!101!!26!!20!!7!!4!!0!!0!!0!!40!!19!!11!!1!!1!!1!!294!!129!!42

International goals

Argentina's goal tally first

! #	! Date	! Venue	! Opponent	! Score	! Result	! Competition
1.	17 November 2007	El Monumental, Buenos Aires, Argentina		1 – 0	3–0
2.	26 March 2008	Cairo International Stadium, Cairo, Egypt		1 – 0	2–0
3.	4 June 2008	Qualcomm Stadium, San Diego, United States		4 – 1	4–1	Friendly
4.	6 September 2008	El Monumental, Buenos Aires, Argentina		1 – 1	1–1	World Cup 2010 Qualifying
5.	11 October 2008	El Monumental, Buenos Aires, Argentina		2 – 0	2–1	World Cup 2010 Qualifying
6.	28 March 2009	El Monumental, Buenos Aires, Argentina		4 – 0	4–0	World Cup 2010 Qualifying
7.	12 August 2009			1 – 1	4–2	Friendly
8.	24 May 2010	El Monumental, Buenos Aires, Argentina		5 – 0	5–0	Friendly
9.	7 September 2010	El Monumental, Buenos Aires, Argentina		4 – 1	4–1	Friendly
10.	20 June 2011	El Monumental, Buenos Aires, Argentina		3 – 0	4–0	Friendly
11.	1 July 2011	Estadio Ciudad de La Plata, La Plata, Argentina		1 – 1	1–1	Copa América 2011
12.	11 July 2011			1 – 0	3–0	Copa América 2011
13.	11 July 2011	Estadio Mario Alberto Kempes, Córdoba, Argentina		2 – 0	3–0	Copa América 2011

Olympic goals

! #	! Date	! Venue	! Opponent	! Score	! Result	! Competition
1.	19 August 2008			1 – 0	3–0
2.	19 August 2008	Beijing Worker's Stadium, Beijing, China	Brazil	2 – 0	3–0	Beijing 2008 Summer Olympics

Honours

Club

; Atlético Madrid

UEFA Intertoto Cup (1): 2007

UEFA Europa League (1): 2009–10

UEFA Super Cup (1): 2010

Copa del Rey

:* ''Runner-up (1):'' 2009–10

International

; Argentina

FIFA U-20 World Cup (2): 2005, 2007

Summer Olympic (1): 2008

Individual

FIFA Young Player of the Year (1): 2007

FIFA U-20 World Cup Top Scorer (1): 2007

FIFA U-20 World Cup Player of the Tournament (1): 2007

La Liga Ibero-American Player of the Year (1): 2008

Don Balón Award (1): 2007–08

Tuttosport Golden Boy (1): 2007

References

External links

Official site

Futbol360 profile

Footballdatabase.com profile

Profile at FutbolPunto with maps and graphs (Spanish)

News, Photos and videos Sergio Agüero

The rise of Sergio Agüero

FIFA.com Profile

UEFA.com Profile

Sergio Aguero News & articles SergioAguero.net

Heir to the throne? Teen Agüero may become Argentina’s next Maradona ''Southamericanfutbol.com''

Agüero's World Cup chances ride on his return to form ''Southamericanfutbol.com''

Profile at SoccerSurfer.com

Category:1988 births Category:Living people Category:Argentine footballers Category:Argentina international footballers Category:Club Atlético Independiente footballers Category:People from Quilmes Category:La Liga footballers Category:Premier League players Category:Atlético Madrid footballers Category:Manchester City F.C. players Category:Expatriate footballers in Spain Category:Expatriate footballers in England Category:Argentine expatriate footballers Category:Footballers at the 2008 Summer Olympics Category:2010 FIFA World Cup players Category:Olympic footballers of Argentina Category:Olympic gold medalists for Argentina Category:Primera División Argentina players Category:Argentine expatriate sportspeople in Spain Category:Olympic medalists in football Category:2011 Copa América players

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Coordinates	12°2′36″N77°1′42″N
playername	Cesc Fàbregas
fullname	Francesc Fàbregas i Soler
dateofbirth	May 04, 1987
cityofbirth	Vilassar de Mar
countryofbirth	Spain
height
position	Midfielder
currentclub	Barcelona
clubnumber	4
youthyears1	1995–1997
youthyears2	1997–2003
youthyears3	2003
youthclubs1	Mataró
youthclubs2	Barcelona
youthclubs3	Arsenal
years1	2003–2011
years2	2011-present
clubs1	Arsenal
clubs2	Barcelona
caps1	212
goals1	35
years2	2011–
clubs2	Barcelona
caps2	1
goals2	1
nationalyears1	2002–2003
nationalyears2	2003–2004
nationalyears3	2005
nationalyears4	2004–2005
nationalyears5	2006–
nationalyears6	2004
nationalteam1	Spain U16
nationalteam2	Spain U17
nationalteam3	Spain U20
nationalteam4	Spain U21
nationalteam5	Spain
nationalteam6	Catalonia
nationalcaps1	8
nationalgoals1	0
nationalcaps2	14
nationalgoals2	7
nationalcaps3	5
nationalgoals3	0
nationalcaps4	11
nationalgoals4	2
nationalcaps5	58
nationalgoals5	6
nationalcaps6	1
nationalgoals6	1
pcupdate	21:50, 29 August, 2011 (UTC)
ntupdate	03:13, 14 August 2011 (UTC) }}

Francesc "Cesc" Fàbregas i Soler (; born 4 May 1987) is a Spanish footballer who plays as a central midfielder for La Liga club FC Barcelona.

Fàbregas started his career as a trainee with Barcelona but was signed by Premier League side Arsenal in September 2003 at the age of 16. Following injuries to key midfielders in the 2004–05 season, he went on to establish himself as Arsenal's starting central midfielder, playmaker, and captain. He broke several of the club's records in the process, earning a reputation as one of the best young players for his position. In 2011, he returned to Barcelona for an initial fee of £29m (€34m) with a further £4m (€5m) in variables.

In international football, the Spaniard's national career began when he represented the Under-17 side at the 2003 FIFA U-17 World Championship in Finland. As a result of his club performances, he was called up to the senior squad in 2006. He has played in the 2006 FIFA World Cup, UEFA Euro 2008 and 2010 FIFA World Cup, helping Spain to become eventual winners in the two most recent tournaments.

Early years

Fàbregas was born in Vilassar de Mar, Barcelona, Catalonia to Francesc Fàbregas, Sr., who runs a property company, and Núria Soler, the owner of a pastry company. Fàbregas has supported FC Barcelona since childhood and went to his first match when he was nine months old with his grandfather. He began his club football career with CE Mataró, before being signed for Barcelona's La Masia youth academy aged 10 in 1997. His first coach, Señor Blai, reportedly did not select Fabregas for matches against Barcelona in an attempt to hide him from their scouts. This tactic, however, was unable to withstand Barcelona for long, and Mataró gave in and allowed Fàbregas to train with Barcelona one day per week. Eventually Fàbregas joined Barcelona's academy full time. His initial training was as a defensive midfielder playing alongside notable names such as Gerard Piqué and Lionel Messi. Although he was a prolific scorer, sometimes scoring even more than 30 goals in a season for the club's youth teams, he did not manage to play a first team game at the Camp Nou. During his time at Barcelona's youth academy, Fàbregas idolised Barcelona's then-captain and number four Josep Guardiola, who would later give Fàbregas his shirt as consolation when Fàbregas' parents divorced.

Club career

Arsenal

Adapting to England

Sensing that he would have limited opportunities at Barcelona, he joined Arsenal in their Academy, signing for the London club on 11 September 2003. Initially, he found life difficult in England's capital but soon struck a friendship with Spanish-speaking team-mate Philippe Senderos, who helped him settle down. As a 16-year-old, Fàbregas did not contemplate breaking into the first team immediately but looked up to senior players like Patrick Vieira and Gilberto Silva, while concentrating on training and learning the English language. He nevertheless made his debut for Arsenal not long after, on 23 October 2003, in a League Cup tie at home to Rotherham United. In doing so he became Arsenal's youngest ever first team player, aged 16 years and 177 days. He then became the youngest goalscorer in Arsenal's history in a later round of the League Cup, scoring in a 5–1 victory against Wolverhampton Wanderers. Although Arsenal went on to win the league unbeaten in the 2003–04 season, Fàbregas was not awarded a winner's medal because he did not play a single league game.

It was not until the start of the 2004–05 season that the Spaniard started making first team appearances in matches outside the League Cup. His first match of the season was against Manchester United in the FA Community Shield. Following an injury to Vieira, Fàbregas stepped in and made four consecutive Premier League starts. He was praised for his performances in those games, even claiming a goal against Blackburn Rovers in a 3–0 victory, and becoming Arsenal's youngest ever goalscorer in a league game. With further injuries to Edu and Gilberto Silva, he received more playing time in all competitions. He signed his first professional contract with Arsenal in September 2004, which committed his long-term future to the club. In the 2004–05 UEFA Champions League, he became the second-youngest goalscorer in the competition's history after scoring the third goal against Rosenborg in a 5–1 win. He concluded his season by winning his first honours with Arsenal when he was in the starting eleven that defeated Manchester United on penalties in the 2005 FA Cup Final.

Making the starting eleven

After the departure of Vieira to Juventus, Fàbregas was given the Frenchman's number 4 shirt and featured regularly in the Arsenal central midfield alongside Gilberto Silva. He made 49 appearances in all competitions during the 2005–06 season. Despite his young age, his performances came under greater scrutiny due to his increased involvement in the first team. Further, as Fàbregas possessed a smaller frame and played with less aggression than Vieira, there were initially doubts over his ability to fill in the void left by the Frenchman. Nevertheless, Fàbregas asserted his own style of play and impressed pundits in the Champions League against Real Madrid and Juventus. In the latter, he scored Arsenal's first goal and set up Thierry Henry for the second, at the same time proving that he could compete against tough, hard-tackling midfielders like Vieira. He then played in the Final against his former club Barcelona, but Arsenal were defeated 2–1, completing a trophyless 2005–06 campaign for Arsenal.

Fàbregas' increase in exposure drew transfer speculation during the summer; Real Madrid expressed a desire to sign the Spaniard despite his long-term contract with Arsenal, but Arsenal manager Arsène Wenger stated that Arsenal would not listen to any offers. In September 2006, with six years left on his deal, Arsenal offered a new five-year deal (with an option to extend by a further three years) to the midfielder, which he signed on 19 October 2006. While the contract was unusually long, Fàbregas cited Arsenal's playing style and Wenger as reasons for his long-term commitment to the club.

The 2006–07 season was a learning experience for the young Arsenal squad and Fàbregas. The club again failed to secure any major honours and were defeated by city rivals Chelsea in the League Cup Final. However, Fàbregas emerged as one of the key creative players for the team, playing in every single league game. He kickstarted Arsenal's 2006–07 UEFA Champions League campaign when he scored a brace in a 3–0 win over Dinamo Zagreb in a qualifier match. In the Premier League, he notched up 13 assists, which was the second-highest total in the league. He ended the season with several individual honours, including the Golden Boy award, presented by the Italian paper ''TuttoSport'', based on a poll of leading writers across Europe. He was also named in the 2006 UEFA Team of the Year, and named FA Premier League Player of the Month for January 2007. Additionally, he was nominated for both PFA Players' Player of the Year and PFA Young Player of the Year, although both awards went to Manchester United's Cristiano Ronaldo. In June 2007, he was named Arsenal's Player of the Season, taking in 60% of the votes.

The 2007–08 season began with much uncertainty for Arsenal. First, David Dein, the club's vice-chairman, left amidst allegations of internal strife, followed by the departure of the club's all-time top goalscorer and captain, Thierry Henry, who signed for Barcelona. There was also speculation over Wenger's future with the club. Fàbregas knew that he would become the most important player for Arsenal, but stated he was ready for the challenge. He started the season well, chalking up goals and assists, and website soccernet attributed the early success of Arsenal to the young Spaniard. His start to the season also earned him the O₂ Player of the Month award from Arsenal fans for August, September and October, as well as the Premier League Player of the Month for September. With Arsenal leading the league table until March, Fàbregas was equally instrumental in the club's 2007–08 Champions League campaign; in the return leg against Milan, the midfielder scored late in the game to send Arsenal into the quarter-finals. Though Arsenal ended the season trophyless, Fàbregas amassed several personal awards. On 11 April 2008, Fàbregas was nominated for the PFA Player of the Year and PFA Young Player of the Year awards for the second year running; he was later crowned the winner of the latter, and named in the PFA Team of the Year. He was also named the 2007–08 Arsenal.com Player of the Season.

Captaincy

On 24 November 2008, 14 league games into the 2008–09 season, Fàbregas was named as the successor to William Gallas as club captain. However, just as Arsenal were getting back into the title race after a poor start to the season, the Spaniard was ruled out for four months after sustaining a knee injury against Liverpool. The Gunners eventually finished the season without any silverware, coming in fourth in the league and being knocked out at the semi-finals of the 2008–09 Champions League campaign. In tandem with Arsenal's policy to groom its young players, the team that Fàbregas led into the new season consisted mostly of the same young nucleus as before, with the likes of Nicklas Bendtner, Gaël Clichy, Abou Diaby, Denílson, Samir Nasri, Alexandre Song, and Theo Walcott in tow.

In the opening league game of 2009–10 season, Fàbregas scored a brace and managed two assists in Arsenal's 6–1 away win against Everton. Arsenal went on to secure qualification for the 2009–10 Champions League campaign by beating Celtic over two legs, but their early momentum to the season was disrupted by consecutive league game losses to Manchester United and Manchester City. The team bounced back strongly after this setback, and with Fàbregas being prolific in scoring and setting up his teammates, it went unbeaten in the next 13 games. Despite suffering four league losses even before mid-season approached, Arsenal managed to lead the league standings after 22 games. On 31 March 2010, in the Champions League first leg of the quarter-final against Barcelona, Fàbregas suffered a leg fracture before scoring the equalising goal in the game which ended 2–2. Arsenal, who were four points behind league leaders Manchester United, were deprived of their captain for the remaining six league games of the season; they were subsequently eliminated by Barcelona in the Champions League, and fell out of the league title race. Fàbregas was later named to the PFA Team of the Year.

Before the start of the 2010–11 season, there was once again intense media speculation about the Spaniard's future, and in June 2010, a €35 million bid from Barcelona was rejected. The 2010–11 season turned out to be an extremely competitive one in the Premier League; even though Arsenal had lost five games before mid-season, they were jostling for pole position with Manchester United and Manchester City. Going into late February, Arsenal were still in contention for the quadruple, but within a span of two weeks they lost in the League Cup final, were eliminated by Barcelona in the Round of 16 of the Champions League, and defeated in the FA Cup quarter-final. Although Fàbregas did not play in the League Cup Final, it was his misplaced backheel pass during the second leg of the Champions League game against Barcelona that allowed them to level the aggregate score. Arsenal remained in contention for the league title until a series of draws in the final third of the season caused them to fall too far behind league leaders Manchester United; they ended the season fourth. The following season was once again marked by uncertainty. Barcelona made several bids for Fàbregas, while Nasri, Arsenal's star performer the previous campaign, was courted by Manchester City.

Barcelona

On 15 August 2011, Barcelona signed Fàbregas for for an initial fee of £29 million (€34 million) with a further £4 million (€5 million) in variables, ending one of the most protracted transfer sagas in recent times. Fàbregas made his debut in the second leg of the Supercopa de España, coming on as a substitute against Real Madrid. Barcelona won the tie 3–2 and 5–4 on aggregate. He scored his first goal in a 2–0 win against Porto as Barcelona won the 2011 UEFA Super Cup, and his first league goal on his league debut against Villarreal.

International career

Youth team

Although he features regularly for the Spain national football team, Fàbregas' international career began at youth level. At the 2003 FIFA U-17 World Championship held in Finland, he finished as top scorer of the tournament despite playing in midfield, and was voted Player of the Tournament. Spain finished runners-up in the tournament to Brazil. Fàbregas was next involved in the 2004 UEFA U-17 European Championship, where Spain also finished runners-up. He was named the Golden Player of the tournament.

Senior team

After emerging as one of Arsenal's key players in only his second season at the club, it did not take long for Fàbregas to be called up to the senior squad. Noting his impressive performances in Arsenal's 2006 Champions League campaign, Spain coach Luis Aragonés named the teenager in the team for a friendly against Ivory Coast. In that game, Fàbregas became the youngest player capped for Spain in 70 years, beating Sergio Ramos' record. He received favourable reviews for his début, and was involved in the build-up to Spain's first goal in the 3–2 victory over the Ivorians.

2006 World Cup

On 15 May 2006, Fàbregas was selected for the Spanish 2006 FIFA World Cup squad. During the tournament, he came on as a second-half substitute in Spain's first two group matches, contributing an assist to striker Fernando Torres in their 3–1 victory against Tunisia. He then started alongside Spain's reserve players (including then-Arsenal teammate José Antonio Reyes) in Spain's third group match against Saudi Arabia. He earned a starting role in Spain's first knockout-stage match against France, in place of Marcos Senna, but Spain lost 3–1. Fàbregas also became the youngest player in Spanish football history to participate in a World Cup when he came on as a substitute for Luis García after 77 minutes in the 4–0 victory against Ukraine on 13 June 2006; he was then 19 years and 41 days old. He was later nominated for the Gillette Young Player of the World Cup, but Germany's Lukas Podolski won the award.

UEFA Euro 2008

In UEFA Euro 2008, Fàbregas was issued with squad number 10, rather than 18 which he had previously held. Despite featuring mostly as a substitute, the midfielder made a considerable impact in Spain's campaign. He scored his first international goal in that competition in Spain's 4–1 win over Russia and also had an assist in that game. Spain won all three of their group games and met Italy in the quarter-finals. In that match, Fàbregas scored the winning penalty in the penalty shoot-out after the teams remained deadlocked 0–0 after extra time. In the semi-finals, Spain defeated Russia 3–0 with Fàbregas providing two assists. The midfielder made the starting eleven in the Final against Germany where Spain prevailed 1–0; this was Spain's first major title since 1964. For his efforts, Fàbregas was named in the Team of the Tournament, a 23-man squad selected by the UEFA Technical Team.

Confederations Cup 2009

After missing out for several months due to his injury, Fàbregas regained his place as a regular in Vicente del Bosque's squad. In June, he was named in the team for the 2009 FIFA Confederations Cup. He scored his second international goal in a 5–0 win against New Zealand in the competition's group stage. In the semi-finals against the United States (which Fàbregas started), Spain suffered a shock 2–0 loss, and its 15-game winning streak came to an end.

2010 World Cup

Fàbregas was selected as a part of del Bosque's 23-man squad for the 2010 FIFA World Cup. With del Bosque preferring a starting midfield of Sergio Busquets, Xabi Alonso, Xavi and Andrés Iniesta, Fàbregas did not start in any of Spain's games in the competition. He featured as a substitute in four of their seven matches, in which Spain lost their opening game before winning the next six en route to the final. In the Final itself, Fàbregas set up the extra-time winner for Iniesta to win Spain the World Cup for the first time in their history.

International goals

:''Scores and results list. Spain's goal tally first.'' Tivoli Neu, Innsbruck, Austria 14 June 2009 9 September 2009 10 October 2009 18 November 2009 8 June 2010

# !! Date !! Venue !! Opponent !! Score !! Result !! Competition
1.	10 June 2008	|		4–1	4–1	UEFA Euro 2008 Group D>UEFA Euro 2008
2.	|	Royal Bafokeng Stadium, Rustenburg, South Africa		4–0	5–0	2009 FIFA Confederations Cup
3.	|	Estadio Romano, Mérida, Spain>Mérida, Spain		1–0	3–0	2010 FIFA World Cup qualification
4.	|	Hanrapetakan Stadium, Yerevan, Armenia		1–0	2–1	2010 FIFA World Cup qualification
5.	|	Ernst-Happel-Stadion, Vienna, Austria		1–1	5–1	Friendly
6.	|	Nueva Condomina, Murcia, Spain		4–0	6–0	Friendly

Style of play

Originally brought to Arsenal as a youth to slowly develop via the League Cup, Fàbregas was unexpectedly deployed as Arsenal's starting central midfielder following injuries to fellow midfielders Patrick Vieira, Gilberto Silva and Edu during the 2004–05 season. While Vieira served as his role model and mentor, he styled his game after his childhood hero and compatriot Josep Guardiola. Because he was of a different mould from his Arsenal predecessors who played in the same position, this led to criticisms of his lightweight frame and less aggressive style of play, with former teammate Ashley Cole criticising the Spaniard as "an unproven featherweight" in his autobiography.

However, it did not take long for Fàbregas to become one of the most coveted and celebrated young talents in the game. Functioning mostly as a playmaker and renowned for his passing range, he was described as the kernel of Arsenal's first team, bringing vision, creativity, and an innate understanding of timing and space to Arsenal's intricate passing game, displaying maturity that belied his age. He was the main creative force when he was at Arsenal, as exemplified by his 16 assists in all competitions in the 2006–07 season. Between 2006–07 and 2010–11, Fàbregas created the most chances in the top-division leagues of England, Spain, Italy, Germany and France.

At Arsenal, Fàbregas also often assumed responsibility for set pieces, taking corners, free kicks and penalties. By his own admission, scoring was a weaker part of his game in his first few seasons at Arsenal; wasteful finishing also being symptomatic of the larger problem surrounding Arsenal in the 2005–06 and 2006–07 seasons. This changed initially in the 2007–08 season when he scored 11 goals in his first 16 games, and Arsenal manager Wenger claimed that the Spaniard's previous inability to score was down to a mental state, and even compared the Spaniard to Michel Platini, a French midfielder renowned for scoring. There were also concerns raised over the large number of games Fàbregas was playing for club and country at such a young age, but while he initially avoided long spells on the sidelines, he played significantly less games due to injury in his last three seasons with Arsenal.

Statistics

''Statistics accurate as of 29 August 2011''

0 2 3 2 7 3 15 3 1

Club	Season	League	Cup	!colspan="3"	Total
!Apps	!Goals	!Assists	!Apps	!Goals	!Assists	!Apps	!Goals	!Assists	!Apps	!Goals	!Assists
rowspan="8" valign="center"	Arsenal		0	|	0	3	1	0	0	0	0	3	1	0
2004–05 Arsenal F.C. season	2004–05	33	|	4	8	0	0	5	1	0	46	3	4
2005–06 Arsenal F.C. season	2005–06	35	|	5	2	1	0	13	1	2	50	5	7
2006–07 Arsenal F.C. season	2006–07	38	|	13	6	0	2	10	2	1	54	4	16
2007–08 Arsenal F.C. season	2007–08	32	|	19	3	0	1	10	6	2	45	13	22
2008–09 Arsenal F.C. season	2008–09	22	|	10	1	0	0	10	0	5	33	3	15
2009–10 Arsenal F.C. season	2009–10	27	|	15	1	0	1	8	4	3	36	19	19
2010–11 Arsenal F.C. season	2010–11	25	|	14	6	3	1	5	3	2	35	9	17
Total	!212!!35!!80!!30!!5!!5!!61!!17!!15!!303!!57!!100
rowspan="1" valign="center"	Barcelona		1	|	0	1	0	0	1	1	0	3	2	0
Total	!1!!1!!0!!1!!0!!0!!1!!1!!0!!3!!2!!0
Career total		! 213 !! 36 !! 80 !! 31 !! 5 !! 5 !! 62 !! 18 !! 15 !! 306 !! 59 !! 100

|- |2006||14||0 |- |2007||8||0 |- |2008||15||1 |- |2009||10||4 |- |2010||11||1 |- !Total||58||6 |}

Career highlights

Arsenal

Winner

FA Cup: 2004–05

FA Community Shield: 2004

Runner-up

UEFA Champions League: 2005–06

Football League Cup: 2006–07, 2010–11

FA Community Shield: 2005

Barcelona

Winner

Supercopa de España: 2011

UEFA Super Cup: 2011

International

Winner

FIFA World Cup: 2010

UEFA European Championship: 2008

Runner-up

FIFA U-17 World Championship: 2003

UEFA European Under-17 Football Championship: 2004

Individual

FIFA U-17 World Championship Golden Shoe: 2003

FIFA U-17 World Championship Golden Ball: 2003

UEFA European Under-17 Football Championship Golden Player: 2004

Bravo Award: 2006

UEFA Team of the Year: 2006, 2008

Premier League Player of the Month: January 2007, September 2007

ESM Team of the Year: 2007–08, 2009–10

PFA Young Player of the Year: 2007–08

PFA Team of the Year: 2007–08, 2009–10

UEFA Team of the Tournament: 2008

Golden Boy: 2006

Prince of Asturias Awards: 2010

Other projects

Fàbregas starred in his own one-time only television programme, called ''"The Cesc Fàbregas Show: Nike Live"'', that aired on 19 May 2008. The programme was sponsored by Nike and was shown on Sky Sports. The show featured Fàbregas in several sketches with Arsenal teammates like Philippe Senderos and Nicklas Bendtner, as well as coach Arsène Wenger, Fàbregas' parents and ''Little Britain'' star Matt Lucas.

Fàbregas is also an Honorary Patron of the campaign against Racism in football and society; Show Racism the Red Card.

References

External links

FC Barcelona profile

BDFutbol profile

Transfermarkt profile

National team data

2010 FIFA World Cup profile

Category:1987 births Category:Living people Category:People from Barcelona Category:Spanish footballers Category:Catalan footballers Category:Association football midfielders Category:Premier League players Category:Arsenal F.C. players Category:La Liga footballers Category:FC Barcelona footballers Category:Spain youth international footballers Category:Spain under-21 international footballers Category:Spain international footballers Category:2006 FIFA World Cup players Category:UEFA Euro 2008 players Category:2009 FIFA Confederations Cup players Category:2010 FIFA World Cup players Category:UEFA European Football Championship-winning players Category:FIFA World Cup-winning players Category:Spanish expatriate footballers Category:Expatriate footballers in England

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