World Cup South Africa 2010
History - Groups - Players - Venues
Favorite Players by Country (Germany 2006)
Group C - Argentina:
Javier Saviola
Place of Birth: Buenos Aires, Argentina
Date of Birth: December 11th, 1981
Position: Forward
Clubs: River Plate (Argentina), FC Barcelona (Spain), AS Monaco (France)
He made his debut for Argentinean side River Plate at the age of 16 and went on to be a prolific goal scorer and develop a reputation as a phenomenal prospect.
Saviola starred in the 2001 edition of the World Youth Cup won by Argentina. He was top scorer and was voted player of the tournament. That summer, he moved on to FC Barcelona where he had two irregular seasons, as coaches Louis Van Gaal and later Frank Rijkaard were not impressed with his abilities, and did not allow him to become a staple of the team.
Javier Saviola played in the 2004 Olympic Games and won the Olympic Gold Medal with the Argentinean squad. Under Coach Marcelo Bielsa, Saviola had very few playing opportunities for Argentina. Under the new Coach José Pekerman supervision Saviola more play.
Saviola starred in the 2001 edition of the World Youth Cup won by Argentina. He was top scorer and was voted player of the tournament. He also achieved at that tournament the record of top scorer of all the World Youth Cups played up to today. He moved on to FC Barcelona where he had two irregular seasons, as coaches Louis Van Gaal and later Frank Rijkaard were not impressed with his abilities, and did not allow Saviola to become a staple of the team.
In the summer of 2004, Saviola was transferred to AS Monaco FC of the French league. As Rijkaard indicated no interest, Saviola was again transferred on loan in the summer of 2005, this time to Sevilla FC, to replace Julio Baptista. Saviola played in the 2004 Olympic Games and won the Olympic Gold Medal with the Argentinean squad.
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