Roberto Colautti

Infobox Football biography
playername = Roberto Colautti


fullname = Roberto Damián Colautti
dateofbirth = Birth date and age|1982|05|24
cityofbirth = Córdoba
countryofbirth = Argentina
height = Height|m=1.80
position = Striker
currentclub = Borussia Mönchengladbach
clubnumber = 9
youthyears =
youthclubs = Boca Juniors
years = 2000–2002 2002 2002–2003 2003–2004 2004–2007 2007–
clubs = Boca Juniors AC Lugano Banfield Boca Juniors Maccabi Haifa Borussia Mönchengladbach
caps(goals) = 06 0(0) 09 0(0) 32 (10) 11 0(1) 90 (39) 13 0(3)
nationalyears = 2006-present
nationalteam = Israel
nationalcaps(goals) = 10 0(6)
pcupdate = 20 April 2008
ntupdate = 18 September, 2008

Roberto Damián Colautti ( _he. רוברטו קולאוטי; born May 24, 1982 in Córdoba, Argentina) is an Argentine-Israeli football striker who currently plays for the German side Borussia Mönchengladbach, which will play the 2008-2009 season in the Bundesliga. He joined Mönchengladbach in 2007 and dealt with injuries for most of the season, although he did score 3 goals in his 8 appearances.

Colautti joined Israeli team Maccabi Haifa from Boca Juniors in 2004. In his first season with Maccabi he was the top scorer in Ligat ha'Al (Premier League) with 19 goals.

In March 2006, Colautti married his Israeli girlfriend, Elvit Strauss (the sister of Sagi Strauss), allowing him to receive Israeli citizenship and to play for the Israel national football team. He currently holds two passports (Argentine and Italian, as he is of Italian ancestry and one provisional passport (Israeli).

Israeli national team

On September 2, 2006 Colautti made his debut for the Israel national football team, having received clearance from FIFA only two days before the match. His debut was a huge success for the Israelis as they edged their Estonian counterparts 1-0 in Tallinn, Estonia, with a goal by Colautti himself.

UEFA Cup 2006-07

In the First round of the 2006-07 UEFA Cup, Roberto Colautti scored Maccabi Haifa's third goal against Litex Lovech, making a 4-2 aggregate advantage in the 67th minute. After drawing 1-1 at home, Maccabi Haifa turned out to beat Litex 3-1 in Lovech, Bulgaria. Then, in the group stage, Colautti secured a 3-1 victory over the French side AJ Auxerre at home, scoring Maccabi Haifa's 3rd goal in the 58th minute, with Colautti rounding the Auxerre goalkeeper Fabien Cool, before slotting the ball home from a tight angle. Arguably Colautti's and Maccabi Haifa's most important goal, however, was his equalizer against AS Livorno Calcio in Livorno, Italy. In the second half, deep into injury time, in the 90+3rd minute, he dispatched Gustavo Boccoli's cross with a close-range header to deny Livorno a win, ending the match with a result of 1-1. The goal in the second leg of the Round of 32 encounter with PFC CSKA Moscow, in the 14th minute, proved to be the winning goal, with Maccabi Haifa having drawn the first leg in Vladikavkaz, Russia, 0-0. Colautti's goal sent Maccabi Haifa through against CSKA, the team that had won the UEFA Cup only two years previously.

External links

* [http://www.national-football-teams.com/v2/player.php?id=15906 Profile] at National Football Teams
* [http://www.footballdatabase.com/index.php?page=player&Id=6876&pn=Roberto_Colautti Roberto Colautti] profile, detailed club and national team statistics, honours (palmares) and timeline