Ezequiel Garay

Football player infobox
playername = Ezequiel Garay


fullname = Ezequiel Marcelo Garay
height = height|m=1.89
dateofbirth = birth date and age|1986|10|10
cityofbirth = Rosario
countryofbirth = Argentina
currentclub = Racing Santander
clubnumber = 4
position = Centre back / Sweeper
youthyears =
youthclubs =
years = 2004–2005
2005–2008
2008–
2008–2009
clubs = Newell's Old Boys
Racing Santander
Real Madrid
→ Racing Santander (on loan)
caps(goals) = 13 0(1)
59 (12)
00 0(0)
01 0(0)
nationalyears = 2007–
2008–
nationalteam = Argentina
Argentina Olympic
nationalcaps(goals) = 01 0(0)
09 0(0)
pcupdate = 4 May 2008
ntupdate = 11:29, 15 March 2008 (UTC)

Ezequiel Marcelo Garay (born October 10, 1986 in Rosario) is an Argentine football player, who plays for Real Madrid but is at Racing Santander on loan for the 2008-2009 season. His main position is as central defender however he can also play at right back and other positions. While at Racing Santander, he proved himself to be a consistent set-piece taker, regularly scoring free-kicks and penalties.

Club career

At the early age of 18, Ezequiel Garay made his professional debut in 2004 for his home town club, Newell's Old Boys, in the Argentine Primera. His first match was an important one against Gimnasia de La Plata where he helped Los Leprosos clinch the Apertura championship.

His profile was raised even higher in 2005 where he was a part of Argentina's U-20 World Cup winning side which included such young stars like Lionel Messi, Sergio Aguero, Fernando Gago, and Oscar Ustari. Garay made 12 more appearances for Newell's in 2005 and had the honor of scoring his first goal for the club in a 2-1 win over Rosario Central in the Rosario derby. He ended up transferring to Racing de Santander in the Spanish Primera in late 2005 after only making 13 appearances for Newell's at the professional level.

After a short and expected settling in period during his first partial season, Garay established himself as a first team regular for Racing that fall where he featured in central defense. He started 30 of Racing's 38 league matches in 2006/2007 where he not only provided tidy defending, but also displayed polished offensive skills as he netted nine goals that season. Most of these came from the penalty spot as his ability to strike a free kick made him an unusual commodity, a talented defender who also had advanced technical skills.

Once again, he displayed a knack for performing well in big situations as his initial strike for Racing was a beautiful free kick against Real Madrid at the Bernabeu. In the return fixture, he bagged a brace from the penalty spot in Racing’s memorable win over Los Blancos which, at the time, looked like it might derail Madrid’s bid for the Primera title that year. Even more impressive in Garay’s performance was the fact that his mistake allowed Madrid to initially take the lead before his late game heroics helped Los Verdiblancos gain a memorable result. Racing ended up finishing 10th that season which was their best finish since returning to the Primera in 2002. His performance at the club level earned Garay a few call-ups to the senior Argentina national team where he expects to establish himself in central defense for the next World Cup.

The 2007–2008 season was a mixed bag for Garay at Racing. While he played a large part in Racing finishing 6th in the Primera which secured a UEFA Cup spot for next season, injuries limited him to only playing in 22 league matches. However, with his considerable talent as well as increased profile, he was already well on the radar screen of many top clubs.

In 2008, Racing sold him to Real Madrid but they can use him on loan until June 2009.

International career

Garay earned his first full Argentina cap in a 22 August 2007 friendly against Norway which Argentina lost 2-1. He had previously been called upon in May 2007 by coach Alfio Basile to a series of friendlies prior to the 2007 Copa América but injury prevented him from appearing in those matches and the official competition.

External links

* [http://touchline.onthespot.co.uk/guardian/StatsCentre.asp?Lang=0&CTID=29&CPID=68&pStr=Player&PLID=187350&TEID=540 Statistics] at Guardian Stats Centre
* [http://www.national-football-teams.com/v2/player.php?id=23519 Career statistics] at National Football Teams
* [http://www.goal.com/en-us/Articolo.aspx?ContenutoId=741457 Goal.com profile]