- Ezequiel Lavezzi
Infobox Football biography
playername = Ezequiel Lavezzi
height = height|m=1.70
nickname = "Pocho"
dateofbirth = birth date and age|1985|5|3
cityofbirth =Villa Gobernador Gálvez
countryofbirth =Argentina
currentclub = Napoli
clubnumber = 7
position = Forward
youthyears = 1995–2003
youthclubs =Boca Juniors
years = 2003–2004
2004–2005
2004–2005
2005–2007
2007–
clubs = Estudiantes (BA)
Genoa
→ San Lorenzo (loan)
San Lorenzo
Napoli
caps(goals) = 39 (17)
0 (0)
29 (9)
55 (16)
35 (8)
nationalyears = 2007-
nationalteam =Argentina U-23
nationalcaps(goals) = 7 (5)
pcupdate = 14 July 2008
ntupdate = 23 May, 2008Ezequiel Iván Lavezzi (born
3 May 1985 , inVilla Gobernador Gálvez ,Santa Fe Province ,Argentina ) is an Argentine footballer currently playing forSerie A club SSC Napoli.Club career
Early career
Like many promising young Argentine players who appear in Italy, the media have been quick to dub Lavezzi the "
New Maradona ". [http://www.channel4.com/sport/football_italia/sa0708/spot2.html Channel4.com] ] [ [http://blogs.guardian.co.uk/sport/2007/09/04/livewire_lavezzi_sparks_napoli.html Guardian.co.uk] ] Lavezzi himself however plays this down, instead comparing himself to another young Argentine player inCarlos Tévez . [http://goal.com/en-us/Articolo.aspx?ContenutoId=388594 Goal.com] ]As a youngster, Lavezzi had a very keen interest in football and supported his local side
Rosario Central ; he would later get their badge tattooed on his chest.From a very young age, the footballing talent of Lavezzi was recognised, as he played in the youth squads of
Boca Juniors from the age of 10 until he was 17. [http://www.calcionapolinews.it/archivio/calciatore_view.asp?q=836&n=4925 CalcioNapoliNews.it] ] Lavezzi moved to the youth side of Estudiantes de Buenos Aires in 2003, where over one season he played 39 games and scored 17 goals. [http://www.calcionapolinews.it/archivio/calciatore_view.asp?q=836&n=4925 CalcioNapoliNews.it] ]Genoa
He was bought by Italian side Genoa in 2004 for 1 million euro, [http://www.calcionapolinews.it/archivio/calciatore_view.asp?q=836&n=4925 CalcioNapoliNews.it] ] but was loaned out straight away to Argentina side San Lorenzo. [ the young player had already started making a name for himself. [http://www.clarin.com/diario/2005/07/16/um/m-1015248.htm Clarin.com] ] Here at the age of 19, he competed in the Apertura 2004 tournament scoring six goals in total over the course of the season; which saw him finish as 4th top scorer.
Lavezzi's most notable contributions included a spectacular effort against River Plate at the
El Monumental . He scored in the 69th minute to give San Lorenzo a famous victory and seriously damage River's title challenge. This gained him the nickname "la Bestia" ("the Beast") from the Argentine media. [http://www.calcionapolinews.it/archivio/calciatore_view.asp?q=836&n=4925 CalcioNapoliNews.it] ]Although it was planned for Lavezzi to return back to Genoa after a season on loan, there were problems. While Lavezzi was playing in Argentina, Genoa were involved in an alleged match fixing scandal which saw them relegated down to
Serie C1 ; the third level ofItalian football . Due to financial constraints, the promising forward was sold to San Lorenzo for 1.2 millioneuro . [ [http://www.ilgiornale.it/a.pic1?ID=19495 IlGiornale.it] ]an Lorenzo
On his return to San Lorenzo for the Apertura 2005 season, he managed to help the club up into the top half of the table, with eight goals, he finished as the overall 4th top scorer. His last act as a San Lorenzo player was to help them to the Clausura 2007 title, beating out
Boca Juniors by six points.Napoli
Napoli had recently achieved promotion back to
Serie A , after finishing as runners-up the previous season inSerie B . Looking to strengthen their squad for a return to the top level, Napoli signed Lavezzi on a five-year contract on5 July 2007 . The transfer deal was worth around 6 million euros, he was presented before the fans and given the number 7 shirt for his first season.Lavezzi soon made an impact for the club by scoring a
hat-trick in a 3–1 victory over Pisa in theCoppa Italia at theStadio San Paolo ; this was the first hat-trick by a Napoli player in fourteen years. [ [http://www.extra-football.com/articles/lavezzi-hattrick-napoli.html Extra-Football.com] ] The first league goal Lavezzi scored for Napoli, came during a 5–0 victory against Udinese on2 September 2007 . After the match he was described in reports as "inspirational", [http://www.channel4.com/sport/football_italia/sa0708/udi-nap.html Channel4.com] ] with the media proclaiming "Napoli's star is born". [http://www.channel4.com/sport/football_italia/sa0708/udi-nap.html Channel4.com] ] The Neapolitan club hadn't won a league match by such a large margin since 1988, whenDiego Maradona was at the club. [ [http://spazioinwind.libero.it/napolissimo/Torneo%201988-1989.html Napoli 1988-89] ]Lavezzi's contract was extended one year to
30 June 2013 in March 2008.International career
Lavezzi made his international debut for the Argentina national team team against Chile, on
18 April 2007 . He was chosen to represent Argentina at the 2008 Olympics.He scored against Australia on 10th August 2008. Lavezzi also appeared in the final minutes of extra time against Nigeria, in a game Argentina won 1-0.Titles
References
External links
*es icon [http://www.futbolxxi.com/Futbolista.aspx?ID=13045&SEOFutbolista=Lavezzi+Ezequiel+Ivan Argentine Primera statistics]
* [http://touchline.onthespot.co.uk/guardian/StatsCentre.asp?Lang=0&CTID=13&CPID=19&pStr=Player&PLID=187406&TEID=199 Statistics] at Guardian Stats Centre
* [http://www.sscnapoli.it/client/render.aspx?root=800&content=0 Player profile on Napoli's official website] it icon
* [http://www.goal.com/en/Giocatore.aspx?IdPersona=5883&SEOPlayerName=Ezequiel+Iv%c3%a1n+Lavezzi Player stats on goal.com]
* [http://www.recontragolazo.com/?p=474 Video Compilation with his goals and assists]
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