KNOW YOUR PLAYER : 20. JAVIER MASCHERANO
Javier Mascherano
 | ||
| Personal information | ||
|---|---|---|
| Full name | Javier Alejandro Mascherano | |
| Date of birth | 18 June 1984 | |
| Place of birth | San Lorenzo, Argentina | |
| Height | 175 cm | |
| Club information | ||
| Present club | Liverpool | |
| Squad number | 20 | |
| Position | Defensive Midfielder | |
| Professional clubs* | ||
| Years | Club | Apps (goals) |
| 2003-2005 2005-2006 2006-2007 2007-Present | River Plate Corinthians West Ham Untied Liverpool | 46 (0) 17 (0) 7 (0) 1 (0) |
| National Team | ||
| 2003- | Argentina | 20 (0) |
| * Professional club appearances and goals | ||
Javier Alejandro Mascherano (pronounced mas-keh-RAH-no) (born 8 June 1984 in San Lorenzo, Santa Fe, Argentina) is an Argentine footballer. He plays as a midfielder for Liverpool in England.
Career
While playing for Club Atlético River Plate in mid 2004, several clubs including Real Madrid, and Deportivo de La Coruña declared an interest in signing Mascherano, but River Plate turned down all offers, saying that none of the interested parties were prepared to pay enough. However, Brazilian club Sport Club Corinthians Paulista acquired him from River Plate for US$ 15 million.
Mascherano was part of the gold medal winning Argentine team at the 2004 Summer Olympics. He also played in 2003 FIFA World Youth Championship, losing to Brazil in semi-final and match for 3rd place to Colombia.
In 2005, he won the Campeonato Brasileiro with Corinthians, together with Argentine teammates Carlos Tévez and Sebastián Domínguez.
In the 2006 World Cup in Germany, Mascherano established himself as a first team regular within the Argentina team. Although his performance drew the attention of European clubs, he stated his desire to remain with Corinthians, a team in a relegation battle, and postponed any transfer until January at the earliest.
However, hours before the summer 2006 transfer window closed, Mascherano joined West Ham United for an undisclosed fee along with team-mate Carlos Tévez. This was seen as surprising, with many of Europe's top clubs having been linked with the pair all summer.
The move was surrounded by rumours, with the player's registartion being held by Media Sports Investment, who were involved in takeover talks with the club, whilst The Guardian also reported that should any club offer £35 million for either player West Ham would be forced to sell them.
Following an unsuccessful start to the season by West Ham, in which Mascherano failed to find his form, he declared his wish to leave West Ham, citing limited playing opportunities, having made only seven appearances, although teammate Carlos Tévez had announced his desire to remain and succeed at West Ham.
On 17 January 2007, he moved to Liverpool on a loan deal for the remainder of the 2006-07 season with an option to make the deal permanant in the summer. FIFA approved the deal on 31 January 2007 after initial worries due to Mascherano having played for two clubs in the current season. However, although Liverpool submitted his registration for the team before the time of the transfer deadline, and on the 10th February added Mascherano to their Champions League squad and gave him the number 20 shirt, England's Football Association did not immediatly announce whether it would allow Mascherano to play for Liverpool this season.
Eventually, on February 20th 2007, Mascherano's move to Liverpool became official after the Premier League accepted Liverpool's request to register the player at Anfield.It is widely reported to be an 18 month permanent deal, though a fee and/or other arrangements are as yet unclear but any fee is likely to go to Kia Joorabchian's MSI organisation. Mascherano made his debut for Liverpool against Premiership new boys Sheffield United on 24th February 2007. He was a commanding presence throughout in a 4-0 victory and his tackling and link-up play was widely credited.
Regarded as 'one of the finest midfielders of our time' according to Argentina legend Jorge Screllio.
Honours
* Olympic Games: 2004
* Primera División Argentina: 2003C, 2004C
* Campeonato Brasileiro: 2005
Career
While playing for Club Atlético River Plate in mid 2004, several clubs including Real Madrid, and Deportivo de La Coruña declared an interest in signing Mascherano, but River Plate turned down all offers, saying that none of the interested parties were prepared to pay enough. However, Brazilian club Sport Club Corinthians Paulista acquired him from River Plate for US$ 15 million.
Mascherano was part of the gold medal winning Argentine team at the 2004 Summer Olympics. He also played in 2003 FIFA World Youth Championship, losing to Brazil in semi-final and match for 3rd place to Colombia.
In 2005, he won the Campeonato Brasileiro with Corinthians, together with Argentine teammates Carlos Tévez and Sebastián Domínguez.
In the 2006 World Cup in Germany, Mascherano established himself as a first team regular within the Argentina team. Although his performance drew the attention of European clubs, he stated his desire to remain with Corinthians, a team in a relegation battle, and postponed any transfer until January at the earliest.
However, hours before the summer 2006 transfer window closed, Mascherano joined West Ham United for an undisclosed fee along with team-mate Carlos Tévez. This was seen as surprising, with many of Europe's top clubs having been linked with the pair all summer.
The move was surrounded by rumours, with the player's registartion being held by Media Sports Investment, who were involved in takeover talks with the club, whilst The Guardian also reported that should any club offer £35 million for either player West Ham would be forced to sell them.
Following an unsuccessful start to the season by West Ham, in which Mascherano failed to find his form, he declared his wish to leave West Ham, citing limited playing opportunities, having made only seven appearances, although teammate Carlos Tévez had announced his desire to remain and succeed at West Ham.
On 17 January 2007, he moved to Liverpool on a loan deal for the remainder of the 2006-07 season with an option to make the deal permanant in the summer. FIFA approved the deal on 31 January 2007 after initial worries due to Mascherano having played for two clubs in the current season. However, although Liverpool submitted his registration for the team before the time of the transfer deadline, and on the 10th February added Mascherano to their Champions League squad and gave him the number 20 shirt, England's Football Association did not immediatly announce whether it would allow Mascherano to play for Liverpool this season.
Eventually, on February 20th 2007, Mascherano's move to Liverpool became official after the Premier League accepted Liverpool's request to register the player at Anfield.It is widely reported to be an 18 month permanent deal, though a fee and/or other arrangements are as yet unclear but any fee is likely to go to Kia Joorabchian's MSI organisation. Mascherano made his debut for Liverpool against Premiership new boys Sheffield United on 24th February 2007. He was a commanding presence throughout in a 4-0 victory and his tackling and link-up play was widely credited.
Regarded as 'one of the finest midfielders of our time' according to Argentina legend Jorge Screllio.
Honours
* Olympic Games: 2004
* Primera División Argentina: 2003C, 2004C
* Campeonato Brasileiro: 2005
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