 Samuel withInter Milan in 2011 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Personal information | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Walter Adrián Samuel[1] | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Birth name | Walter Adrián Luján | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Date of birth | (1978-03-23)23 March 1978 (age 47) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Place of birth | Laborde, Argentina | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Height | 1.83 m (6 ft 0 in) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Position | Centre-back | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Senior career* | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1996–1997 | Newell's Old Boys | 42 | (0) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1997–2000 | Boca Juniors | 77 | (4) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2000–2004 | Roma | 122 | (9) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2004–2005 | Real Madrid | 30 | (2) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2005–2014 | Inter Milan | 169 | (14) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2014–2016 | Basel | 29 | (2) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Total | 469 | (31) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| International career | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1997 | Argentina U20 | 6 | (0) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1999–2010 | Argentina | 56 | (5) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Managerial career | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2018– | Argentina (assistant) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Medal record
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| * Club domestic league appearances and goals | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Walter Adrián Samuel (Spanish pronunciation:[ˈwalteɾsaˈmwel];[citation needed] bornWalter Adrián Luján; 23 March 1978) is an Argentine former professionalfootballer.[2] Samuel has been regarded as one of the bestcentre-backs of his generation,[3][4] and as one of football's toughest defenders,[5] with former international teammate and Inter captainJavier Zanetti referring to him as the "hardest player" he has played with.
Samuel began his club career with domestic clubNewell's Old Boys in 1996, later moving toBoca Juniors the following year. This was soon followed by a move to Europe in 2000, and spells with Italian clubRoma, and Spanish clubReal Madrid. In 2005, he returned to Italy, joiningInter, where he remained for nine seasons, winning five consecutiveSerie A titles; he played a key role in the club's treble success in the2009–10 season, partnering withLúcio in defence underJosé Mourinho. At an international level, he has accumulated over 50 caps for theArgentina national team, representing his country at twoFIFA World Cups, the1999 Copa América, and the2005 FIFA Confederations Cup, where he won a runners-up medal.
He was born Walter Luján, making his professional debut for Newell's and playing the World Youth Cup under that name. He later took the last name of his stepfather, Óscar Samuel.[6] He has two sisters.
Samuel is married to Cecilia. They have two sons and a daughter.[7]
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Samuel started playing professionally in 1996 in Argentina forNewell's Old Boys, and a year later moved toBoca Juniors, where he played 103 matches and scored five goals in all competitions until 2000.[8] In that year,Roma bought his contract for 40.265 billion Italian lire (about €20 million).[9][10] He gained fame as one of the best defenders in the Italian league and gained a nickname to match, winning the Serie A title with Roma in2001.[11] His quality attracted interest from Spanish teamReal Madrid.
Real Madrid paid €25 million for his transfer in 2004.[12] Samuel failed to make an impact at Madrid.[citation needed] He was one of the three non-EU players of the team, along withRonaldo andRoberto Carlos; they all obtained Spanish passports, however, in 2005.[13]
In August 2005, he returned to theSerie A with a transfer toInter Milan on a four-year contract for reported €16 million fee.[14] He began his Inter adventure by winning the2005 Supercoppa Italiana versusJuventus, entering in 63rd minute asNerazzurri won at extra-time thanks to the winner ofVerón.[15] Later on 21 September, he made his league debut for his new side by starting in the 1–0 away win overChievo.[16] On 24 November, during a Champions Leaguegroup stage match againstPetržalka, Samuel played in a line-up of 11 foreign players on the pitch, withLuís Figo being the onlyeuropean.[17] He finished his first season at Inter by making 42 appearances in all competitions, with the team winning the championship following the relegation of Juventus due to match-fixing,[18] andCoppa Italia by defeatingRoma 4–2 on aggregate, with Samuel playing on both finals,[19] thus completing an unforeseen domestic treble.
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In theDerby della Madonnina on 23 December 2007, Samuel hurt himself whilst marking the Brazilian internationalKaká, and a couple weeks later, he had reconstructive surgery on his anterior cruciate ligament.[20] He was expected to be out until the end of the2007–08 season. In actuality, he started training with the first team again in October of the2008–09 season and promptly earned a first team place back under managerJosé Mourinho. He played his first match in more than nine months on 9 November by starting in the 1–0 home win overUdinese.[21]
Samuel was one of the most important players under Mourinho in the2009–10 season, partneringLúcio in defence[22] as they won the Serie A title, the Coppa Italia, and theUEFA Champions League, completing a historic treble.[23] He scored his first goal of the season on 20 October in the third Champions Leaguegroup stage match versusDynamo Kyiv which prevented Inter from losing;[24] he headed home aWesley Sneijder cross to make it 2–2. This draw extended Inter winless run in the UEFA Champions League to eight matches.[24]
Later on 9 January, Samuel scored a last-minute winner in the 4–3 win versusSiena by beating goalkeeperGianluca Curci with a left-footed shot.[25] His goal later resulted decisive as Inter won the title two points ahead of Roma.[26] He played his 100th Serie A game for Inter later on 24 April in the 3–1 win overAtalanta.[citation needed] Samuel finished the season by making 42 appearances and scoring 4 goals; he was praised for his defensive performances againstBarcelona andBayern Munich on Inter's road to the Champions League title.[27][28][29]
Samuel suffered a severe knee injury - a ruptured anterior cruciate ligament, this time on his other knee - on 7 November 2010 fixture againstBrescia.[30] This forced him to miss the2010 FIFA Club World Cup triumph inUnited Arab Emirates.[31] He returned in action on 15 May of the following year by entering in the last minutes of a 1–1 away draw versusNapoli.[32] After the match Samuel expressed his delighting for playing his first match in almost six months, stating: "I'm feeling good and I'm delighted at having been able to play the last few minutes of this match. I would like to thank the medical staff for the work they did after my injury, my family who has always stood by me, and all the fans."[33] He finished the2010–11 season by making 15 appearances in all competitions.
On 5 February 2012, Samuel played his 500th match as a professional in the 4–0 defeat atRoma.[34] At the end of the season, he signed a new one-year contract with the club, lengthening his Inter career up to eight seasons.[35] Later on 7 October, he scored inside three minutes in thederby versusMilan which resulted the winning goal, meaning that Samuel has won all 10 derbies that he has played.[36][37] In June 2013, Samuel extended his contract for anotherseason, in what would be his final season.[38] He scored his first goal of the season on 9 February 2014, a header which resulted the winner in the match againstSassuolo for the first win of 2014.[39]
Samuel wore thecaptain armband for the first time on 15 February 2014 in the 2–1 win atFiorentina due toJavier Zanetti andEsteban Cambiasso being on bench.[40] His final goal for the club came in the 4–0 win atSampdoria in April 2014.[41] Samuel left the club at the end of2013–14 season, having made 236 appearances and winning 13 trophies in nine years.[42] His last appearance for the club occurred on 10 May 2014 in the 4–1 home win overLazio which gave the team a spot inUEFA Europa Leaguenext season.[43]
After nine seasons with Inter, on 23 July 2014, Samuel signed a one-year contract withBasel in theSwiss Super League.[44] He joined the team for their2014–15 season under head coachPaulo Sousa. After playing in one test game Samuel played his debut for his new club in theSwiss Cup away game on 23 August 2014 as Basel won 4–0 against CS Italien (GE).[45] He played hisdomestic league debut for the club in the home game in theSt. Jakob-Park on 31 August as Basel won 3–1 againstYoung Boys.[46][47]
Basel entered theChampions League in thegroup stage. They reached theknockout phase on 9 December 2014, as they managed a 1–1 draw atAnfield againstLiverpool.[48] But they were knocked out of the competition byPorto in theround of 16. Samuel scored his first goal for his club in the last match of that season on 25 May 2015. It was a home game in theSt. Jakob-Park and Basel won 4–3 againstSt. Gallen.[49] At the end of the2014–15 season, Basel won the championship for the sixth time in a row.[50] In the2014–15 Swiss Cup Basel reached the final. However, for the third time in a row they finished as runners-up. Basel played a total of 65 matches (36 Swiss League fixtures, 6 Swiss Cup, 8 Champions League and 15 test matches). Under managerPaulo Sousa, Samuel totaled 26 appearances, 13 League, 1 Cup, 4 Champions League, as well 8 in test games. He scored 2 goals in these matches.[51]
In June 2015, Samuel prolonged his contract with Basel for another year.[52] However, on 16 October he communicated his intention to retire at the end of the 2015–16 season, due to physical difficulties.[53] He made his 100th UEFA club competition appearance playing in the closing match of the2015–16 UEFA Europa League group stage during the 1–0 away win in theINEA Stadion againstLech Poznań on 10 December 2015.[54][55] Samuel played the final match of his career in a 1–0 home defeat againstGrasshoppers, on 25 May 2016, at the age of 38.[11][56][57] At the end of the2015–16 Super League season, under new head coachUrs Fischer, Samuel won the championship for the second time.[58]
During his two seasons with the club, Samuel played a total of 61 games for Basel scoring a total of four goals. 21 of these games were in theSwiss Super League, five in theSwiss Cup, 11 in the UEFA competitions (Champions League and Europa League) and 16 were friendly games. He scored two goals in the domestic league, one in the2015–16 UEFA Europa League againstSaint-Étienne and the other was scored during the test games.[59]
Samuel was part ofArgentina U20 which emerged victorious in the1997 edition ofFIFA U-20 World Cup.[60] He made his debut in the tournament in the openingGroup E match versusHungary which was won 3–0,[61] and went on to play in the remaining two matches as Argentina topped their group.[62][63]
Samuel has played 56 matches forArgentina between 1999 and 2010, scoring five goals.[64] He played for his country in the2002 FIFA World Cup and the2010 FIFA World Cup,[65][66] as well as in the1999 Copa América,[67] and in the2005 FIFA Confederations Cup,[66] in which Argentina won a runners-up medal.[68][citation needed]
Regarded as one of the best defenders of his generation,[3] Samuel was a large, quick, powerful, and aggressivecentre-back, who excelled in the air, both defensively, and as a goal threat on set pieces. His defensive skills, which included an excellent positional sense, an ability to read the game, as well as tough, tight marking, and hard tackling, made him extremely effective at anticipating opponents. His strong, consistent, and uncompromising style of play earned him the nicknameIl Muro ("The Wall").[5][56][69][70] Despite his ability as a defender, his career was also marked by several injuries that affected his fitness.[56]
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In August 2019, Samuel enrolled in theUEFA Pro Licence courses atCoverciano.[71]He is the assistant coach forArgentina and has held the position since 2019.
He was recently part of the Argentina managerial team who won the2022 FIFA World Cup Qatar.
| Club | Season | League | National cup | Continental | Other | Total | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Newell's Old Boys | 1995–96 | Argentine Primera División | 5 | 0 | — | — | — | 5 | 0 | |||
| 1996–97 | 35 | 0 | — | — | — | 35 | 0 | |||||
| 1997–98 | 2 | 0 | — | — | — | 2 | 0 | |||||
| Total | 42 | 0 | — | — | — | 42 | 0 | |||||
| Boca Juniors | 1997–98 | Argentine Primera División | 12 | 0 | — | — | — | 12 | 0 | |||
| 1998–99 | 34 | 2 | — | 7 | 0 | — | 41 | 2 | ||||
| 1999–2000 | 31 | 2 | — | 19 | 1 | — | 50 | 3 | ||||
| Total | 77 | 4 | — | 26 | 1 | — | 103 | 5 | ||||
| Roma | 2000–01 | Serie A | 31 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 8 | 3 | — | 41 | 4 | |
| 2001–02 | 30 | 5 | 2 | 0 | 12 | 0 | 1[a] | 0 | 45 | 5 | ||
| 2002–03 | 31 | 2 | 6 | 0 | 10 | 0 | — | 47 | 2 | |||
| 2003–04 | 30 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 8 | 0 | — | 40 | 1 | |||
| Total | 122 | 9 | 12 | 0 | 38 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 173 | 12 | ||
| Real Madrid | 2004–05 | La Liga | 30 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 8 | 0 | — | 40 | 2 | |
| Internazionale | 2005–06 | Serie A | 27 | 2 | 5 | 0 | 9 | 0 | 1[a] | 0 | 42 | 2 |
| 2006–07 | 18 | 3 | 5 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 1[a] | 0 | 27 | 3 | ||
| 2007–08 | 12 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 18 | 1 | ||
| 2008–09 | 17 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 20 | 1 | ||
| 2009–10 | 28 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 13 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 42 | 4 | ||
| 2010–11 | 10 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 2[b] | 0 | 13 | 0 | ||
| 2011–12 | 27 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 6 | 1 | 1[a] | 0 | 35 | 3 | ||
| 2012–13 | 16 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 5 | 0 | — | 22 | 1 | |||
| 2013–14 | 14 | 2 | 1 | 0 | — | — | 15 | 2 | ||||
| Total | 169 | 14 | 17 | 0 | 45 | 3 | 5 | 0 | 236 | 17 | ||
| Basel | 2014–15 | Swiss Super League | 12 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 4 | 0 | — | 18 | 1 | |
| 2015–16 | 17 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 7 | 1 | — | 27 | 2 | |||
| Total | 29 | 2 | 5 | 0 | 11 | 1 | — | 47 | 3 | |||
| Career total | 469 | 31 | 36 | 0 | 128 | 8 | — | 641 | 39 | |||
| National team | Year | Apps | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|
| Argentina | 1999 | 10 | 1 |
| 2000 | 10 | 0 | |
| 2001 | 8 | 2 | |
| 2002 | 6 | 0 | |
| 2003 | 5 | 1 | |
| 2004 | 6 | 0 | |
| 2005 | 5 | 1 | |
| 2006 | 2 | 0 | |
| 2007 | 0 | 0 | |
| 2008 | 0 | 0 | |
| 2009 | 0 | 0 | |
| 2010 | 4 | 0 | |
| Total | 56 | 5 | |
| No. | Date | Venue | Opponent | Score | Result | Competition |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 3 February 1999 | Estadio José Pachencho Romero,Maracaibo, Venezuela |  Venezuela | 1–0 | 2–0 | Friendly |
| 2 | 28 March 2001 | El Monumental,Buenos Aires, Argentina | Venezuela | 5–0 | 5–0 | 2002 FIFA World Cup qualification |
| 3 | 8 November 2001 | El Monumental, Buenos Aires, Argentina |  Peru | 1–0 | 2–0 | 2002 FIFA World Cup qualification |
| 4 | 20 August 2003 | Stadio Artemio Franchi,Florence, Italy |  Uruguay | 2–2 | 3–2 | Friendly |
| 5 | 11 November 2005 | Stade de Genève,Geneva, Switzerland |  England | 2–1 | 2–3 | Friendly |
Boca Juniors[74]
AS Roma[74]
Inter Milan[75]
FC Basel[72]
Argentina U20
Argentina[72]
Individual
Argentina (as assistant manager)
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link){{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link){{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
Argentina squads | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
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