 Lanzini withWest Ham in 2022 playing in theUEFA Europa League | |||
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Date of birth | (1993-02-15)15 February 1993 (age 32)[1] | ||
| Place of birth | Ituzaingó, Argentina | ||
| Height | 1.67 m (5 ft 6 in)[1] | ||
| Position | Attacking midfielder | ||
| Team information | |||
Current team | Vélez Sarsfield | ||
| Number | 22 | ||
| Youth career | |||
| 2002–2010 | River Plate | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2010–2014 | River Plate | 84 | (12) |
| 2011–2012 | →Fluminense (loan) | 37 | (5) |
| 2014–2016 | Al Jazira | 24 | (8) |
| 2015–2016 | →West Ham United (loan) | 26 | (6) |
| 2016–2023 | West Ham United | 153 | (21) |
| 2023–2025 | River Plate | 47 | (1) |
| 2025– | Vélez Sarsfield | 1 | (0) |
| International career | |||
| 2013 | Argentina U20 | 5 | (2) |
| 2017–2019 | Argentina | 5 | (1) |
| * Club domestic league appearances and goals as of 16:20, 26 August 2025 (UTC) | |||
Manuel Lanzini (Latin American Spanish:[maˈnwellanˈsini]; born 15 February 1993) is an Argentine professionalfootballer who plays as anattacking midfielder forArgentine Primera División clubVélez Sarsfield.
Lanzini started his career atRiver Plate where he came through the youth system and with whom Lanzini holds the distinction of the earliest goal scored in theSuperclásico derby, scoring only 43 seconds into the match.,[2] and spent time on loan atFluminense. In 2014 He signed forAl Jazira in the UAE before being signed byWest Ham on loan in 2015. He was subsequently signed permanently by the English club and was a regular until 2018 when he suffered a serious knee injury. Lanzini fought his way back to fitness and was a reliable squad player for the next 5 seasons, culminating in winning the2023 UEFA Europa Conference League.
Lanzini made his international debut for Argentina in 2017. The knee injury suffered in 2018 meant he missed the opportunity to feature at the2018 FIFA World Cup, and he has made only one subsequent appearance for the national team in 2019.
He is regarded as having well developeddribbling skills, as well as good acceleration, vision, and an ability to ghost past defenders.[3] He has been nicknamed "La Joya" ("the jewel").[4][5]
Lanzini stood out in indoor soccer football divisions, demonstrating his skills in the Club Academia Kaly de Ituzaingó class of 1993, a neighbourhood club. Ramón Maddoni, who has discovered players likeJuan Román Riquelme,Carlos Tevez andEsteban Cambiasso, wanted to take him toBoca Juniors for a test match but the young Lanzini declined the call, stating that he only aimed to play for the club he supported:Club Atlético River Plate.[6] Eventually, in 2002, he was taken to River Plate.[7] He began training and started as a playmaker in junior divisions before, after several tests, Pedro Vega, ex-player and coach of inferior club divisions, ordered for him to be hired. In 2008, the eighth division team in which he played won its divisional trophy; Lanzini ultimately scored nine goals, only two fewer than fellow attacker Leonardo Salguero with 11 goals. On 2 November 2008, River Plate won the junior division'sSuperclásico 3–0 toBoca Juniors with Lanzini scoring two goals and assisting Salguero in one other.[8]
.jpg)
In 2010,Ángel Cappa, River Plate's first team coach, included Lanzini in the team for the winter preseason, disputing several matches inSalta Province.[9] Lanzini made his informal debut in a friendly match againstCentral Norte, a 3–0 victory, coming on as a second-half substitute forAriel Ortega.[10] Lanzini then played another friendly match againstJuventud Antoniana, where his performance earned good reception from press and fans alike.[11][12]
Lanzini's performance in the 2010 winter preseason satisfied his coach. Finally, he made his first appearance on 8 August 2010, againstTigre for the first match of the 2010Torneo Apertura. River Plate won 1–0 while Lanzini was replaced at half time byFacundo Affranchino.[13]
Lanzini's appearance made him one of the youngest players to debut in the First Division for River Plate, being 17 years, 5 months and 24 days old, older only thanDaniel Villalva,Adolfo Pedernera and ex-Barcelona and Real Madrid playerJavier Saviola. After his debut, Cappa excluded him in the match againstHuracán, but he replaced the suspendedAriel Ortega in the next game againstIndependiente where he assistedRogelio Funes Mori's goal for the 3–2 victory.[14] In a match againstVélez Sársfield on 5 September, Lanzini suffered an injury after a tackle fromLeandro Somoza, which ruled him out for three weeks.[15][16] He made his comeback to the first team on the 12th match of the season.[17]
On 19 July 2011, River Plate agreed to loan Lanzini toFluminense for a fee of US$400,000, with a transfer option of $15,000,000.[18]
Lanzini made his debut in theBrasileirao 2011 for the 3–0 victory againstFigueirense.[19] He would then score his first official goal in the team's 20th game of the tournament, a 2–1 victory againstSão Paulo.[20][21] His performances and character led to the club's president labelling him "the newNeymar".[22] His most important goal for the club was againstFlamengo in theRio de JaneiroFla-Flu derby.[23]
Despite Lanzini's good performances, Fluminense was unable to retain him and he returned to River Plate after the loan expired.[24]
Lanzini returned on 30 June 2012.[25] He started for the team's first appearance in the tournament, scoring their only goal in the 1–2 loss againstBelgrano de Córdoba.[26] For his comeback, he asked his coachMatías Almeyda if he could use the club's iconic number 10 shirt, which Almeyda approved. However, during Almeyda's term Lanzini was unable to assure himself a place on the pitch, sometimes watching the matches from the bench.[27]
Almeyda was fired and the club's most successful coach to that date, ex-Inter Milan playerRamón Díaz, was appointed as team manager. With him, Lanzini's chance of regaining a place as a starter increased. Diaz made Lanzini a starter in the team's 2–0 victory againstSan Martín (SJ), where he scored one goal.[28][29] He was then considered a regular starter for the team. During the 12th match of theTorneo Final 2013 tournament, he scored his first goal in theSuperclásico, one of the most heated football rivalries in the world, in the 1–1 draw againstBoca Juniors; this goal, as of 2018, stands out as the fastest goal in the derby's history (43 seconds).[30] River Plate finished the season in 2nd place.[31]
Following the 2013 Torneo Final season, Lanzini received an offer from theUnited Arab Emirates'Baniyas football team,[32][33][34] but he turned down the offer because, citing his own father, he prioritized his professional sporting career over economic opportunities.[35] He remained one of the team's strongest players in theTorneo Inicial 2013 and the internationalCopa Sudamericana 2013, but overall River Plate were inconsistent and did not win any trophies.
Conversely, 2014 was one of the best years in the club's history. River Plate won both theTorneo Final 2014 and theCopa Sudamericana 2014, knocking out Boca Juniors from the latter. Lanzini played for the team for half of the year, and was considered instrumental[by whom?] in helping to win the Torneo Inicial 2014 trophy. He scored again in the team's 2014 Superclásico victory against Boca Juniors, the so-called "Bombonerazo" which began a series of victories for River Plate over Boca Juniors. The Superclásico match also stood out because it definitively launched the career of Lanzini's teammateRamiro Funes Mori, a defender who scored a header in the last minutes of the match; he would end up also playing in thePremier League, as Lanzini, forEverton FC.[36] Lanzini finished the season with 2 goals in 18 appearances for the team.[37]
On 6 August 2014, prior to the beginning of the2014 Torneo de Transición Championship andCopa Sudamericana 2014, Lanzini transferred to theAl Jazira Club in theUAE Pro-League for $6,000,000 four-year deal, with a salary amounting to $12,000,000 in 3 years.[38] This made him the youngest foreign player to play in the UAE Pro-League, at just 21 years old. He was signed as a replacement forMarseille-boundAbdelaziz Barrada, and had been courted by clubs in England, Spain, Italy and Turkey.[4]
On 22 July 2015, Lanzini signed forPremier League sideWest Ham United on a season-long loan, with an option to make the move permanent.[39][40] He made his debut on 6 August in theUEFA Europa League third qualifying round away toAstra Giurgiu, starting the match and scoring in the third minute, however the Hammers lost 2–1 (4–3 on aggregate) and were eliminated.[41] His league debut came on 15 August as a 76th-minute substitute forCheikhou Kouyaté in a 1–2 home defeat toLeicester City.[42] On 29 August, he scored his first league goal after just three minutes away toLiverpool, and assisted a goal fromMark Noble as the Hammers won 3–0 for their first victory atAnfield since 1963.[43] In March 2016, West Ham confirmed that they had taken up the option to sign Lanzini on a permanent deal, with effect from 1 July 2016.[44]
Lanzini played 39 games in all competitions for West Ham, scoring eight goals.[45] On 15 October 2016 he scored the only goal in a 1–0 win away toCrystal Palace to give West Ham their first away win of the season.[46][45] His goal in a 1–0 win againstTottenham Hotspur on 5 May 2017 halted Tottenham's challenge to win the Premier League title. Tottenham, at the time, were on a nine-match winning run and were challengingChelsea for the league title.[47] On 9 May he was voted runner-up toMichail Antonio asHammer of the Year and the Players’ Player of the Year.[48]
Lanzini made his first appearance of the season on 26 August 2017, in a 3–0 defeat away atNewcastle United.[49] In the same game, Lanzini was caught by the elbow ofAleksandar Mitrović, who was later banned for three games as a result of the incident.[50] Lanzini scored his first goal of the season in a 1–4 defeat at home toLiverpool on 4 November 2017,[51] before adding a further two goals to his tally on 13 January 2018 in a 4–1 away win atHuddersfield Town.[52] On 13 May, he scored twice in a 3–1 win overEverton, on the final day of the season.[53]
After being sidelined due to injury since May 2018, Lanzini made his first appearance of the season on 22 February 2019, coming on as a 76th-minute substitute forFelipe Anderson in a 3–1 home win againstFulham.[54][55] Lanzini made nine more league appearances during the2018–19 season, scoring once in a 4–1 away win againstWatford on the final day of the season.[45]
Lanzini made his first appearance of the season on 10 August 2019 in West Ham's opening game against2018–19 Premier League Champions,Manchester City, resulting in a 5–0 loss.[56] Following his 100thPremier League appearance, it was announced on 30 August 2019 that Lanzini had signed a new long-term contract with West Ham, extending his contract until 30 June 2023, with Lanzini stating "I love London, I love the Club, I am happy here, we have a very good team, we have a very good manager and the Club wants to change and to be in more competitions in the future and that’s good for us".[57] On 9 November, Lanzini suffered a broken collarbone during the closing stages of a 3–0 defeat byBurnley.[58]
On 18 October 2020, in his first league game of the season, Lanzini scored his first goal of the season in a 3–3 away draw againstTottenham Hotspur. Trailing 3–0 until the 82nd minute, Lanzini scored a spectacular equalizer from 25 yards out in the fourth minute of added time to even the score to 3–3 and salvage a point for the Hammers; he was subsequently awarded the Premier League Goal of the Month award in recognition.[59] Through Lanzini's equaliser, West Ham became the first team in Premier League history to avoid defeat, having been losing by three or more goals, as late in the game as the 81st minute.[60]
On 16 June 2023, West Ham announced that Lanzini would be leaving the club at the end of the2022–23 season after his contract expires.[61]
On 2 August 2023, Lanzini returned to River Plate signing a one-year contract.[62] He returned to the pitch later that month, coming in forMatías Kranevitter during the second half atArgentinos Juniors'Diego Armando Maradona stadium.[63]
On Wednesday 25 October, Lanzini was presented with a framed shirt numbered 100 to celebrate him making 100 appearances for his boyhood club.
.jpg)
In May 2016, Lanzini was named inArgentina's provisional 35-man squad for the2016 Olympics inRio de Janeiro.[64] He withdrew from the squad in July 2016 following a knee injury sustained while training inMiami,Florida, returning to London for treatment with West Ham United.[65] In May 2017 Lanzini was named in new Argentina managerJorge Sampaoli's first squad for the upcoming friendlies againstBrazil andSingapore, with Lanzini making his full international debut on 9 June against Brazil at theMCG inMelbourne,Australia, replacingEver Banega in the 81st minute of Argentina's 1–0 win. On 23 March 2018 he played a friendly match againstItaly at the Ethiad Stadium in Manchester and scored his first international goal as Argentina secured a 2–0 victory.[66]
On 21 May 2018 he was named in Argentina's final 23-mansquad for the2018 FIFA World Cup in Russia,[67] and started in the 4–0 friendly win againstHaiti on 29 May inBuenos Aires, playing an hour before being substituted byMaximiliano Meza.[68] On 8 June 2018, Lanzini was ruled out of the World Cup after suffering a ruptured anterior knee ligament injury during a training session.[69]
Lanzini was born inGreater Buenos Aires, inItuzaingó, and raised inSan Antonio de Padua.[70] He also holds an Italian passport.[71]His father, Héctor, played forSporting Cristal andDeportivo Morón, while his brotherTomás has played forÑublense andBrown de Adrogué.[72][73]He is outspoken about his support of River Plate, celebrating club victories on social media, and has a tattoo of himself with the River Plate shirt on.[74]
| Club | Season | League | National cup | League cup | Continental | Total | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| River Plate | 2010–11 | Argentine Primera División | 22 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | 22 | 0 | ||
| 2012–13 | Argentine Primera División | 26 | 8 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 | 0 | 26 | 8 | ||
| 2013–14 | Argentine Primera División | 36 | 4 | 1 | 0 | — | 6[a] | 1 | 43 | 5 | ||
| Total | 84 | 12 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 1 | 91 | 13 | ||
| Fluminense (loan) | 2011 | Série A | 22 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 22 | 2 |
| 2012 | Série A | 6 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 9[b] | 2 | 5[c] | 0 | 20 | 3 | |
| Total | 28 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 9 | 2 | 5 | 0 | 42 | 5 | ||
| Al Jazira | 2014–15 | UAE Pro League | 24 | 8 | 4 | 0 | — | 1[d] | 0 | 29 | 8 | |
| West Ham United (loan) | 2015–16 | Premier League | 26 | 6 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1[e] | 1 | 31 | 7 |
| West Ham United | 2016–17 | Premier League | 35 | 8 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 39 | 8 |
| 2017–18 | Premier League | 27 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | 29 | 5 | ||
| 2018–19 | Premier League | 10 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 10 | 1 | ||
| 2019–20 | Premier League | 24 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 26 | 0 | ||
| 2020–21 | Premier League | 17 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 3 | 0 | — | 23 | 1 | ||
| 2021–22 | Premier League | 30 | 5 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 1 | 10[e] | 0 | 45 | 7 | |
| 2022–23 | Premier League | 10 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 11[f] | 2 | 23 | 3 | |
| Total | 179 | 27 | 13 | 1 | 12 | 1 | 22 | 3 | 226 | 32 | ||
| River Plate | 2023 | Argentine Primera División | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 17[g] | 0 | 0 | 0 | 17 | 0 |
| 2024 | Argentine Primera División | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3[g] | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| Career total | 314 | 49 | 18 | 1 | 41 | 3 | 32 | 4 | 407 | 57 | ||
| National team | Year | Apps | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|
| Argentina | 2017 | 2 | 0 |
| 2018 | 2 | 1 | |
| 2019 | 1 | 0 | |
| Total | 5 | 1 | |
| No. | Date | Venue | Opponent | Score | Result | Competition |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 23 March 2018 | City of Manchester,Manchester, England |  Italy | 2–0 | 2–0 | Friendly |
Fluminense
River Plate
West Ham United
Vélez Sarsfield
Argentina
Individual
 | This section usescitations thatlink to broken or outdated sources. Pleaseimprove the article byaddressing link rot or discuss this issue on thetalk page.(July 2021) (Learn how and when to remove this message) |
