Pablo Estífer Armero (born 2 November 1986) is a Colombian former professionalfootballer who played as aleft-back. He is known in Colombia by the nickname "Miñía", reportedly after a phrase commonly used to call infants in his hometown.
Armero made his professional debut withAmérica de Cali, and he was part of the squad that won the 2008 Finalizacion title againstIndependiente Medellín.
After his performance with Colombia, and having helped América win their 13th championship, Armero was loaned toPalmeiras, his agent Turbo Sports holding the registration rights throughPoços de Caldas.[2] He was signed in early 2009, and was the first choice forPalmeirasleft-back position.[2] He helped Palmeiras reach theSão Paulo State Championship semi-finals before losing toSantos. He was noticed for his speed and crossing abilities and played many matches helping Palmeiras lead in theBrazilian Série A. His only goal for Palmeiras came in a 4–1 win againstNáutico in July 2009.[3]
Having signed a pre-contract, Armero almost joined theSerie A sideParma in July 2010, but the deal collapsed on 3 July. Parma's lack of non-EU registration quota, reflected in the new ruling announced on 2 July, forced the contract to be terminated and obligated the club to pay a sum to the player.[4][5] Instead, Parma signedZé Eduardo. It was reported that Palmeiras bought 20% economic rights, (date unknown) and the non-dividable registration rights in June 2010.[6][7] made Palmeiras would receive 20% transfer fee.[8]
On 28 August 2010,Udinese signed Armero. He became a left wingback ahead ofGiovanni Pasquale in Udinese's 3–5–2 formation (or a 5–3–2 formation). That season Udinese finished fourth and returned to theUEFA Champions League.
Due to Udinese'sUEFA coefficient, Udinese paired with seeded teamArsenal of the EnglishPremier League. The team changed tactics, and Armero played as a left-sided wingback in its 4–4–1–1 formation, with new-signingNeuton playing new left-back. After his successful Serie A debut and following his appearances in European football, Armero was selected into theSerie A Team of the Year for the 2010–11 season.[9]
Armero was rested for the first round of2011–12 Serie A and started in his firstUEFA Europa League match on 15 September. With the team changing its tactics back to 3–5–2, Armero remained left wing-back, also scoring the winning goal.[10]
On 9 January 2013, Armero joinedNapoli on loan until the end of the season, with the option to make a permanent switch in the summer.[11] He mostly made his appearances coming off the bench for the remainder of the2012–13 season. During the 2013 summer transfer window, Napoli made the move permanent for a reported €4 million.[12]
On 31 January 2014, Armero completed his loan move toWest Ham United until the end of the season.[9] He made his West Ham debut on 15 March in a 3–1 away defeat toStoke City. With West Ham already losing 3–1, he was an 83rd-minute substitute forAndy Carroll.[13] He played five league games for West Ham before his loan ended.[14] His final game came on 19 April 2014 in a 1–0 home defeat byCrystal Palace. The only goal of the game was a penalty conceded by Armero whose performance was criticised by managerSam Allardyce.[15]
On 9 April 2015, he was loaned again, this time toFlamengo, until the end of the year.[18] He debuted in a match againstAvaí for the third round of theBrasileirão 2015.
Armero rejoined Italian club Udinese for the 2015–16 season, where he mostly appeared as a substitute. However, Armero was sold halfway through the 2016–17 season, having played only eight matches in three years.
Armero joined Brazilian clubCSA on 17 March 2019, but was released only two months later after being spotted at a nightclub on the eve of a league match.[21][22]
Armero played for the Colombian under-17 team in the2003 FIFA U-17 World Championship and was promoted to thesenior team in 2008 for his form with América de Cali. He received his firstcap in Colombia's 5–2 win overVenezuela and has won the spot of startingleft-back for the national team. In March 2013, he scored his first goal for Colombia in a 5–0 victory overBolivia.[23]
In June 2014, he was named in Colombia's squad for the2014 FIFA World Cup finals.[24] Armero scored Colombia's first goal in a 3–0 win againstGreece in the team's opening group game.[25]
Described as a "box-to-box player" ("tuttocampista," in Italian) in the media, Armero was known for his versatility, team–play, and work-rate, and is capable of playing in severalmidfield positions; he has been used as a left–sided midfielder, as anattacking midfielder, or as an offensive–mindedcentral midfielder, known as themezzala role, in Italian football jargon, and has even been used as a left-back.[26][27]