 Piatti withToronto FC in 2020 | |||||||||||||||||
| Personal information | |||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Pablo Daniel Piatti[1] | ||||||||||||||||
| Date of birth | (1989-03-31)31 March 1989 (age 35)[2] | ||||||||||||||||
| Place of birth | Ucacha [es], Argentina | ||||||||||||||||
| Height | 1.64 m (5 ft 5 in)[2] | ||||||||||||||||
| Position(s) | Winger | ||||||||||||||||
| Youth career | |||||||||||||||||
| 2002–2003 | Jorge Newbery | ||||||||||||||||
| 2003–2006 | Estudiantes | ||||||||||||||||
| Senior career* | |||||||||||||||||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) | ||||||||||||||
| 2006–2008 | Estudiantes | 49 | (13) | ||||||||||||||
| 2008–2011 | Almería | 101 | (20) | ||||||||||||||
| 2011–2017 | Valencia | 110 | (15) | ||||||||||||||
| 2016–2017 | →Espanyol (loan) | 30 | (10) | ||||||||||||||
| 2017–2020 | Espanyol | 53 | (3) | ||||||||||||||
| 2020 | Toronto FC | 17 | (4) | ||||||||||||||
| 2021–2022 | Elche | 19 | (0) | ||||||||||||||
| 2022–2024 | Estudiantes | 52 | (4) | ||||||||||||||
| Total | 431 | (69) | |||||||||||||||
| International career | |||||||||||||||||
| 2007 | Argentina U20 | 6 | (0) | ||||||||||||||
| 2011 | Argentina | 1 | (0) | ||||||||||||||
Medal record
| |||||||||||||||||
| *Club domestic league appearances and goals | |||||||||||||||||
Pablo Daniel Piatti (born 31 March 1989) is an Argentine former professionalfootballer. He operated mainly as aleft winger, but could also play as aforward.[3]
He spent the vast majority of his career in Spain after starting out atEstudiantes, appearing in 313La Liga matches over 14 seasons and scoring a total of 48 goals forAlmería,Valencia,Espanyol andElche. He also representedToronto FC inMajor League Soccer, having signed in 2020.
Piatti wascapped once for theArgentina national team, in 2011.
Born inUcacha [es],Córdoba ofItalian descent,[4] Piatti was a product ofEstudiantes de La Plata's youth ranks. He made the headlines when coachDiego Simeone gave him his first opportunity againstNewell's Old Boys on 18 November 2006, as the player was just 17. He scored the winning goal (2–1) deep into injury time, and became one of the heroes of Estudiantes' championship-winning team.[5]
Piatti made the side's starting eleven in the2007Clausura tournament, alongsideJosé Luis Calderón,José Sosa, andJuan Sebastián Verón.
After making 60 appearances in all competitions for Estudiantes in two years, Piatti was sold toUD Almería in Spain for an undisclosed fee believed to be in the region of€7 million.[6][7] Initially an undisputed starter, notably netting in a 1–1 home draw againstReal Madrid,[8] he struggled after the arrival, midway through hisfirst season, of Mexican coachHugo Sánchez.
In the2009–10 campaign, without the presence ofstrikerÁlvaro Negredo, Piatti was much more depended upon in scoring matters and netted seven times in 35 matches, joint-second in the team as they finished in 13th position.[9] On 23 September 2009 he opened and closed the scoresheet in a 2–2 draw atAtlético Madrid[10] and, in the secondLa Liga match between the two teams, netted alast-minute winner (1–0).[11]
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On 5 July 2011, Almería andValencia CF reached an agreement for the transfer of Piatti, with the player signing a five-year contract for a fee of €7.5 million.[12][13] He struggled to reproduce his previous form during most of hisfirst season with theChe, but did feature in 47 official matches.[14]
Piatti scored his first official goal for Valencia on 19 January 2012, netting the 3–1 in the 45th minute of an eventual 4–1 home victory overLevante UD inthe quarter-finals of theCopa del Rey.[15] He added another two in the second leg (3–0).[16]
AfterJordi Alba andJérémy Mathieu developed an efficient left-wing partnership, Piatti was used inconsistently by managersMauricio Pellegrino,Ernesto Valverde andMiroslav Đukić, also struggling with some injury problems.[14] He was transferlisted against his will by the latter in the summer of 2013.[14]
After the dismissal of Đukić due to poor results, however, new bossJuan Antonio Pizzi showed faith in his compatriot Piatti, who repaid the former's confidence by finishing2013–14 with five league goals from 17 appearances, one of those coming in a 3–2 win atFC Barcelona.[17][18]
Following the purchase of the club by businessmanPeter Lim,[19] Piatti continued being a key player underNuno Espírito Santo, being dubbedPablito by the manager.[20][21][14]
Piatti was loaned toRCD Espanyol for one year on 16 July 2016, with abuyout clause.[22] The following 24 May, after scoring a career-best ten goals to help his team tothe eighth position, he signed a permanent three-year deal with the club.[23]
In February 2019, during a home match againstRayo Vallecano, Piatti suffered an injury to both his right knee'santerior cruciate andinternal lateral ligaments, going on to be sidelined for several months.[24]
In February 2020, Piatti moved toToronto FC inMajor League Soccer as a Designated Player, signing a one-year deal.[25][26] Later that month, however, he was ruled out of the opening ofthe season after picking up a hamstring strain in training.[27] He made his debut on 13 July, in a 2–2 draw againstD.C. United in the group stages of theMLS is Back Tournament.[28] He scored his first two goals on 18 August, in a 3–0 home win overVancouver Whitecaps FC in his side's first match since the return ofthe regular season.[29][30]
The team declined their option to extend Piatti's contract on 30 November 2020.[31]
Piatti returned to the Spanish top division on 6 March 2021, joiningElche CF.[32] He scored his only goal on 6 January 2022, in the 2–1 away defeat of Almería inthe Spanish Cup.[33]
On 14 June 2022, the 33-year old Piatti returned to his former club Estudiantes, on a deal until June 2024.[34] On 21 December 2024, afterclaiming theTrofeo de Campeones de la Liga Profesional againstClub Atlético Vélez Sarsfield, he retired alongside his teammateFederico Fernández.[35][36]
Shortly after making his senior debut for Estudiantes, Piatti was part of theArgentina squad that won the2007 FIFA U-20 World Cup in Canada. The youngest player in the roster, he managed to play six of seven games.[37][38]
On 5 June 2011, Piatti made his debut forthe senior side, as national team bossSergio Batista handed him a start in a 2–1friendly loss withPoland.[39]
A talented, skilful and diminutive player with an eye for goal, Piatti is capable of contributing to his team's offensive play by both scoring and assisting goals; moreover, he can shoot with either foot, despite being naturally left–footed. Normally a winger, he is also able to play as a forward, but he has even been deployed in a deeper, more creative role,behind the main striker. He usually plays on the left side of the pitch, although he can also play on the right flank. A dynamic, explosive and fleet–footed attacker, he is known for his turn of pace, which along with hisdribbling technique enables him to get past opponents and make runs into the penalty area. Regarded as a promising player in his youth, his playing style was initially likened to that of compatriotLionel Messi.[40][41][42][43][44][45]
| Club | Season | League | Cup | Continental | Other | Total | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Estudiantes | 2006–07 | Argentine Primera División | 17 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 17 | 5 | |
| 2007–08 | 32 | 8 | 0 | 0 | 10[a] | 0 | — | 42 | 8 | |||
| Total | 49 | 13 | 0 | 0 | 10 | 0 | — | 59 | 13 | |||
| Almería | 2008–09 | La Liga | 31 | 5 | 2 | 1 | — | — | 33 | 6 | ||
| 2009–10 | 35 | 7 | 1 | 0 | — | — | 36 | 7 | ||||
| 2010–11 | 35 | 8 | 6 | 2 | — | — | 41 | 10 | ||||
| Total | 101 | 20 | 9 | 3 | — | — | 110 | 23 | ||||
| Valencia | 2011–12 | La Liga | 30 | 2 | 7 | 3 | 10 | 1 | — | 47 | 6 | |
| 2012–13 | 14 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 0 | — | 19 | 1 | |||
| 2013–14 | 17 | 5 | 3 | 0 | 9 | 2 | — | 29 | 7 | |||
| 2014–15 | 28 | 7 | 2 | 0 | — | — | 30 | 7 | ||||
| 2015–16 | 21 | 0 | 6 | 1 | 10 | 1 | — | 37 | 2 | |||
| Total | 110 | 15 | 21 | 4 | 31 | 4 | — | 162 | 23 | |||
| Espanyol (loan) | 2016–17 | La Liga | 30 | 10 | 1 | 0 | — | — | 31 | 10 | ||
| Espanyol | 2017–18 | La Liga | 30 | 2 | 1 | 0 | — | — | 31 | 2 | ||
| 2018–19 | 20 | 1 | 6 | 1 | — | — | 26 | 2 | ||||
| 2019–20 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | — | 7 | 0 | |||
| Total | 83 | 13 | 10 | 1 | 2 | 0 | — | 95 | 14 | |||
| Toronto FC | 2020 | Major League Soccer | 17[b] | 4 | 0 | 0 | — | 2[c] | 0 | 19 | 4 | |
| Elche | 2020–21 | La Liga | 9 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | 9 | 0 | ||
| 2021–22 | 10 | 0 | 3 | 1 | — | — | 13 | 1 | ||||
| Total | 19 | 0 | 3 | 1 | — | — | 22 | 1 | ||||
| Estudiantes | 2022 | Argentine Primera División | 16 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 3[d] | 0 | — | 20 | 2 | |
| 2023 | 9 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1[a] | 1 | 11 | 1 | ||||
| 2024 | 24 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 5[d] | 0 | 31 | 3 | ||||
| Career total | 428 | 69 | 47 | 10 | 52 | 5 | 2 | 0 | 529 | 84 | ||
| National team | Year | Apps | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|
| Argentina[46] | 2011 | 1 | 0 |
| Total | 1 | 0 | |
Estudiantes
Argentina U-20
Individual
