Luciano Galletti

Luciano Galletti
Personal information
Full name Luciano Martín Galletti
Date of birth (1980-04-09) 9 April 1980
Place of birth La Plata, Argentina
Height 1.75 m (5 ft 9 in)
Playing position Winger
Youth career
Estudiantes
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
1997–1999 Estudiantes 37 (2)
1999 Parma 0 (0)
1999–2000 Napoli 20 (2)
2000–2001 Estudiantes 28 (9)
2001–2005 Zaragoza 134 (14)
2005–2007 Atlético Madrid 62 (5)
2007–2010 Olympiacos 59 (19)
2013 OFI Crete 6 (0)
Total 346 (51)
National team
1999 Argentina U20 12 (10)
2000–2005 Argentina 13 (1)

* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only.


Luciano Martín Galletti (Spanish pronunciation: [lusiˈano ɣaˈleti]; born 9 April 1980) is an Argentine retired footballer who played as a right winger.

In a professional career that lasted 14 years he played mostly in Spain, with Zaragoza and Atlético Madrid, but also represented Olympiacos, winning five major titles with the latter club. He was also retired from 2010 to 2013, before returning to active with OFI Crete.

An Argentine international in the 2000s, Galletti appeared with the national team at the 2005 Confederations Cup.

Club career

Early years / Italy

Born in La Plata, Buenos Aires Province, Galletti's career began with Estudiantes de La Plata, where his father Rubén Horacio played as a right-wing forward during the 1970s. He scored once in 24 games in his second season in the Primera División.

In 1999, Galletti joined Parma A.C. in Italy, but failed to break into the first team, moving in the following transfer window to another club in the country, Serie B's S.S.C. Napoli – loaned by Estudiantes, to where he would return for the 2000–01 campaign.

Zaragoza

Galletti signed with Real Zaragoza in Spain in the 2001 off-season. He made his La Liga debut on 26 August in a 1–2 away loss against RCD Español, and finished his first year with 27 matches and two goals as the season ended in relegation.

From there onwards, Galletti became an undisputed starter for the Aragonese, never appearing in less than 34 contests for the remainder of his spell. In 2003–04 he helped them win the Copa del Rey, scoring the winner in a 3–2 extra time win against Real Madrid.[1]

Atlético Madrid

On 29 July 2005, Galletti joined fellow league side Atlético Madrid for €4 million.[2] He netted his first league goal for his new team on 27 October, closing the scoresheet at home against Cádiz CF (3–0).[3]

In his second season with the Colchoneros, Galletti scored four goals in 36 games as the team finished in seventh position.

Olympiacos

On 30 June 2007, Galletti was transferred to Olympiacos F.C. in Greece, for a reported fee of €2.5m,[4] with the player signing a four-year contract with an annual salary of €1.3 million. On 2 May 2009 he netted the 4–4 equalizer against AEK Athens F.C. in the final of the Greek Cup, in another eventual extra time success;[5] after that campaign ended and he contributed with a career-best 14 goals to the national championship's conquest, he signed a contract extension linking him to the Piraeus club until 2013 – the new deal contained a release clause fee of €15million.[6]

In early February 2010, Galletti was diagnosed with severe kidney failure, causing him to miss the rest of the season. He announced his retirement the following summer, aged only 30;[7] however, in early October 2012, he underwent a successful kidney transplant, the donor being his father Ruben.[8]

Galletti returned to Olympiacos on 3 September 2014, being appointed scout for Latin America.[9]

International career

Galletti was the top scorer at the 1999 South American Youth Championship with nine goals in only eight games, ranking ahead the likes of Ronaldinho and Roque Santa Cruz as the Argentine under-20s won the competition in Paraguay.

He gained 13 caps for the full side, making his debut in 2000 and being selected to the squad that appeared in the 2005 FIFA Confederations Cup, where he played three matches for the eventual runners-up, including the final against Brazil.

Honours

Club

Zaragoza
Olympiacos

Country

Individual

References

  1. ↑ Beckham misses out on Cup; BBC Sport, 17 March 2004
  2. ↑ "Galletti arrives at Atlético". UEFA.com. 29 July 2005.
  3. ↑ "Atlético Madrid 3–0 Cádiz". ESPN Soccernet. 27 October 2005. Retrieved 9 August 2012.
  4. ↑ "Galletti lured by European goal". UEFA.com. 30 June 2007.
  5. ↑ "Olympiakos win Cup in shoot-out". FIFA.com. 2 May 2009. Retrieved 9 August 2012.
  6. ↑ Ερυθρόλευκος για πάντα ο Γκαλέτι [Galletti forever red] (in Greek). Olympiacos F.C. 8 July 2009. Retrieved 9 July 2009.
  7. ↑ Una insuficiencia renal obligó a Galletti a dejar el fútbol profesional (Kidney failure forced Galletti to retire from professional football); Infobae, 27 September 2010 (Spanish)
  8. ↑ Galletti tendría el alta médica en tres días (Galletti could be released in three days) Clarín, 5 October 2012 (Spanish)
  9. ↑ Ανακοίνωση της ΠΑΕ Ολυμπιακός σχετικά με την ένταξη του Λουτσιάνο Γκαλέτι στο τεχνικό τιμ [Olympiacos FC announcement on Luciano Galletti's coaching integration] (in Greek). Olympiacos F.C. 3 September 2014. Retrieved 3 September 2014.
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