Enzo Francescoli

Enzo Francescoli

Personal information
Full name	Enzo Francescoli Uriarte
Date of birth	November 12, 1961 (1961-11-12)
Place of birth	Montevideo, Uruguay
Height	5 ft 11 1⁄4 in (1.81 m)
Playing position	Attacking Midfielder
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps†	(Gls)†
1980–1982	Wanderers	74	(20)
1983–1986	River Plate	113	(68)
1986–1989	Racing Club Paris	89	(32)
1989–1990	Olympique Marseille	26	(11)
1990–1993	Cagliari	98	(17)
1993–1994	Torino	24	(3)
1994–1997	River Plate	84	(47)
National team
1982–1997	Uruguay	73	(17)
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only. † Appearances (Goals).

This name uses Spanish naming customs; the first or paternal family name is Francescoli and the second or maternal family name is Uriarte.

Enzo Francescoli Uriarte (Italian pronunciation: [ˈɛntso franˈtʃeskoli]; born November 12, 1961 in Montevideo) is a former Uruguayan football player of Italian and Spanish origin, who retired in 1997. An elegant and highly skillful dribbler, passer, and goal-scorer, Francescoli was nicknamed El Príncipe ("The Prince" in Spanish) or Le Prince (in French). He played 72 times for the Uruguay national team between 1982 and 1997, making him the most capped outfield player in Uruguayan international football.

Club career

His official debut was with the Uruguayan team Montevideo Wanderers. He played several years for River Plate of Argentina where he won five league titles and the Copa Libertadores in 1996 in his two spells with the club.

He also played for the French Racing Club de Paris (Matra Racing Paris at the time), Olympique de Marseille, and the Italian teams Cagliari and Torino.

International career

Francescoli played 73 times for the Uruguay national team scoring 17 goals, between 1982 and 1997. He made appearances at the 1986 and 1990 FIFA World Cups. He won the Copa América three times with Uruguay in 1983, 1987 and 1995, he also played in the 1989 and 1993 editions of the tournament.

Legacy

He was noted for his grace and fluid abilities on the ball. These qualities would later influence the style of French midfielder Zinedine Zidane, who has stated that Francescoli was his favorite player as a young boy and even named one of his sons Enzo as a homage to him.

He was named by Pelé as one of the top 100 greatest living footballers in March 2004.

He also said that Liverpool F.Cs Steven Gerrard is the best Attacking Midfielder he has ever seen in his life.

Career statistics

Club performance			League		Cup		League Cup		Continental		Total
Season	Club	League	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals
Uruguay			League		Cup		League Cup		South America		Total
1980	Montevideo Wanderers	Primera División
1981
1982
Argentina			League		Cup		League Cup		South America		Total
1983	River Plate	Primera División	27	11
1984			49	29
1985-86			37	28
France			League		Coupe de France		Coupe de la Ligue		Europe		Total
1986-87	Paris	Division 1	35	14
1987-88			28	8
1988-89			26	10
1989-90	Olympique Marseille	Division 1	28	11
Italy			League		Coppa Italia		League Cup		Europe		Total
1990-91	Cagliari	Serie A	33	4
1991-92			33	6
1992-93			32	7
1993-94	Torino	Serie A	24	3
Argentina			League		Cup		League Cup		South America		Total
1994-95	River Plate	Primera División	27	17
1995-96			20	10
1996-97			31	19
1997-98			6	1
Total	Uruguay		74	20	0	0	0	0	0	0	74	20
	Argentina		197	115	0	0	0	0	45	22	242	137
	France		117	43	0	0	0	0	0	0	117	43
	Italy		122	20	0	0	0	0	0	0	122	20
Career total			510	198	17	7	0	0	45	22	572	227

International goals

#	Date	Venue	Opponent	Score	Result	Competition
1.	27 October 1983	Estadio Centenario, Montevideo, Uruguay	Brazil	1 – 0	2 – 0	1983 Copa América
2.	29 January 1985	Estadio Centenario, Montevideo, Uruguay	East Germany	1 – 0	3 – 0	Friendly
3.	3 February 1985	Estadio Centenario, Montevideo, Uruguay	Paraguay	1 – 0	1 – 0
4.	6 February 1985	Estadio Félix Capriles, Cochabamba, Bolivia	Bolivia	1 – 0	1 – 0	Friendly
5.	24 February 1985	Estadio Centenario, Montevideo, Uruguay	Colombia	2 – 0	3 – 0	Friendly
6.	31 March 1985	Estadio Olímpico Atahualpa, Quito, Ecuador	Ecuador	2 – 0	2 – 0	1986 World Cup qualification
7.	8 June 1986	Estadio Neza 86, Nezahualcóyotl, Mexico	Denmark	1 – 2	1 – 6	1986 FIFA World Cup
8.	6 July 1989	Estádio Serra Dourada, Goiânia, Brazil	Chile	3 – 0	3 – 0	1989 Copa América
9.	12 July 1989	Estádio do Maracanã, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil	Paraguay	1 – 0	3 – 0	1989 Copa América
10.	17 September 1989	Estadio Centenario, Montevideo, Uruguay	Bolivia	2 – 0	2 – 0	1990 World Cup qualification
11.	8 August 1993	Estadio Hernando Siles, La Paz, Bolivia	Bolivia	1 – 3	1 – 3	1994 World Cup qualification
12.	12 September 1993	Estadio Centenario, Montevideo, Uruguay	Bolivia	1 – 0	2 – 1	1994 World Cup qualification
13.	28 June 1995	Estadio Atilio Paiva Olivera, Rivera, Uruguay	New Zealand	1 – 1	2 – 2	Friendly
14.	5 July 1995	Estadio Centenario, Montevideo, Uruguay	Venezuela	3 – 1	4 – 1	1995 Copa América
15.	9 July 1995	Estadio Centenario, Montevideo, Uruguay	Paraguay	1 – 0	1 – 0	1995 Copa América

Honours

River Plate

• Primera División: 1985–86, 1994 Apertura, 1996 Apertura, 1997 Clausura, 1997 Apertura
• Copa Libertadores: 1996
• Supercopa Sudamericana: 1997

Olympique de Marseille

• Ligue 1: 1990

National team

• South American Youth: 1981
• Nehim Cup: 1983
• Copa América: 1983, 1987, 1995.
• FIFA World Cup: 2º Round 1986, 1990

Individual honours and achievements

• South American Footballer of the Year 1984
• Topscorer in the Argentine Primera 1985
• Topscorer in the Argentine Primera 1986
• Player of the Year of Argentina 1985
• France Foreign Player of the Year 1990
• Topscorer in the Argentine Primera 1994
• South American Footballer of the Year 1995
• Player of the Year of Argentina1995
• Topscorer in the Argentine Primera 1996
• Foreign Top Scorer for River Plate
• Foreign Uruguayan Top Scorer in Argentina

External links

• International statistics at rsssf
• (Spanish) Profile at Tenfield
• Midfield Dynamo's 10 Heroes of the Copa América Enzo Francescoli listed in the top 10