Leonardo Ponzio
 Ponzio with River Plate in 2016 | |||
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Leonardo Daniel Ponzio | ||
| Date of birth | 29 January 1982 | ||
| Place of birth | Las Rosas, Argentina | ||
| Height | 1.78 m (5 ft 10 in) | ||
| Position(s) | Midfielder | ||
| Team information | |||
Current team | River Plate | ||
| Number | 23 | ||
| Youth career | |||
| Newell's Old Boys | |||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2000–2003 | Newell's Old Boys | 90 | (9) |
| 2003–2006 | Zaragoza | 114 | (5) |
| 2007–2009 | River Plate | 55 | (1) |
| 2009–2012 | Zaragoza | 100 | (6) |
| 2012– | River Plate | 111 | (7) |
| International career | |||
| 2001 | Argentina U20 | 7 | (0) |
| 2003–2013 | Argentina | 8 | (0) |
| *Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 26 September 2016 | |||
Leonardo Daniel Ponzio (born 29 January 1982) is an Argentine footballer who plays for Club Atlético River Plate mainly as a defensive midfielder.
After starting out at Newell's Old Boys in 2000 he went on to spend his professional career with Zaragoza and River Plate, appearing in 246 official games with the former and winning two major titles.
Club career
Born in Las Rosas, Santa Fe, Ponzio started his career in the youth system of Newell's Old Boys in neighbouring Rosario, going on to collect more than 100 official appearances for the club. At only 21, he was signed by Spanish side Real Zaragoza for the 2003–04 season, for €3 million:[1] after making his La Liga debut on 31 August 2003 in a 0–1 home loss against Deportivo de La Coruña,[2] he went on to become an essential midfield figure for the Aragonese, only missing 11 games in three seasons combined.
However, when Zaragoza finished sixth in the 2006–07 campaign and qualified to the UEFA Cup, Ponzio had already left, moving in January 2007 to Club Atlético River Plate. He scored his first goal for his new team in the 2007 edition of the Copa Libertadores, against Chile's Colo-Colo.
In January 2009, Ponzio returned to Zaragoza signing a four 1/2-year contract, with the club now in the second division.[3] He contributed regularly as the team returned to the top flight immediately.
Ponzio was an everpresent defensive figure in 2009–10, inclusively featuring at right and left-back,[4][5] while collecting 15 yellow cards. He scored his only goal of the season on 3 April 2010, striking from long range in a 2–0 home success against Málaga CF.[6][7]
On 4 January 2012, aged 30, Ponzio, whose link with the club ran until June, left struggling – in sporting and financial terms – Zaragoza and returned to River Plate for personal reasons, signing a three 1/2-year contract.[8]
International career
Ponzio played for Argentina at under-17 and under-20 levels, and received his first full cap in 2003. In 2001 he played all seven matches (five complete) as the national team won the FIFA U-20 World Cup, on home soil.[9]
Honours
Club
- Zaragoza
- River Plate
- Argentine Primera División: Clausura 2008, Torneo Final 2014, Superfinal 2014
- Copa Libertadores: 2015
- Copa Sudamericana: 2014
- Recopa Sudamericana: 2015
- Suruga Bank Championship: 2015
- Recopa Sudamericana: 2016
- Primera B Nacional: 2011–12
Country
References
- ^ Ponzio picked up by Zaragoza; UEFA.com, 23 July 2003
- ^ "Pandiani da al Deportivo los puntos de La Romareda" (in Spanish). El Mundo. 31 August 2003. Retrieved 21 May 2014.
{{cite news}}: Unknown parameter|trans_title=ignored (|trans-title=suggested) (help) - ^ "Ponzio: "Regresar a Zaragoza es perfecto para mí"" (in Spanish). Diario AS. 1 February 2009. Retrieved 1 February 2009.
{{cite news}}: Unknown parameter|trans_title=ignored (|trans-title=suggested) (help) - ^ "Borque y Ponzio, laterales eventuales" (in Spanish). Heraldo de Aragón. 25 August 2009. Retrieved 4 December 2015.
{{cite news}}: Unknown parameter|trans_title=ignored (|trans-title=suggested) (help) - ^ "'Zucu' se estrena en el lateral y sigue los pasos de Ponzio" (in Spanish). Marca. 18 October 2011. Retrieved 4 December 2015.
{{cite news}}: Unknown parameter|trans_title=ignored (|trans-title=suggested) (help) - ^ "Zaragoza on the up". ESPN Soccernet. 3 April 2010. Retrieved 18 May 2011.
- ^ "Diogo corre, Ponzio resuelve" (in Spanish). El País. 3 April 2010. Retrieved 4 December 2015.
{{cite news}}: Unknown parameter|trans_title=ignored (|trans-title=suggested) (help) - ^ "Ponzio se desvincula del Zaragoza y ficha por River Plate" (in Spanish). Marca. 4 January 2012. Retrieved 4 January 2012.
{{cite news}}: Unknown parameter|trans_title=ignored (|trans-title=suggested) (help) - ^ Leonardo Ponzio – FIFA competition record (archived)
- ^ Beckham misses out on Cup; BBC Sport, 17 March 2004
External links
- Argentine League statistics Template:Es icon
- Leonardo Ponzio at BDFutbol
- Leonardo Ponzio at National-Football-Teams.com
- Leonardo Ponzio at Soccerway
- Use dmy dates from July 2013
- 1982 births
- Living people
- People from Belgrano Department, Santa Fe
- Argentine footballers
- Association football midfielders
- Association football utility players
- Argentine Primera División players
- Newell's Old Boys footballers
- River Plate footballers
- La Liga players
- Segunda División players
- Real Zaragoza players
- Argentina youth international footballers
- Argentina under-20 international footballers
- Argentina international footballers
- Argentine expatriate footballers
- Expatriate footballers in Spain
- Argentine expatriates in Spain