Leandro Cufré

Leandro Cufré
Personal information
Full name Leandro Damián Cufré
Date of birth (1978-05-09) 9 May 1978
Place of birth La Plata, Argentina
Height 1.77 m (5 ft 9 12 in)
Playing position Centre Back
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
1996–2002 Gimnasia La Plata 133 (4)
2002–2006 Roma 68 (1)
2003–2004Siena (loan) 31 (0)
2006–2009 Monaco 60 (4)
2009Hertha BSC (loan) 5 (0)
2009–2011 Dinamo Zagreb 53 (0)
2012–2015 Atlas 72 (1)
2014–2015Universidad de Guadalajara (loan) 20 (0)
Total 442 (10)
National team
1997 Argentina U20 5 (0)
2000–2006 Argentina 17 (0)

* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 8 April 2015.

† Appearances (goals)

Leandro Damián Cufré (born 9 May 1978 in La Plata, Argentina) is a retired Argentinian footballer who last played as a defender for Club Universidad de Guadalajara of the Liga MX.

Cufre won seventeen caps for Argentina national football team and was included in their squad for the 2006 FIFA World Cup.

Career

Cufré began his professional career at Gimnasia La Plata U-19 before being promoted to the first-team squad in January 1996. He went on to play 129 games, scoring four goals in the progress.

AS Roma

Cufré moved to Roma in January 2002. During his time at the Italian giants, he played 80 games, scored two goals and received the award for Best Defender in Italy. He was also loaned out to fellow Italian side Siena, where he played 35 times.

AS Monaco FC

Cufré moved to France in Summer 2006, joining Ligue 1 side AS Monaco[1] During his time at the club, he made 61 appearances and managed to score three goals. Cufré was a regular starter and, eventually, vice-captain of the team.

Hertha BSC

On 29 January 2009, Bundesliga side Hertha BSC announced that they had loaned Cufré from AS Monaco until the end of the 2008–09 season.[2] He returned to Monaco in June 2009.

Gimnasia La Plata

On 18 July 2009, Cufré returned to Gimnasia La Plata after eight years in Europe. On 16 August 2009, after a mini "soap opera," the Argentine wingback asked for – and was granted – his release due to a conflictive relation with Leonardo Madelón, the head coach at the time (though, personal reasons were officially cited).[3]

Dinamo Zagreb

On 19 August 2009, he officially signed a contract with Croatian champions Dinamo Zagreb who had reportedly been persuading him to join the club since the summer transfer window opened. Cufré became a favourite with the Dinamo fans because of his commitment on the pitch. He played in many important matches for Dinamo. In 2011 he was linked with a transfer to Crvena Zvezda (Red Star Belgrade) but the deal fell through. Cufre played in 53 matches for Dinamo. On 5 December Cufré and Dinamo agreed mutual termination of contract. Argentinian stated that he will be continuing his career in Mexico.[4]

Club Atlas

On 7 December 2011, same day he officially terminated his contract with Dinamo Zagreb, it was revealed that Cufré will be joining Mexican Club Atlas from Guadalajara.[5]

International career

Leandro Cufré has earned 17 caps for Argentina, his first appearance coming in 2000. He was part of the Argentina Under-20 team that won the 1997 FIFA World Youth Championship in Malaysia. Cufré was also a member of the Argentina squad for the 2006 FIFA World Cup in Germany. On 30 June 2006, Cufré was red carded for violent conduct in an altercation following the World Cup quarter-final match against Germany, which Argentina lost 4–2 on penalties. Germany's Per Mertesacker said Cufré, an unused substitute in the match, "attacked me even though I did not do anything. I have three or four red marks on my thigh and then he kicked me again in the groin." FIFA president Sepp Blatter said "I am furious about that and our disciplinary committee will monitor this incident. We will take some steps towards those who are identified as being the 'provocateurs' of this incident."[6] For this attack, Cufré received a red card, which made him the first player ever to be sent off in a World Cup match after the final whistle. FIFA fined Cufré CHF 10,000 and suspended him for four matches.[7]

Honours

Dinamo Zagreb

References

  1. "Cufré completes Monaco move". UEFA.com. 30 August 2006. Retrieved 30 January 2009.
  2. http://www.hertha.de/index.php?id=15630&tx_ttnews[backPid]=18232&tx_ttnews[tt_news]=4554&cHash=ee49b733b5 [https://web.archive.org/web/20070308003423/http://www.hertha.de/index.php?id=15630&tx_ttnews[backPid]=18232&tx_ttnews[tt_news]=4554&cHash=ee49b733b5 Archived] 8 March 2007 at the Wayback Machine.
  3. "Leandro Cufré regresó al Gimnasia y Esgrima un día después de haberse marchado" (in Spanish). futbolred.com. 11 August 2009. Retrieved 10 April 2011.
  4. "Cufré replaces Dinamo with Mexico" (in Croatian). hrsport.net. 7 December 2011. Retrieved 7 December 2011.
  5. "Cufré is new Atlas player" (in Spanish). goal.com. 7 December 2011. Retrieved 7 December 2011.
  6. "Fifa fury at Berlin match fracas". BBC. 1 July 2006. Retrieved 1 July 2006.
  7. "Rooney, Cufré and Rodriguez handed bans by FIFA". Reuters. 8 July 2006. Retrieved 16 July 2006.

External links

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