Christian Abbiati facts for kids
Abbiati playing for AC Milan in 2012
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| Personal information | ||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Christian Abbiati | |||||||||||||||
| Date of birth | 8 July 1977 | |||||||||||||||
| Place of birth | Abbiategrasso, Italy | |||||||||||||||
| Height | 1.91 m (6 ft 3 in) | |||||||||||||||
| Position(s) | Goalkeeper | |||||||||||||||
| Youth career | ||||||||||||||||
| 1991–1992 | Trezzano | |||||||||||||||
| 1992–1993 | Assago | |||||||||||||||
| 1993–1994 | Corsico | |||||||||||||||
| Senior career* | ||||||||||||||||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) | |||||||||||||
| 1994–1998 | Monza | 52 | (0) | |||||||||||||
| 1995–1996 | → Borgosesia (loan) | 29 | (0) | |||||||||||||
| 1998–2016 | AC Milan | 281 | (0) | |||||||||||||
| 2005–2006 | → Juventus (loan) | 19 | (0) | |||||||||||||
| 2006–2007 | → Torino (loan) | 36 | (0) | |||||||||||||
| 2007–2008 | → Atlético Madrid (loan) | 21 | (0) | |||||||||||||
| Total | 438 | (0) | ||||||||||||||
| International career | ||||||||||||||||
| 1998–2000 | Italy U21 | 20 | (0) | |||||||||||||
| 2000–2005 | Italy | 4 | (0) | |||||||||||||
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Medal record
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| *Club domestic league appearances and goals | ||||||||||||||||
Christian Abbiati (born on July 8, 1977) is a former Italian professional football player. He was a goalkeeper.
Abbiati played for AC Milan for a long time, starting in 1998. Before that, he began his career with Monza. He played over 300 official games for Milan. He also played for Borgosesia Calcio, Juventus, Torino, and Atlético Madrid on loan.
He won many awards, including three Serie A titles (Italy's top league), one Coppa Italia (Italian Cup), and two Supercoppa Italiana (Italian Super Cup) victories. He also won one UEFA Champions League and one UEFA Super Cup.
Abbiati was part of the Italian national team for UEFA Euro 2000 and the 2002 FIFA World Cup. However, he made his first international appearance in 2003. He played four games for Italy in total.
Christian Abbiati holds the record for the most games played as a goalkeeper for AC Milan, with 380 appearances. When he was at his best, many people thought he was one of Italy's top goalkeepers.
Contents
Club Career Highlights
Starting at AC Milan
Abbiati played his first Serie A game on January 17, 1999. He came in as a substitute late in the game. That season, he helped AC Milan win the league title, even though he was initially the third-choice goalkeeper.
He worked hard and became the main goalkeeper. In the final game of the season on May 23, he made important saves. Milan won the Scudetto (league title) after beating Perugia 2–1. He was Milan's main goalkeeper for the next four years.
In August 2002, he got an injury during a UEFA Champions League game. Because of this, he lost his starting spot to Dida. Dida played very well, so Abbiati did not get to play as much.
Even though he was on the bench, Abbiati still helped Milan win the Coppa Italia and the Champions League that season. He played in the 2003 Supercoppa Italiana game, which Milan lost to Juventus on penalties.
On April 12, 2005, Abbiati played one minute in a Champions League game against Inter Milan. He came on after Dida was hit by something thrown from the crowd. The game was stopped shortly after. His last game for Milan that season was on May 20, a 3–3 draw with Palermo. Milan finished second in Serie A that season.
Loan Spells to Other Clubs
Abbiati wanted to play more, so he moved to other clubs on loan. In July 2005, he was loaned to Genoa for the 2005–06 season. However, he quickly returned to Milan because Genoa was moved down to a lower league due to a match-fixing issue.
Playing for Juventus and Torino
Abbiati then joined Juventus as a temporary replacement for Gianluigi Buffon. Buffon had injured his shoulder in August 2005. Abbiati played regularly and did very well for Juventus. When Buffon returned six months later, Abbiati was no longer needed.
He then went to another team in Turin, Torino, in July 2006. Juventus won the Serie A title that season, but it was later taken away because of a scandal. Juventus was then moved down to a lower league.
Time at Atlético Madrid
Abbiati wanted to stay with Torino, but they could not agree on his salary. So, Milan loaned him out again, this time to the Spanish club Atlético Madrid until June 2008. He started on the bench, but an injury to the main goalkeeper, Leo Franco, allowed him to play. He enjoyed playing in Spain and wanted to stay longer.
Returning to AC Milan
Abbiati came back to Milan for the 2008–09 season. He became the first-choice goalkeeper again after playing well in pre-season games. However, on March 15, 2009, his season ended early. He got a serious knee injury during a game against Siena. He was out of action for six months after surgery and recovery. He played 28 games that season, keeping 11 clean sheets.
On November 8, almost eight months after his injury, Abbiati was back with Milan as the third-choice goalkeeper.
In 2010–11, Abbiati became Milan's main goalkeeper again after Dida left. He signed a new contract until June 2013. He made important saves that season, helping Milan stay at the top of the league. On May 7, 2011, Milan won their first Serie A trophy in seven years.
After this, Abbiati also won the Supercoppa Italiana against Inter Milan. Milan finished second in the league the next season.
On May 20, 2013, Abbiati signed another one-year contract. In September 2013, he broke Sebastiano Rossi's record for the most games played as a goalkeeper for Milan. He renewed his contract again on May 21, 2014.
In the 2014–15 Serie A season, he became Milan's second-choice goalkeeper after Diego López joined the team. He received another one-year contract extension on July 1, 2015.
During the 2015–16 Serie A season, Abbiati was the third-choice goalkeeper, behind 16-year-old Gianluigi Donnarumma. He played five games in the Coppa Italia, helping Milan reach the final. However, Donnarumma played in the final, which Milan lost to Juventus.
On May 13, 2016, Abbiati announced he would retire at the end of the season. He played 281 league games during his 15 years with AC Milan.
International Career
Abbiati was first called up to the Italian national team as the third goalkeeper for UEFA Euro 2000. This happened after Gianluigi Buffon got injured. He was also part of the team for the 2000 Summer Olympics.
However, he did not play his first game for Italy until April 30, 2003, in a 2–1 win against Switzerland. He was not chosen for the 2006 FIFA World Cup team but was called back in September 2006. In total, he played four games for Italy.
After Retirement
In June 2017, AC Milan announced that Abbiati would return to the club. He became a club manager, helping to connect the team with the club's management.
Style of Play
When Abbiati was at his best, he was a strong, reliable, and quick goalkeeper. He was known for playing for a long time, working hard, and being a leader. He was also good at rushing out to get the ball or catching crosses. Even though his playing became less consistent later in his career, he was seen as one of the most talented young Italian goalkeepers when he first started playing for Milan in the late 1990s. He became one of the best Italian goalkeepers of his time.
Personal Life
Christian Abbiati is married to Stefania Abbiati. Their daughter, Giulia, was born on January 30, 2000.
Career Statistics
Club
| Club | Season | League | Coppa Italia | Continental | Other | Total | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Monza | 1994–95 | Serie C1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | 1 | 0 | ||
| 1996–97 | 25 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | 25 | 0 | ||||
| 1997–98 | Serie B | 26 | 0 | 2 | 0 | — | — | 28 | 0 | |||
| Total | 52 | 0 | 2 | 0 | — | — | 54 | 0 | ||||
| Borgosesia (loan) | 1995–96 | C.N.D. | 29 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | 29 | 0 | ||
| AC Milan | 1998–99 | Serie A | 18 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 18 | 0 | |
| 1999–2000 | 29 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 35 | 0 | ||
| 2000–01 | 21 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 7 | 0 | — | 32 | 0 | |||
| 2001–02 | 34 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 11 | 0 | — | 46 | 0 | |||
| 2002–03 | 3 | 0 | 8 | 0 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 17 | 0 | ||
| 2003–04 | 2 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 8 | 0 | ||
| 2004–05 | 3 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | 8 | 0 | |||
| 2008–09 | 28 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 28 | 0 | |||
| 2009–10 | 9 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | 11 | 0 | |||
| 2010–11 | 35 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 6 | 0 | — | 42 | 0 | |||
| 2011–12 | 31 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 9 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 41 | 0 | ||
| 2012–13 | 28 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 7 | 0 | — | 36 | 0 | |||
| 2013–14 | 28 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 9 | 0 | — | 39 | 0 | |||
| 2014–15 | 11 | 0 | 2 | 0 | — | — | 13 | 0 | ||||
| 2015–16 | 1 | 0 | 5 | 0 | — | — | 6 | 0 | ||||
| Total | 281 | 0 | 33 | 0 | 64 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 380 | 0 | ||
| Juventus (loan) | 2005–06 | Serie A | 19 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 6 | 0 | — | 27 | 0 | |
| Torino (loan) | 2006–07 | Serie A | 36 | 0 | 2 | 0 | — | — | 38 | 0 | ||
| Atlético Madrid (loan) | 2007–08 | La Liga | 21 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 9 | 0 | — | 30 | 0 | |
| Career total | 438 | 0 | 41 | 0 | 79 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 560 | 0 | ||
International
| National team | Year | Apps | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|
| Italy | 2003 | 2 | 0 |
| 2005 | 2 | 0 | |
| Total | 4 | 0 | |
Honours
AC Milan
- Serie A: 1998–99, 2003–04, 2010–11
- Coppa Italia: 2002–03
- Supercoppa Italiana: 2004, 2011
- UEFA Champions League: 2002–03
- UEFA Super Cup: 2003
- Intercontinental Cup runner-up: 2003
Italy
- UEFA European Championship runner-up: 2000
Individual
- AC Milan Hall of Fame
Orders
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5th Class / Knight: Cavaliere Ordine al Merito della Repubblica Italiana: 2000
See also
In Spanish: Christian Abbiati para niños
