Claudio Pizarro facts for kids
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Pizarro with Bayern Munich in 2015
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| Personal information | ||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Claudio Miguel Pizarro Bosio | |||||||||||||||
| Date of birth | 3 October 1978 | |||||||||||||||
| Place of birth | Callao, Peru | |||||||||||||||
| Height | 1.84 m (6 ft 0 in) | |||||||||||||||
| Position(s) | Striker | |||||||||||||||
| Youth career | ||||||||||||||||
| 1991–1995 | Cantolao | |||||||||||||||
| Senior career* | ||||||||||||||||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) | |||||||||||||
| 1996–1997 | Deportivo Pesquero | 41 | (11) | |||||||||||||
| 1997–1999 | Alianza Lima | 44 | (26) | |||||||||||||
| 1999–2001 | Werder Bremen | 56 | (29) | |||||||||||||
| 2001–2007 | Bayern Munich | 174 | (71) | |||||||||||||
| 2007–2009 | Chelsea | 21 | (2) | |||||||||||||
| 2008–2009 | → Werder Bremen (loan) | 26 | (17) | |||||||||||||
| 2009–2012 | Werder Bremen | 77 | (43) | |||||||||||||
| 2012–2015 | Bayern Munich | 50 | (16) | |||||||||||||
| 2015–2017 | Werder Bremen | 47 | (15) | |||||||||||||
| 2017–2018 | 1. FC Köln | 16 | (1) | |||||||||||||
| 2018–2020 | Werder Bremen | 44 | (5) | |||||||||||||
| Total | 596 | (236) | ||||||||||||||
| International career | ||||||||||||||||
| 1999–2016 | Peru | 85 | (20) | |||||||||||||
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Medal record
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| *Club domestic league appearances and goals | ||||||||||||||||
Claudio Miguel Pizarro Bosio (born 3 October 1978) is a Peruvian former professional footballer. He played as a striker, which means he was a player who mainly scores goals. Claudio is known as one of the best Latin American football players in German football history. He is the top scorer for SV Werder Bremen and one of the top scorers for Bayern Munich. He is also among the top scorers in the history of the Bundesliga, Germany's main football league.
Claudio Pizarro started his professional career in 1996 with Deportivo Pesquero. In 1998, he joined Alianza Lima and was named the best player of the season. He then moved to Werder Bremen in Germany in 1999. After a great start, he joined Bayern Munich in 2001. With Bayern, he won many important trophies, including the Bundesliga (German league title) and the DFB-Pokal (German Cup).
In 2007, he played for Chelsea F.C. in England. He later returned to Werder Bremen and then to Bayern Munich, where he won even more titles. These included the UEFA Champions League, the FIFA Club World Cup, and more Bundesliga titles. He is the foreign player with the most titles in Bayern Munich's history, with 18 trophies. Pizarro is also the oldest player to score a goal in the Bundesliga, doing so when he was over 40 years old. He retired from football in 2020 and is now a club ambassador for Bayern Munich.
Contents
Claudio's Early Life
Claudio Pizarro was born in Callao, Peru. He grew up in Santiago de Surco in Lima. He started playing football at a young age in the Academia Deportiva Cantolao in Callao. Claudio has family roots from Italy, with some of his great-grandparents coming from different parts of Italy.
Club Football Journey
Starting with Deportivo Pesquero
Pizarro began his professional football journey at 17 years old. He played for Deportivo Pesquero, a team from Chimbote, Peru. His first professional game was in 1996. A few weeks later, he scored his first two goals in a 2–1 win. He finished his first season with three goals in 16 games.
Playing for Alianza Lima
Claudio Pizarro scored 25 goals in two seasons for Alianza Lima. He helped his team finish second in a Peruvian league tournament in 1999. He also played in seven matches in the Copa Libertadores, a big South American club competition. After his success at Alianza, Pizarro moved to Werder Bremen in Germany.
First Time at Werder Bremen
Pizarro joined Werder Bremen in 1999 when he was 20. He played his first Bundesliga match on 28 August 1999. In his second game, he scored his first Bundesliga goal. A week later, he scored three goals in one game (a hat-trick)! He quickly became a promising young talent. In his first season, he scored 10 goals in 25 matches. He also played in the UEFA Cup, scoring three goals. He helped Werder Bremen make an amazing comeback in one match, scoring a goal to win 4–0 after losing the first game 3–0.
Pizarro scored 38 goals in two seasons for Werder Bremen. Many big European teams wanted to sign him. On 7 June 2001, he decided to join Bayern Munich.
Time at Bayern Munich
Pizarro started strong at Bayern Munich, scoring a goal in his second game. In his first season, he scored 15 goals in the Bundesliga. He also played in the UEFA Champions League. Pizarro was a very important player when Bayern Munich won both the Bundesliga and the DFB-Pokal in the 2002–03 season. He scored 15 goals in the league that season.
Fans at Bayern Munich loved him and called him "Bomber of the Andes". This nickname was a nod to his Peruvian background and a famous Bayern striker named Gerd Müller. Pizarro's contract with Bayern ended in 2007, and he decided to leave the club. He scored 12 goals in 45 games in his last season there.
Moving to Chelsea
On 1 July 2007, Pizarro officially joined Chelsea F.C. in England. He was the first player from Peru to sign for Chelsea. He wore the number 14 jersey, which was also his number for Peru. He scored a goal in his first league game for Chelsea. However, after a new coach arrived, Pizarro did not play as much. He scored two goals in the Premier League for Chelsea.
Loan to Werder Bremen
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On 15 August 2008, Pizarro returned to Werder Bremen on loan. Fans were very happy to see him back. He quickly started scoring goals again. He scored a hat-trick in one game, helping Bremen win 4–1. Pizarro was key in helping Werder Bremen reach the UEFA Cup Final. He scored a goal in the semi-final against Hamburg. However, Werder Bremen lost the final 2–1 after extra time. He scored 17 goals in 26 league games during this loan period.
Third Time at Werder Bremen
On 18 August 2009, Pizarro signed a permanent deal to return to Werder Bremen. He continued to be one of the top scorers in the Bundesliga. On 23 October 2010, he scored his 134th Bundesliga goal, becoming the top foreign-born scorer in the league's history at that time. He left Werder Bremen again in the summer of 2012.
Back to Bayern Munich
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On 26 May 2012, Pizarro signed a one-year contract to return to Bayern Munich. He scored two goals in a German Cup match. In a Champions League game, he scored three goals (a hat-trick) in just 33 minutes! Bayern won that game 6–1. On 30 March 2013, Pizarro scored four goals and made two assists in a huge 9–2 win against Hamburg. He also scored an important goal against Juventus in the Champions League quarter-finals. He finished the 2012–13 season with 13 goals.
In the 2013–14 season, he scored 10 goals in 17 league games. His contract was not renewed after the 2014–15 season.
Fourth Time at Werder Bremen
On 7 September 2015, Pizarro joined Werder Bremen for the fourth time. He was given the number 14 jersey. On 2 March 2016, Pizarro scored three goals (a hat-trick) in a 4–1 win. At 37 years old, he became the oldest player to score a hat-trick in the Bundesliga! He scored 14 league goals that season. Werder Bremen announced in July 2017 that his contract would not be extended.
Playing for 1. FC Köln
On 29 September 2017, Pizarro signed a one-year contract with 1. FC Köln. The team was relegated from the Bundesliga at the end of the season. He scored one goal in 16 games for them.
Fifth Time at Werder Bremen
On 29 July 2018, Pizarro signed with Werder Bremen for the fifth time in his career. On 16 February 2019, he scored a goal against Hertha BSC. This made him the oldest scorer in Bundesliga history at 40 years and 136 days old! His goal also made him the first and only player to score in 21 straight calendar years in the Bundesliga. He scored his fifth goal of that season on 4 May 2019, making the record for the oldest scorer even higher at 40 years and 227 days.
On 20 July 2019, Pizarro announced that the 2019–20 season would be his last before retiring. He played 18 league games that season, mostly as a substitute. His final game was on 27 June 2020. In his Bundesliga career, Pizarro scored 197 goals in 490 matches.
International Career with Peru
Pizarro played regularly for the Peru national team since his debut in February 1999. He scored in his first game against Ecuador. He played in the Copa América tournaments in 1999, 2004, 2007, and 2015. He also played in many FIFA World Cup qualifying campaigns.
On 23 August 2003, Pizarro scored the fastest goal ever for the Peruvian national team. It happened just 18 seconds into a game against Mexico. At the 2004 Copa América, Pizarro got a head injury during a game. This injury meant he could not play for the rest of the tournament. In the 2007 Copa América, he was the team captain and scored two goals in a game against Bolivia.
On 18 June 2015, Pizarro scored the only goal in Peru's 1–0 win against Venezuela in the 2015 Copa América. He played his last game for Peru in March 2016.
Team Incident and Appeal
In 2007, an incident occurred involving the national team. As a result, Claudio Pizarro was suspended from the national team for a period. He felt he was innocent and appealed the decision. After an investigation and review, his suspension was reduced. In 2009, a court ruled in his favor, stating there was not enough evidence to support the claims against him. Pizarro was very happy, saying his honor had been restored.
Personal Life
Claudio Pizarro has a sister named Patricia and a younger brother named Diego. Diego also played football, including for Bayern Munich's youth teams.
Pizarro is married to Karla Salcedo, his childhood sweetheart. They have two sons and a daughter, all born in Germany. Pizarro also co-owns a race horse with another footballer. In September 2020, Pizarro became an ambassador for Bayern Munich.
Honours and Achievements
Claudio Pizarro won many trophies during his career:
Bayern Munich
- Bundesliga: 2002–03, 2004–05, 2005–06, 2012–13, 2013–14, 2014–15
- DFB-Pokal: 2002–03, 2004–05, 2005–06, 2012–13, 2013–14
- DFL-Supercup: 2012
- UEFA Champions League: 2012–13
- UEFA Super Cup: 2013
- Intercontinental Cup: 2001
- FIFA Club World Cup: 2013
Werder Bremen
Individual Awards
- DFB-Pokal top scorer: 2004–05
- Best Iberoamerican Football Player in Europe: 2005
- UEFA Europa League top scorer: 2009–10
Records
- Sixth all-time top scorer in Bundesliga (197 goals)
- Most appearances in Bundesliga by a foreign player (490 appearances)
- Second most Bundesliga goals scored by a foreign scorer
- Oldest player to score in Bundesliga history (40 years and 227 days)
- Oldest player to score a hat-trick in Bundesliga history (37 years and 151 days)
- Top scorer in Werder Bremen history (152 goals in all competitions, 109 in Bundesliga)
Images for kids
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Pizarro with Chelsea in 2008
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Pizarro training with Werder Bremen in 2011
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Pizarro during his second Bayern time in 2014
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Pizarro with Werder Bremen in 2019
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Pizarro with Peru at the 2007 Copa América
See also
In Spanish: Claudio Pizarro para niños
