Cristian Rodríguez facts for kids

Kids Encyclopedia Facts

In this Spanish name, the first or paternal family name is Rodríguez and the second or maternal family name is Barotti.

Quick facts for kids
Cristian Rodríguez
Personal information
Rodríguez with Peñarol in 2018
Date of birth	(1985-09-30) 30 September 1985 (age 39)
Place of birth	Juan Lacaze, Uruguay
Height	1.78 m
Playing position	Winger
Youth career
	Peñarol
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps^†	(Gls)^†
2002–2005	Peñarol	40	(4)
2005–2008	Paris Saint-Germain	36	(1)
2007–2008	→ Benfica (loan)	24	(6)
2008–2012	Porto	70	(12)
2012–2015	Atlético Madrid	59	(2)
2015	→ Parma (loan)	5	(0)
2015	→ Grêmio (loan)	0	(0)
2015–2016	Independiente	26	(3)
2017–2021	Peñarol	98	(31)
2021–2022	Plaza Colonia	37	(4)
Total		395	(63)
National team
2003–2005	Uruguay U20	13	(5)
2003–2018	Uruguay	110	(11)
Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only. † Appearances (Goals).

Cristian Gabriel Rodríguez Barrotti (born 30 September 1985) is a former professional footballer from Uruguay. He was known for playing as a winger, which is a player who runs down the sides of the field.

He got the nickname Cebolla, which means "onion", from his time playing for Peñarol. His father gave him this nickname. Cristian was famous for his amazing speed and great skills with the ball. He played for many big clubs in Portugal, France, Spain, Italy, Brazil, and Argentina.

Rodríguez played 110 games for the Uruguay national team. He represented his country in two World Cups and four Copa América tournaments. He even helped Uruguay win the Copa América in 2011.

Cristian Rodríguez: A Football Journey
International Career with Uruguay
Career Statistics
- Club Appearances and Goals
- International Appearances and Goals
Trophies and Achievements
See also

Cristian Rodríguez: A Football Journey

Starting Strong: Peñarol and Paris Saint-Germain

Rodríguez playing for Paris Saint-Germain.

Cristian Rodríguez was born in Juan Lacaze, Uruguay. He began his professional football career at a young age with his local club, Peñarol. He quickly became a key player and helped his team win the Uruguayan Primera División title in 2003.

In 2005, Rodríguez moved to France to play for Paris Saint-Germain. He joined them on a free transfer, which means no money was paid for his transfer fee. In his second season, he helped the team avoid being moved down to a lower league. He scored his only goal for them in a 4–2 win against Monaco.

Playing in Portugal: Benfica and Porto

In 2007, Rodríguez went to Portugal to play for Benfica on a one-year loan. He was a very important player for them during the 2007–08 season. Because he played so well, another big Portuguese club, Porto, bought him in 2008.

At Porto, he became part of a strong attacking team with Lisandro López and Hulk. He even scored goals with unexpected headers! Later, he played a role as a substitute, helping Porto win the UEFA Europa League in the 2010–11 season.

Adventures in Spain: Atlético Madrid

Rodríguez playing for Atlético Madrid in 2013.

On 28 May 2012, Rodríguez signed a four-year contract with Atlético Madrid in Spain. He quickly scored his first two goals for his new team in the Europa League. One of these goals was a powerful shot in the very last minute of a game against Viktoria Plzeň, winning the match for his team.

In 2015, he went on loan to Parma in Italy for a short time. After that, he moved to Brazil to play for Grêmio, also on loan. He faced some injuries during his time at Grêmio and left the club in May 2015.

Back to South America: Independiente and Peñarol

On 24 July 2015, Rodríguez joined Independiente in Argentina as a free agent. He signed a two-year deal. However, he had several injury problems there, and his contract ended in December 2016.

On 3 February 2017, Cristian Rodríguez announced his return to his first club, Peñarol, in Uruguay. This was a happy moment for many fans! He helped Peñarol win the national championships in 2017 and 2018. He also won the 2018 Supercopa Uruguaya with them. He played 126 games and scored 39 goals in his second time at Peñarol.

After leaving Peñarol in April 2021, Rodríguez joined Plaza Colonia on 20 April 2021. He played for them until he announced his retirement from football on 17 January 2023, at the age of 37.

International Career with Uruguay

Rodríguez (bottom row, first left) with the Uruguay team at the 2014 World Cup.

Cristian Rodríguez made his debut for the Uruguay national team when he was just 18 years old. This was in a friendly game against Mexico. He played for Uruguay in two World Cups and four Copa América tournaments.

He scored a goal in the 2007 tournament during a 4–1 win against Venezuela. He was also part of the team that won the Copa América in 2011.

In the 2015 Copa América, he scored the only goal in Uruguay's first game against Jamaica. At 32 years old, he was also chosen to play in the 2018 World Cup.

Career Statistics

Club Appearances and Goals

Appearances and goals by club, season and competition
Club	Season	League			National cup		Continental		Other		Total
Club	Season	Division	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals
Peñarol	2002	Uruguayan Primera División	6	0	—	—	—	6	0
	2003		21	2	—	0	0	—	21	2
	2004		28	3	—	9	1	—	37	4
	2005		0	0	—	1	0	3	0	4	0
	Total		55	5	—	10	1	3	0	68	6
Paris Saint-Germain	2005–06	Ligue 1	11	0	4	1	—	0	0	15	1
	2006–07		25	1	4	1	6	0	0	0	35	2
	2007–08		0	0	0	0	—	0	0	0	0
	Total		36	1	8	2	6	0	0	0	50	3
Benfica (loan)	2007–08	Primeira Liga	24	6	4	1	8	0	0	0	36	7
Porto	2008–09	Primeira Liga	29	6	4	0	10	1	2	0	45	7
	2009–10		18	4	4	1	6	0	2	0	30	5
	2010–11		13	1	2	0	11	1	2	0	28	2
	2011–12		10	1	1	0	2	0	4	1	17	2
	Total		70	12	11	1	29	2	10	1	120	16
Atlético Madrid	2012–13	La Liga	33	1	8	0	6	2	1	0	48	3
	2013–14		20	1	7	0	10	0	2	0	39	1
	2014–15		6	0	2	1	2	0	1	0	11	1
	Total		59	2	17	1	18	2	4	0	98	5
Parma (loan)	2014–15	Serie A	5	0	1	0	—	—	6	0
Grêmio (loan)	2015	Série A	0	0	0	0	—	2	0	2	0
Independiente	2015	Argentine Primera División	8	3	0	0	5	0	—	13	3
	2016		10	0	0	0	3	0	—	13	0
	2016–17		9	0	0	0	0	0	—	9	0
	Total		27	3	0	0	8	0	—	35	3
Peñarol	2017	Uruguayan Primera División	29	15	—	6	0	—	35	15
	2018		20	10	—	8	4	1	1	29	15
	2019		23	5	—	8	1	1	1	32	7
	2020		26	1	—	4	1	—	30	2
	Total		98	31	—	26	6	2	2	126	39
Plaza Colonia	2021	Uruguayan Primera División	27	4	0	0	0	0	0	0	27	4
	2022	Uruguayan Primera División	9	0	2	1	1	0	1	0	13	1
	Total		36	4	2	1	1	0	1	0	40	5
Career total			410	64	43	6	106	11	22	3	581	84

International Appearances and Goals

Appearances and goals by national team and year
National team	Year	Apps	Goals
Uruguay	2003	1	0
	2004	7	1
	2005	0	0
	2006	0	0
	2007	12	1
	2008	9	1
	2009	7	0
	2010	4	1
	2011	7	0
	2012	7	1
	2013	16	3
	2014	13	0
	2015	6	1
	2016	6	2
	2017	7	0
	2018	8	0
Total		110	11

Scores and results list Uruguay's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Rodríguez goal.

List of international goals scored by Cristian Rodríguez
No.	Date	Venue	Opponent	Score	Result	Competition
1	9 October 2004	Estadio Monumental, Buenos Aires, Argentina	Argentina	1–4	2–4	2006 FIFA World Cup qualification
2	7 July 2007	Polideportivo Pueblo Nuevo, San Cristóbal, Venezuela	Venezuela	3–1	4–1	2007 Copa América
3	25 May 2008	RewirpowerSTADION, Bochum, Germany	Turkey	3–2	3–2	Friendly
4	12 October 2010	Wuhan Sports Center, Wuhan, China	China	3–0	4–0	Friendly
5	10 June 2012	Estadio Centenario, Montevideo, Uruguay	Peru	3–2	4–2	2014 World Cup qualification
6	6 February 2013	Khalifa International Stadium, Doha, Qatar	Spain	1–1	1–3	Friendly
7	15 October 2013	Estadio Centenario, Montevideo, Uruguay	Argentina	1–0	3–2	2014 FIFA World Cup qualification
8	13 November 2013	Amman International Stadium, Amman, Jordan	Jordan	4–0	5–0	2014 World Cup qualification
9	13 June 2015	Estadio Regional, Antofagasta, Chile	Jamaica	1–0	1–0	2015 Copa América
10	6 September 2016	Estadio Centenario, Montevideo, Uruguay	Paraguay	2–0	2–0	2018 FIFA World Cup qualification
11	11 October 2016	Metropolitano Roberto Meléndez, Barranquilla, Colombia	Colombia	1–1	2–2	2018 FIFA World Cup qualification