Gabriel Batistuta facts for kids

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Gabriel Batistuta

Batistuta in 2018

Personal information

Date of birth

1 February 1969 (age 56)

Place of birth

Reconquista, Santa Fe, Argentina

Height

1.85 m

Playing position

Striker

Youth career

1987–1989

Newell's Old Boys

1982

→ Sportivo Italiano (loan)

Senior career*

Years

Team

Apps^†

(Gls)^†

1988–1989

Newell's Old Boys

(7)

1989–1990

River Plate

(4)

1990–1991

Boca Juniors

(13)

1991–2000

Fiorentina

269

(168)

2000–2003

Roma

(30)

2003

→ Inter Milan (loan)

(2)

2003–2004

Al-Arabi

(25)

Total

444

(248)

National team

1991–2002

Argentina

(56)

Honours

Men's football

Representing Argentina
Copa América
Winner	1991 Chile
Winner	1993 Ecuador
CONMEBOL–UEFA Cup of Champions
Winner	1993 Argentina
FIFA Confederations Cup
Winner	1992 Saudi Arabia
Runner-up	1995 Saudi Arabia

Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only.

† Appearances (Goals).

Gabriel Omar Batistuta (born 1 February 1969) is a famous former footballer from Argentina. People often called him Batigol or El Ángel Gabriel (which means Angel Gabriel in Spanish). Many think he was one of the best strikers ever. In 2004, the legendary footballer Pelé even put him on the FIFA 100 list of the world's greatest living players.

Batistuta started his career in Argentina in 1988. He played for clubs like Newell's Old Boys, River Plate, and Boca Juniors, winning titles with them. Most of his club career was spent in Italy with Serie A club Fiorentina. He is their top scorer in Serie A with 151 goals. When Fiorentina went down to Serie B in 1993, Batistuta stayed. He helped them get back to the top league a year later. Fans in Florence loved him so much they put up a life-size bronze statue of him in 1996!

Even though he won the Coppa Italia and the Supercoppa Italiana with Fiorentina in 1996, he never won the Serie A title there. But when he moved to Roma in 2000, he finally won the Serie A title in 2001. This transfer cost a lot of money, €36 million, which was a record for a player over 30 at the time. After a short time on loan with Inter Milan in 2003, he played his last two seasons in Qatar for Al-Arabi before retiring in 2005.

For his country, Batistuta was Argentina's top goalscorer for many years. He scored 56 goals in 78 official matches. This record stood until 2016 when Lionel Messi scored more. Batistuta played in three FIFA World Cups, scoring 10 goals. This makes him Argentina's second top scorer in the World Cup after Messi. He is also the only player in football history to score two hat-tricks in different World Cups. With the Argentina national team, he won two Copa América titles in a row (1991 and 1993). He also won the 1993 CONMEBOL–UEFA Cup of Champions and the 1992 FIFA Confederations Cup.

Gabriel Batistuta's Life
Playing for Clubs
Playing for Argentina
How Gabriel Batistuta Played
Honours and Awards
Images for kids
See also

Gabriel Batistuta's Life

Gabriel Batistuta was born on 1 February 1969. He grew up in Reconquista, Argentina. His father, Omar, worked at a slaughterhouse, and his mother, Gloria, was a school secretary. He has three older sisters. Gabriel is a Roman Catholic.

When he was 16, he met Irina Fernández at her 15th birthday party, called a quinceañera. They got married on 28 December 1990. In 1991, they moved to Florence, Italy. Their first son, Thiago, was born a year later. Batistuta became very famous because of his great football skills. He was in commercials and on TV shows. But he always stayed a private family man. His second son, Lucas, was born in 1997, and Joaquín in 1999. He also has a fourth son, Shamel.

In 2000, Batistuta and his family moved to Rome when he joined Roma. After 12 years in Italy, the family moved to Qatar in 2003. Batistuta played for Al-Arabi there. He retired in 2005 and moved back to Argentina in 2007.

Even though he has coaching qualifications, Batistuta is not involved in football right now. He enjoys playing polo and golf instead. He once said, "I don't like football, it's only my job." Later, he explained that he never truly enjoyed playing because he always wanted more. Now, he can look back with satisfaction. He has also worked as a football commentator and runs his own construction company in Argentina.

Batistuta had many injuries during his career. He had surgery to help with pain in his legs. In 2017, he said he still had trouble walking. But he can still play in charity football games. In 2014, he scored two goals in a game in Italy, showing his powerful shot.

Playing for Clubs

Early Football Days

Batistuta at Newell's Old Boys in 1988.

When he was a child, Batistuta liked other sports more than football. He played basketball because he was tall. But after Argentina won the 1978 FIFA World Cup, he was very impressed by Mario Kempes. This made him want to play football. He played with friends and for a small club called Grupo Alegria. Then he joined the Platense junior team.

While with Platense, he was chosen for the Reconquista team. They won the provincial championship against Newell's Old Boys. Batistuta scored two goals in that game. The coach of Newell's Old Boys, Marcelo Bielsa, noticed him. Batistuta signed a professional contract with Newell's in 1988.

Starting at Newell's Old Boys

At Newell's Old Boys, things were not easy for Batistuta at first. He was away from his family and girlfriend. He also had a weight problem. He was loaned to a smaller team, Deportivo Italiano, for a short time. He was the top scorer in a tournament in Italy with three goals.

Under coach Marcelo Bielsa, Batistuta changed a lot. Bielsa helped him physically and encouraged him. Batistuta said Bielsa was the most important coach he ever had. He taught him how to train and helped him become the player he was meant to be.

Time at River Plate

In 1989, Batistuta moved to one of Argentina's biggest clubs, River Plate. He scored 4 goals and River Plate won the Argentine Primera División in 1990. However, the new manager, Daniel Passarella, took him out of the team. Batistuta said they never had a fight. Passarella believed Batistuta would be a great scorer if he found the right team.

Playing for Boca Juniors

Batistuta with Diego Latorre at Boca Juniors in 1991.

In 1990, Batistuta joined River Plate's big rivals, Boca Juniors. It was hard for him to play his best at first. But in 1991, Óscar Tabárez became the new manager. He supported Batistuta and put him in his best position: the centre of attack. Batistuta became the league's top scorer that season, and Boca Juniors won the championship.

Becoming a Legend at Fiorentina

While playing for Argentina in the 1991 Copa América, a vice-president from Fiorentina in Italy saw Batistuta play. He was so impressed that he signed him. Batistuta had a great start in Serie A, scoring 13 goals in his first season.

But the next season, in 1992–93, Fiorentina was moved down to Serie B. This happened even though Batistuta scored 16 league goals. The club returned to Serie A after just one season. Batistuta scored 16 goals again, and Claudio Ranieri was the manager. Fiorentina won the 1993–94 Serie B title.

Batistuta holding his old number 9 Fiorentina jersey.

At Fiorentina, Batistuta played his best football. He was the top scorer in the 1994–95 Serie A season with 26 goals. He also broke a 32-year-old record by scoring in the first 11 matches of the season! In the 1995–96 season, Batistuta, along with Rui Costa and Francesco Baiano, helped the team stay unbeaten for 15 matches. Fiorentina finished fourth in the league. They also won the Coppa Italia and the Supercoppa Italiana against AC Milan. Batistuta scored in both games of the Coppa Italia final.

The next season was not as good, and Fiorentina finished ninth. But they reached the semi-finals of the 1996–97 UEFA Cup Winners' Cup. Batistuta continued to score over 20 league goals in the next three seasons. This was amazing because Serie A was the toughest league in the world to score in. He also scored amazing goals in the UEFA Champions League against Arsenal and Manchester United. In 1999, he came third for the FIFA World Player of the Year award. Many people thought Batistuta and Ronaldo were the best strikers in Italy.

Batistuta really wanted to win the Italian championship. Fiorentina tried to keep him by hiring Giovanni Trapattoni as coach. They promised to try their best to win the Scudetto. Fiorentina started the season well, but Batistuta got injured. This made the team lose momentum, and they finished third.

In 2014, Batistuta was added to Fiorentina's Hall of Fame. He was very emotional and told the crowd, "From the moment I arrived at Fiorentina I wanted a place in the history of the club – and now I can say I have succeeded."

Winning the Title with Roma

Batistuta stayed at Fiorentina for the 1999–2000 season. He hoped to win the Scudetto and the Champions League. But the team finished seventh in the league. The next season, he moved to Roma. The deal was worth €36.2 million. This was the highest fee ever paid for a player over 30 at the time.

In the 2000–01 season, Batistuta finally won a Serie A title! He scored 20 league goals. Roma won the Scudetto for the first time since 1983. He even scored a goal in the 3–1 win against Parma that sealed the title. On 26 November 2000, Batistuta scored a winning goal against his old club, Fiorentina. He was so upset to score against them that he refused to celebrate. He saluted the Fiorentina fans before and after the match, and left the stadium in tears.

Loan to Inter Milan

By 2003, Batistuta was 34 years old. He was loaned to Inter Milan. He scored two goals in twelve matches there. He wanted to move to England to play for Fulham, but it didn't happen.

Final Years in Qatar

In 2003, he left Italy for Qatar. He joined Al-Arabi for free. Batistuta scored 25 goals that season, breaking the record for most goals in the Qatari league. He announced his retirement from football in 2005.

Playing for Argentina

In 1991, Batistuta was chosen to play for Argentina in the 1991 Copa América in Chile. He was the top scorer with six goals, and Argentina won the tournament. The next year, he won the FIFA Confederations Cup with Argentina, also as the top scorer. In 1993, Batistuta played in his second 1993 Copa América in Ecuador. Argentina won again, with Batistuta scoring both goals in the 2–1 final win against Mexico.

The 1994 FIFA World Cup in the United States was a bit sad for Argentina. After a good start, they lost to Romania. The team's spirit was affected by Diego Maradona's suspension. But Batistuta still scored four goals in four games. This included a hat-trick in their first game against Greece.

For the 1998 FIFA World Cup, Batistuta had some disagreements with the coach, Daniel Passarella. But they sorted things out, and Batistuta was called back for the tournament. In the game against Jamaica, he scored his second World Cup hat-trick. This made him the first player to score hat-tricks in two different World Cups. Argentina was knocked out by the Netherlands in a close game.

Before the 2002 FIFA World Cup, Batistuta said he would retire from the national team after the tournament. Argentina, now coached by Marcelo Bielsa, had high hopes. But they were in a tough group. They won against Nigeria (Batistuta scored the only goal). Then they lost to England and tied with Sweden. This meant they were out in the first round, which hadn't happened since 1962.

Batistuta was Argentina's record goalscorer with 54 goals in 77 games. This record was broken by Lionel Messi in 2016. Batistuta said he was a little annoyed to lose the record. But he added, "The advantage I have is that I'm second to an extraterrestrial," meaning Messi is an amazing player.

How Gabriel Batistuta Played

Batistuta was a fast, hard-working, and powerful player. He was known for his great goalscoring ability. Many people think he was one of the most complete and feared strikers of his time. He was great at moving without the ball and strong in the air. He could score powerful goals with both feet, even though he was naturally right-footed.

He also had excellent positioning and could score amazing acrobatic goals. He was good at free-kicks and was a leader on the field. Diego Maradona said Batistuta was the best striker he had ever seen. When Batistuta scored, he often celebrated by pretending to fire a machine gun. A statue of him in Buenos Aires shows his goal celebration with both arms raised and fists clenched.