Hernán Crespo facts for kids
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Crespo in 2018
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| Personal information | ||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Full name | Hernán Jorge Crespo | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Date of birth | 5 July 1975 | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Place of birth | Florida, Buenos Aires, Argentina | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Height | 1.85 m (6 ft 1 in) | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Position(s) | Striker | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Team information | ||||||||||||||||||||||
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Current team
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São Paulo (head coach) | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Youth career | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1988–1993 | River Plate | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Senior career* | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) | |||||||||||||||||||
| 1993–1996 | River Plate | 64 | (24) | |||||||||||||||||||
| 1996–2000 | Parma | 116 | (62) | |||||||||||||||||||
| 2000–2002 | Lazio | 54 | (39) | |||||||||||||||||||
| 2002–2003 | Inter Milan | 18 | (7) | |||||||||||||||||||
| 2003–2008 | Chelsea | 49 | (20) | |||||||||||||||||||
| 2004–2005 | → AC Milan (loan) | 28 | (10) | |||||||||||||||||||
| 2006–2008 | → Inter Milan (loan) | 49 | (18) | |||||||||||||||||||
| 2008–2009 | Inter Milan | 14 | (2) | |||||||||||||||||||
| 2009–2010 | Genoa | 16 | (5) | |||||||||||||||||||
| 2010–2012 | Parma | 46 | (10) | |||||||||||||||||||
| Total | 453 | (197) | ||||||||||||||||||||
| International career | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1996 | Argentina U23 | 6 | (6) | |||||||||||||||||||
| 1995–2007 | Argentina | 64 | (35) | |||||||||||||||||||
| Managerial career | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2014–2015 | Parma Primavera | |||||||||||||||||||||
| 2015–2016 | Modena | |||||||||||||||||||||
| 2019 | Banfield | |||||||||||||||||||||
| 2020–2021 | Defensa y Justicia | |||||||||||||||||||||
| 2021 | São Paulo | |||||||||||||||||||||
| 2022–2023 | Al-Duhail | |||||||||||||||||||||
| 2023–2024 | Al Ain | |||||||||||||||||||||
| 2025– | São Paulo | |||||||||||||||||||||
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Medal record
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| *Club domestic league appearances and goals | ||||||||||||||||||||||
Hernán Jorge Crespo (born 5 July 1975) is a famous Argentine football coach and former player. He is currently the head coach for the Campeonato Brasileiro Série A club São Paulo.
Crespo was an amazing striker, scoring over 300 goals in his 19-year career. For his country, Argentina, he scored 35 goals. This makes him Argentina's fourth highest goalscorer ever, behind only Sergio Agüero, Gabriel Batistuta, and Lionel Messi. He played in three FIFA World Cups: in 1998, 2002, and 2006. At one point, Crespo was the world's most expensive player. This happened when Lazio bought him from Parma in 2000 for a huge amount of money. He was also the top scorer in Italy's 2000–01 Serie A league with 26 goals while playing for Lazio. Many people think he was one of the best strikers of his time.
Hernán Crespo won many awards, including three Italian league titles (called scudetti), a Copa Libertadores (a big South American club tournament), and a Premier League title in England. He also won an Olympic Games silver medal. In 2004, the legendary player Pelé included Crespo in his FIFA 100 list of the world's greatest living players. What's really cool is that Crespo never received a red card during his entire playing career!
Contents
Playing Career Highlights
Hernán Crespo played for many top clubs in Europe and South America. He was known for scoring lots of goals.
Starting at River Plate
Crespo began his professional career with River Plate in Argentina during the 1993–94 season. He scored 13 goals in 25 league games, helping River Plate win the league title. In 1996, he was a key player when River Plate won the Copa Libertadores. He scored two goals in the final match played in Buenos Aires.
Moving to Parma
After winning a silver medal with Argentina at the 1996 Summer Olympics and being the top scorer with six goals, Crespo moved to Parma in Italy in August 1996. He had a slow start, not scoring in his first six months. But his coach, Carlo Ancelotti, believed in him. Crespo then scored 12 goals in his first season in Italy, helping Parma finish second in the league. He scored 80 goals in four seasons with Parma. He also helped them win the 1998–99 Coppa Italia and the UEFA Cup in 1999, scoring in the final.
Time at Lazio
In 2000, Lazio paid a record amount to sign Crespo. He became the top scorer in Italy's Serie A league with 26 goals that season. However, injuries affected him in his second season at Lazio. The club also faced financial problems and had to sell some of its best players.
Joining Inter Milan
On 31 August 2002, Crespo joined Inter Milan to replace Ronaldo. He had a good start, but injuries kept him out for almost three months. He scored 7 goals in 18 league games and 9 goals in 12 Champions League matches, helping Inter reach the semi-finals.
Playing for Chelsea
Crespo moved to the English club Chelsea on 26 August 2003. He made his league debut as a substitute and scored his first two goals in a 5–0 win against Wolverhampton Wanderers. He played 73 games for Chelsea, scoring 25 goals.
Loan to AC Milan
For the 2004–05 season, Crespo was loaned to AC Milan. He scored ten league goals and famously scored twice in the 2005 UEFA Champions League Final against Liverpool, though Milan lost that match. By scoring for Milan, Crespo became the first player to score for five different teams in the Champions League.
Back at Chelsea
Crespo returned to Chelsea for the 2005–06 season. He scored his first goal back in a 1–0 win against Wigan Athletic with a fantastic shot from far away. He helped Chelsea win the league title that season, which was his first league title in Europe.
Returning to Inter Milan
Even though he scored 13 goals and won the Premier League with Chelsea, Crespo wanted to go back to Italy. On 7 August 2006, he rejoined Inter Milan on a two-year loan. He scored his 125th Serie A goal and his 200th career goal in Europe during this time. On 13 May, he scored three goals (a hat-trick) to help Inter beat Lazio 4–3 and win the Italian league title.
After his loan ended, Crespo signed a permanent deal with Inter Milan in 2008. In the 2008–09 season, he played 13 league games but was not included in the Champions League squad.
Short Stays at Genoa and Parma
After leaving Inter, Crespo joined Genoa in 2009. He hoped this move would help him get into Argentina's 2010 World Cup squad. He scored his first goal for Genoa in September.
In January 2010, Crespo returned to Parma, the club where he had so much success before. He scored 11 goals in the 2010–11 season, becoming Parma's top scorer for the fourth time. He left Parma in February 2012. He is still the club's all-time top goalscorer with 94 goals in 201 games. Crespo officially ended his playing career in November 2012.
International Career for Argentina
Crespo first played for the Argentina national team in February 1995.
Olympic Success and World Cup Debuts
In 1996, Crespo was part of Argentina's team for the Olympic Games. He scored two goals against Spain in the quarter-finals and two against Portugal in the semi-finals. Argentina reached the final but lost to Nigeria, even though Crespo scored his sixth goal of the tournament.
He scored his first goal for the senior Argentina team in a World Cup qualifier against Ecuador. He also scored three goals (a hat-trick) in a friendly game before the 1998 World Cup. Crespo was in the squad for the 1998 World Cup but mostly came on as a substitute. In a penalty shootout against England, his shot was saved, but Argentina still won.
World Cup Goals and Records
For the 2002 World Cup qualifiers, Crespo was Argentina's top scorer with nine goals. In the World Cup itself, he came on as a substitute in all three group games. He scored an equalizer in the final group match against Sweden, but it wasn't enough, and Argentina was knocked out.
After the 2002 World Cup, Crespo became Argentina's main striker. In the qualifiers for the 2006 World Cup, he scored seven goals, including two against their rivals Brazil. This made him Argentina's all-time leading scorer in World Cup qualifiers.
Crespo scored Argentina's first goal in the 2006 World Cup against Ivory Coast. He also scored in the next game against Serbia and Montenegro (a 6–0 win) and in the second-round match against Mexico. Argentina's journey ended in the quarter-finals when they lost to Germany on penalties.
Crespo's last games for Argentina were in the 2007 Copa América. He scored twice against the United States, tying Diego Maradona's scoring record for the team. He then scored a penalty against Colombia, breaking Maradona's record. However, he got injured and missed the rest of the tournament.
Hernán Crespo finished his international career with 35 goals in 64 matches. He is still Argentina's fourth highest goalscorer of all time.
How Crespo Played
Crespo was known as a fast, strong, and complete striker. He had great technique, was calm with the ball, and had a natural ability to score goals. He was excellent at heading the ball and could score amazing acrobatic goals. He also worked hard without the ball, moving smartly to create space for his teammates. Because of his goal-scoring skills and wide range of abilities, he is considered one of the best strikers of his generation. He did face some injuries during his career, which sometimes limited his playing time.
Nicknames
While most people know him as Hernán, his full name is Hernando Jorge Crespo. His most common nickname is "Valdanito". This nickname came from the legendary Argentine striker Jorge Valdano, because Crespo looked similar to him and scored goals in a similar way. He was also sometimes called "El Polaco" (meaning "The Pole") by his family because of his light hair when he was young.
Coaching Career
After retiring as a player, Crespo decided to become a coach.
Early Coaching Roles
He started as a youth coach for Parma's Primavera team in 2014–15. In June 2015, Crespo became the manager of Serie B club Modena. He was in charge until March 2016.
In 2017, Crespo returned to Parma as the club's vice president and later became a club ambassador.
Managing in Argentina
On 19 December 2018, Crespo was named manager of Argentine Primera División team Banfield. He left Banfield in September 2019.
On 25 January 2020, Crespo took over as manager of Defensa y Justicia, another Argentine top-tier club. On 23 January 2021, he led Defensa y Justicia to win their first international trophy, the Copa Sudamericana, by beating Lanús 3–0.
Coaching São Paulo
On 12 February 2021, Crespo became the manager of Brazilian club São Paulo. He led them to win the Campeonato Paulista title on 23 May 2021. This was São Paulo's first trophy in nine years. He left São Paulo by mutual agreement on 13 October 2021.
Coaching in Qatar and UAE
On 24 March 2022, Crespo became the coach of Al-Duhail in Qatar. In his first season, he won three trophies: the league, the Qatar Cup, and the Qatari Stars Cup. He also reached the semi-finals of the AFC Champions League. He left Al-Duhail in October 2023.
After leaving Al-Duhail, Crespo was hired by Al Ain in the United Arab Emirates in November 2023. He led the team to win the Asian Champions League in 2024, beating Yokohama F. Marinos in the final. He left Al Ain in November 2024.
Return to São Paulo
On 18 June 2025, Hernán Crespo rejoined São Paulo as their head coach. His current contract runs until December 2026.
Honours and Achievements
Hernán Crespo won many titles as both a player and a manager.
As a Player
River Plate
- Argentine Primera División: 1993 (Apertura), 1994 (Apertura)
- Copa Libertadores: 1996
Parma
- Coppa Italia: 1998–99
- Supercoppa Italiana: 1999
- UEFA Cup: 1998–99
Lazio
- Supercoppa Italiana: 2000
AC Milan
- Supercoppa Italiana: 2004
- UEFA Champions League runner-up: 2004-05
Chelsea
- Premier League: 2005–06
- FA Community Shield: 2005
Inter Milan
- Serie A: 2006–07, 2007–08, 2008–09
- Supercoppa Italiana: 2006, 2008
- Coppa Italia runner-up: 2006-07, 2007-08
Argentina National Team
- Pan American Games Gold Medal: 1995
- Olympic Games Silver Medal: 1996
Individual Awards
- Argentine Primera División top scorer: 1993–94
- Football at the Summer Olympics top scorer: 1996 (shared)
- UEFA Cup Final Man of the Match: 1999
- Coppa Italia top scorer: 1998–99, 2006–07 (shared)
- Serie A top scorer: 2000–01
- ESM Team of the Year: 2000–01
- FIFA 100 (named one of the greatest living players by Pelé)
- FIFA World Cup Silver Shoe: 2006
- FIFA World Cup All-star team: 2006
As a Manager
Defensa y Justicia
- Copa Sudamericana: 2020
São Paulo
- Campeonato Paulista: 2021
Al-Duhail
- Qatar Stars League: 2022–23
- Qatari Stars Cup: 2022–23
- Qatar Cup: 2023
Al Ain
- AFC Champions League: 2023–24
Individual Manager Awards
- Copa Sudamericana Manager of the Year: 2020
- Campeonato Paulista Manager of the Tournament: 2021
Images for kids
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Crespo in 2018
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Crespo with Inter in 2007.
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Crespo with Argentina in 2007
See also
In Spanish: Hernán Crespo para niños
