Juan Antonio Pizzi Facts for Kids

Juan Antonio Pizzi Torroja is a famous football player and coach. He was born on June 7, 1968, in Santa Fe, Argentina. Pizzi played as a striker, which means he was a forward player whose main job was to score goals.

He spent most of his playing career in Spain, especially with Tenerife, where he scored many goals. He also played for big clubs like Valencia and Barcelona. Even though he was born in Argentina, Pizzi played for the Spanish national team for four years. He played in one World Cup and one European Championship for Spain.

After he stopped playing, Pizzi became a football manager. He led the Chilean national team to win the Copa América Centenario in 2016, which was a huge achievement. He also coached Saudi Arabia at the 2018 World Cup and Bahrain at the 2023 Asian Cup. As of July 2025, he is the head coach of the Kuwait national team.

Playing Career Highlights
- Success in Spain
- Later Playing Years
International Career for Spain
Coaching Career
Honours and Achievements
- As a Player
- As a Manager
See also

Playing Career Highlights

Juan Antonio Pizzi started his professional football journey with Rosario Central in Argentina. After that, he moved to Mexico to play for Deportivo Toluca.

Success in Spain

Pizzi moved to Spain and joined Tenerife. He was very successful there, scoring 30 goals in his first two seasons. His goals helped Tenerife qualify for the UEFA Cup, which is a big European competition.

His great performances caught the eye of Valencia, another Spanish team, and he joined them. However, he soon returned to Tenerife. In his second time with Tenerife, during the 1995–96 season, he was the top scorer in La Liga (the Spanish league) with 31 goals in 41 games. This award is called the Pichichi Trophy. He also scored five goals in the Copa del Rey, Spain's main cup competition.

After his amazing time at Tenerife, Pizzi moved to Barcelona, one of the biggest clubs in the world. Even though he wasn't always a starting player because of other famous strikers like Ronaldo, he still scored 18 goals for the team. Fans at Barcelona's stadium, Camp Nou, really liked him.

With Barcelona, Pizzi won several important trophies:

The Supercopa de España in 1996.
The UEFA Super Cup and the Copa del Rey in 1997.
He won the Copa del Rey again in 1998, and also his only La Liga title that year.

One of his most memorable moments was scoring a crucial goal in a 5–4 home win against Atlético Madrid in the Copa del Rey. Barcelona was losing 3–0 at halftime but made an incredible comeback.

Later Playing Years

After his time at Barcelona, Pizzi went back to Argentina to play for River Plate. He then had a short period playing for Porto in Portugal. He returned to Rosario Central in 2001 and later played for Villarreal on loan before ending his playing career.

International Career for Spain

Juan Antonio Pizzi played 22 games for the Spanish national team and scored eight goals. His first game for Spain was on November 30, 1994, in a friendly match against Finland, which Spain won 2–0.

He played for Spain in the UEFA Euro 1996 tournament and the 1998 FIFA World Cup. After the 1998 World Cup, where Spain did not get past the group stage, Pizzi retired from playing for his country.

Coaching Career

After retiring as a player at almost 34 years old, Pizzi started his coaching career.

Early Coaching Roles

Pizzi began coaching in Argentina with Colón in 2005, but his time there was short. In 2006, he coached Universidad San Martín in Peru. He returned to Argentina five years later, coaching Rosario Central and San Lorenzo. He won the 2013 Inicial tournament with San Lorenzo, which was a major league title in Argentina.

Coaching Valencia

On December 26, 2013, Pizzi returned to Valencia, this time as their manager. His first game was a 2–0 win against Levante. However, he was let go on July 2, 2014, after a new owner took over the club. Valencia finished eighth in the league that season and did not qualify for European competitions.

Coaching Chile

Pizzi and his Chile squad meeting President Michelle Bachelet after winning the Copa América Centenario

In January 2016, after coaching León in Mexico, Pizzi became the manager of the Chilean national team. He led Chile to an amazing victory in the Copa América Centenario in the United States. They famously beat Mexico 7–0 in the quarter-finals and then defeated Argentina in a penalty shootout in the final match.

Pizzi also guided Chile to the final of the 2017 FIFA Confederations Cup, which was the first time Chile had reached a final in a FIFA competition. They lost 1–0 to Germany in that final. However, Chile did not qualify for the 2018 World Cup, and Pizzi resigned after that.

Coaching Saudi Arabia

On November 28, 2017, Pizzi was appointed to manage the Saudi Arabia. He coached them at the 2018 World Cup, where they won one game and lost two in the group stage. After they were knocked out of the AFC Asian Cup in the round of 16 in January 2019, Pizzi resigned.

Recent Coaching Roles

Pizzi returned to San Lorenzo in Argentina in June 2019 but was dismissed a few months later due to poor results. In January 2021, he took over Racing Club. His team lost two cup finals that year, and he was removed from his position in August 2021.

In June 2022, Pizzi signed a one-year contract with Al-Wasl in the United Arab Emirates. After one season, he returned to international management with Bahrain in July 2023. At the 2023 AFC Asian Cup in Qatar, his team reached the last 16 before being eliminated by Japan. He left Bahrain in February 2024.

In July 2024, Pizzi was hired as the manager of the Kuwait national team. He is currently coaching them in the World Cup qualifiers.

Honours and Achievements

Juan Antonio Pizzi had a very successful career both as a player and a manager.

As a Player

Barcelona

La Liga (Spanish League): 1997–98
Copa del Rey (Spanish Cup): 1996–97, 1997–98
Supercopa de España (Spanish Super Cup): 1996
UEFA Cup Winners' Cup: 1996–97
UEFA Super Cup: 1997

Porto

Taça de Portugal (Portuguese Cup): 2000–01

Individual Awards

Pichichi Trophy (Top Scorer in La Liga): 1995–96

As a Manager

Universidad Católica

Chilean Primera División (Chilean League): 2010

San Lorenzo

Argentine Primera División (Argentine League): 2013 Inicial

Chile

Copa América: 2016