Maxi López facts for kids
López with Barcelona in 2006
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| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Maximiliano Gastón López | ||
| Date of birth | 3 April 1984 | ||
| Place of birth | Buenos Aires, Argentina | ||
| Height | 1.89 m (6 ft 2+1⁄2 in) | ||
| Position(s) | Striker | ||
| Youth career | |||
| 1997–2001 | River Plate | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2001–2004 | River Plate | 70 | (16) |
| 2005–2007 | Barcelona | 14 | (0) |
| 2006–2007 | → Mallorca (loan) | 29 | (3) |
| 2007–2009 | FC Moscow | 22 | (9) |
| 2009 | → Grêmio (loan) | 25 | (12) |
| 2010–2014 | Catania | 78 | (23) |
| 2012 | → Milan (loan) | 8 | (1) |
| 2012–2013 | → Sampdoria (loan) | 17 | (4) |
| 2014 | → Sampdoria (loan) | 11 | (1) |
| 2014–2015 | Chievo | 13 | (1) |
| 2015–2017 | Torino | 60 | (14) |
| 2017–2018 | Udinese | 28 | (2) |
| 2018–2019 | Vasco da Gama | 32 | (10) |
| 2019–2020 | Crotone | 14 | (1) |
| 2020–2021 | Sambenedettese | 23 | (3) |
| Total | 430 | (97) | |
| International career | |||
| 2001 | Argentina U17 | 5 | (3) |
| 2001–2004 | Argentina U20 | 29 | (8) |
| *Club domestic league appearances and goals | |||
Maximiliano Gastón López (born on 3 April 1984) is a former professional footballer from Argentina. He played as a striker, which means he was a forward player who focused on scoring goals. Maxi López has both Argentine and Italian citizenship. People sometimes called him El Rubio ("The Blonde") or La Gallina de Oro ("The Golden Hen").
He started his football journey at River Plate in Argentina. Most of his career was spent playing in Italy, where he made 215 appearances in Serie A, one of the top football leagues. He scored 46 goals for several Italian clubs like Catania, AC Milan, Sampdoria, Chievo, Torino, and Udinese. He also played for famous clubs like Barcelona in Spain. With Barcelona, he won both the La Liga title and the UEFA Champions League in 2006. He also played in Brazil for Grêmio and Vasco da Gama.
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Maxi López's Club Career
Starting at River Plate
Maxi López began his football career in 1997 with River Plate, a well-known club in Argentina. He made his first appearance as a senior player on 19 August 2001, when he was just 17 years old. After five years in the youth program, he officially joined the senior team.
During his time with River Plate, he was a very good striker. The club won the Torneo Clausura championship three times: in 2002, 2003, and 2004. He played 56 matches for River Plate and scored 13 goals.
Playing for Barcelona
In January 2005, Barcelona signed Maxi López. They offered him a contract for four and a half years. This happened after their striker, Henrik Larsson, got injured.
Maxi López made his first appearance in the UEFA Champions League on 23 February. He came into the game as a substitute and scored an equalizing goal within four minutes. This was his first goal for Barcelona, helping them win that match 2–1. His only other goal for the club was in a Copa del Rey match in January 2006. He found it hard to get a regular spot in Barcelona's main team. He played only 14 league matches in his two seasons there.
Time at Mallorca, Moscow, and Grêmio
For the 2006–07 season, Maxi López moved to Mallorca on a loan deal. He scored 3 goals in 25 matches for them. After that, he returned to Barcelona in the summer of 2007.
Soon after, on 16 August 2007, he was sold to FC Moscow in Russia. He played 22 league matches for FC Moscow and scored 9 goals.
On 13 February 2009, Maxi López joined the Brazilian club Grêmio on a loan for the season. He played his first game for them the next month. His first goal for Grêmio was scored on 18 March 2009. He scored four goals in the 2009 Copa Libertadores tournament. He also scored the winning goal in a big local derby match called Gre-Nal.
Success with Catania
On 20 January 2010, Maxi López moved to Catania in Italy. He signed a contract until June 2013. He made his first appearance in Serie A on 31 January. In his very next match, he scored his first goal for Catania, which was the winning goal.
On 3 April, he scored two goals in one game for the first time in Italy. This was during the Sicilian derby match. He finished that season with 11 goals in 17 matches. His goals helped Catania stay in Serie A.
In the next season (2010–11), he scored his first goal on 22 September 2010. By the end of that season, he had scored 8 goals in 35 matches. Catania finished 12th in the Serie A table.
For the 2011–12 season, Maxi López scored his first goal on 18 September 2011 from a penalty. In December 2011, he scored another penalty in a match that Catania won 2–0.
Loan to AC Milan
On 27 January 2012, Maxi López was loaned to AC Milan, another big Italian club. He chose the number 21 shirt.
He scored his first goal for Milan on 11 February 2012. He equalized for Milan in an away game and then helped another player score the winning goal. However, at the end of the season, he went back to Catania because Milan decided not to buy him permanently.
Loan to Sampdoria
On 11 July, Maxi López joined Sampdoria on a loan deal for the season. He returned to Catania for a short time in the 2013–14 season. Then, on 28 January 2014, he rejoined Sampdoria on loan again. He scored a winning goal in his first match back for Sampdoria on 3 February 2014.
Playing for Chievo
On 30 June 2014, Maxi López signed a one-year contract with Chievo. He made his debut on 30 August against Juventus. In his second match, on 14 September, he scored the only goal as Chievo beat Napoli.
Time at Torino
On 13 January 2015, Maxi López joined Torino. He played his first game the next day. On 18 January, he scored his first goal for Torino.
On 19 February, he scored two goals in a UEFA Europa League match. This meant he had scored in five different leagues (Argentina, Spain, Russia, Brazil, and Italy). He also scored in all major international club competitions. He scored again in the return match in Spain. On 17 May, he scored two goals in a Serie A match against his old club, Chievo.
He signed a new contract with Torino in November 2015, which lasted until 2018.
Moving to Vasco da Gama
On 14 July 2018, Maxi López joined Vasco da Gama in Brazil. He signed an eighteen-month contract. He made his debut against São Paulo. On 27 August, he scored his first goal for Vasco and also made two assists, earning him the "man of the match" award. He had a great second half of the season, scoring 7 goals and making 6 assists. Fans considered him the best Vasco player during that time.
Return to Italy
On 23 August 2019, Maxi López returned to Italy to play for Crotone in Serie B. He signed a one-year contract.
On 10 August 2020, he signed a one-year contract with Sambenedettese, a club in Serie C.
Maxi López's International Career
Maxi López played for Argentina's national youth teams. He represented Argentina at the under-15, under-17, and under-20 levels. He also took part in the 2003 South American Youth Football Championship.
He has both Argentine and Italian citizenship. This meant he could have played for either the Argentina senior team or the Italy senior team. However, he never played for any national team at the senior level. In July 2010, he mentioned that he might accept an invitation to play for Italy.
International Goals for Argentina U17
| No. | Date | Venue | Opponent | Score | Result | Competition |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | 15 September 2001 | Couva, Trinidad & Tobago |  Burkina Faso |
2–2 | 2–2 | 2001 FIFA U-17 World Championship |
| 2. | 17 September 2001 | Marabella, Trinidad & Tobago |  Oman |
1–0 | 3–0 | |
| 3. | 20 September 2001 | Couva, Trinidad & Tobago |  Spain |
2–2 | 4–2 |
Maxi López's Personal Life
Maxi López was married to Argentine model Wanda Nara from 2008 to 2013. They have three sons: Valentino Gastón (born January 25, 2009), Constantino (born December 19, 2010), and Benedicto (born February 20, 2012).
Since February 14, 2014, he has been in a relationship with Swedish model Daniela Christiansson. They announced their engagement on May 26, 2021. On September 26, 2022, they shared that they were expecting a baby. They revealed it would be a girl on November 3. Their daughter, Elle, was born on March 31, 2023, in London.
Maxi López became a popular internet meme in Argentina. People created funny blogs about him, especially after he was signed by Barcelona. After Argentina was eliminated from the 2006 FIFA World Cup, the jokes changed. They became exaggerated reasons explaining why he didn't play much for Barcelona. Maxi López has said he is "okay" with this unexpected attention.
Maxi López and businessman Paul Richardson were interested in buying the English football club Birmingham City. However, they decided not to go through with the deal in December 2022.
Career Statistics
Club Appearances and Goals
| Club | Season | League | National cup | Continental | Other | Total | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| River Plate | 2001–02 | Primera División | 17 | 1 | — | 2 | 0 | — | 19 | 1 | ||
| 2002–03 | Primera División | 6 | 1 | — | 1 | 0 | — | 7 | 1 | |||
| 2003–04 | Primera División | 17 | 6 | — | 8 | 1 | — | 25 | 7 | |||
| 2004–05 | Primera División | 16 | 5 | — | 3 | 2 | — | 19 | 7 | |||
| Total | 56 | 13 | — | 14 | 3 | — | 70 | 16 | ||||
| Barcelona | 2004–05 | La Liga | 8 | 0 | — | 2 | 1 | — | 10 | 1 | ||
| 2005–06 | La Liga | 6 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | — | 9 | 1 | ||
| Total | 14 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 1 | — | 19 | 2 | |||
| Mallorca (loan) | 2006–07 | La Liga | 29 | 3 | 2 | 2 | — | — | 31 | 5 | ||
| FC Moscow | 2007 | Russian Premier League | 9 | 6 | — | — | — | 9 | 6 | |||
| 2008 | Russian Premier League | 13 | 3 | — | 1 | 0 | — | 14 | 3 | |||
| Total | 22 | 9 | — | 1 | 0 | — | 23 | 9 | ||||
| Grêmio (loan) | 2009 | Série A | 25 | 12 | — | 9 | 4 | 7 | 1 | 41 | 17 | |
| Catania | 2009–10 | Serie A | 17 | 11 | — | — | — | 17 | 11 | |||
| 2010–11 | Serie A | 35 | 8 | 2 | 2 | — | — | 37 | 10 | |||
| 2011–12 | Serie A | 14 | 3 | 2 | 2 | — | — | 16 | 5 | |||
| 2013–14 | Serie A | 12 | 1 | 1 | 0 | — | — | 13 | 1 | |||
| Total | 78 | 23 | 5 | 4 | — | — | 83 | 27 | ||||
| Milan (loan) | 2011–12 | Serie A | 8 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | — | 11 | 2 | |
| Sampdoria (loan) | 2012–13 | Serie A | 17 | 4 | 1 | 1 | — | — | 18 | 5 | ||
| 2013–14 | Serie A | 11 | 1 | — | — | — | 11 | 1 | ||||
| Total | 28 | 5 | 1 | 1 | — | — | 29 | 6 | ||||
| Chievo | 2014–15 | Serie A | 13 | 1 | 1 | 0 | — | — | 14 | 1 | ||
| Torino | 2014–15 | Serie A | 18 | 8 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 3 | — | 23 | 11 | |
| 2015–16 | Serie A | 26 | 4 | 3 | 2 | — | — | 29 | 6 | |||
| 2016–17 | Serie A | 16 | 2 | 2 | 1 | — | — | 18 | 3 | |||
| Total | 60 | 14 | 6 | 3 | 4 | 3 | — | 70 | 20 | |||
| Udinese | 2017–18 | Serie A | 28 | 2 | 1 | 4 | — | — | 29 | 6 | ||
| Career total | 361 | 83 | 20 | 16 | 32 | 11 | 7 | 1 | 420 | 111 | ||
Maxi López's Honours and Awards
River Plate
- Torneo Clausura: 2001–02, 2002–03, 2003–04
Barcelona
- UEFA Champions League: 2005–06
- La Liga: 2004–05, 2005–06
- Supercopa de España: 2005
Torino
- Eusébio Cup: 2016
Vasco da Gama
- Taça Guanabara: 2019
Argentina U20
- Pan American Games: 2003
Individual Awards
- Coppa Italia top scorer: 2017–18 (4 goals)
See also
In Spanish: Maxi López para niños
