Roberto Ayala facts for kids
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Ayala in 2018
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| Personal information | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Full name | Roberto Fabián Ayala | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Date of birth | 14 April 1973 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Place of birth | Paraná, Argentina | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Height | 1.77 m | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Playing position | Centre-back | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Club information | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Current club | Argentina (field assistant) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Youth career | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Ferro Carril Oeste | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Senior career* | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Years | Team | Apps† | (Gls)† | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1991–1993 | Ferro Carril Oeste | 73 | (1) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1993–1995 | River Plate | 41 | (0) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1995–1998 | Napoli | 87 | (1) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1998–2000 | Milan | 24 | (0) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2000–2007 | Valencia | 187 | (9) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2007–2010 | Real Zaragoza | 74 | (4) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2010–2011 | Racing Club | 15 | (0) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Total | 501 | (15) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| National team | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1996 | Argentina U23 | 6 | (0) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2004 | Argentina Olympic (O.P.) | 6 | (0) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1994–2007 | Argentina | 116 | (7) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Teams managed | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2019- | Argentina (assistant) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Honours
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Roberto Fabián Ayala (born on April 14, 1973) is a famous Argentine former footballer. People often called him El Ratón, which means "The Mouse". He was a strong centre back defender.
Roberto Ayala played for the Argentina national football team. He also played for many big clubs like Valencia and Real Zaragoza in Spain. In Italy, he played for Milan and Napoli. In his home country, Argentina, he played for Ferro Carril, River Plate, and Racing Club.
Many people think he was one of the best central defenders of his time. He was known for being a great leader and very good at heading the ball, even though he wasn't very tall for a defender. Ayala was the captain of Argentina's national team a record 63 times. He played in three FIFA World Cups and played for Argentina 115 times in total. Only a few players like Lionel Messi have played more games for Argentina.
Contents
Roberto Ayala's Football Journey
Playing for Clubs
Starting in Argentina
Ayala started his football career in Argentina. He first played for a team called Ferro Carril Oeste. After three seasons there, he moved to River Plate. He played so well at River Plate that big clubs in Europe noticed him.
Moving to Europe
Roberto Ayala soon moved to Europe to play football.
Italian Teams: Napoli and Milan
An Italian team, Parma, first brought him to Europe. But because they already had many non-European players, they loaned him to Napoli. Napoli then bought half of his player rights. Ayala later joined Milan at the end of the 1997–98 season. He played for Milan for two seasons. After that, Valencia bought him for about £6.25 million.
Success with Valencia CF
Roberto Ayala joined Valencia in the summer of 2000. He played 275 games for the club over seven years.
He played his first game for Valencia on September 24, 2000. It was a 3–0 win against Numancia in La Liga. He quickly became a key central defender for Valencia. He played alongside his teammate Mauricio Pellegrino in the 2001 UEFA Champions League final. Valencia lost that game to Bayern Munich after a penalty shootout. Even so, Ayala was named the best defender for the 2000–01 tournament.
The next season, Ayala helped Valencia win the La Liga title. He scored the first goal in a 2–0 win against Málaga on May 5, 2002, which secured the championship. In the 2003–04 season, Valencia won the La Liga title again. They also beat Marseille 2–0 to win the UEFA Cup.
During the 2004–05 season, Ayala had some injuries. These injuries kept him from playing in many La Liga games. He also missed the UEFA Super Cup win against Porto.
While at Valencia, many people thought he was one of the best central defenders in the world. He is still seen as one of the club's greatest players ever.
Time at Villarreal and Real Zaragoza
In August 2006, Valencia did not offer Ayala a new contract. On February 7, 2007, he said he would join Villarreal when the season ended. However, before playing for Villarreal, he joined Real Zaragoza on July 14, 2007. Real Zaragoza paid €6 million to buy him out of his contract with Villarreal.
On May 3, 2008, Ayala scored his first goal for Real Zaragoza. It was a 94th-minute goal against Deportivo de La Coruña, giving Zaragoza a 1–0 win. But Zaragoza was still moved down to a lower league, the Segunda División. He scored two more goals for Zaragoza in the 2008–09 season.
In January 2010, Ayala and Zaragoza agreed to end his contract.
Back in Argentina: Racing Club
On February 2, 2010, Roberto Ayala returned to Argentina. He signed with Racing Club as a free player.
Playing for Argentina
Ayala played his first game for Argentina on November 16, 1994, against Chile.
He played for the Argentina U23 at the 1996 Summer Olympics. His team won the silver medal there. He also played for Argentina in the 1998 FIFA World Cup. He was part of the team for the 2002 tournament, but he got injured right before their first match and could not play.
Ayala was chosen as one of the older players for the Argentina U23 at the 2004 Summer Olympics. His team won the gold medal. He was a very important player for Argentina in the 2006 World Cup in Germany. He played very well throughout the tournament and was chosen for the All-Star Team. In the quarter-final against Germany, he scored a goal with his head, putting Argentina ahead 1–0. However, his team lost the game after a penalty shootout.
On May 30, 2006, Ayala played his 100th game for Argentina in a friendly match against Angola.
Roberto Ayala is known as one of Argentina's best defenders ever. On February 7, 2007, he became the player with the most appearances for the national team. He also captained the team more times than anyone else, beating his friend Diego Simeone. This happened in a 1–0 friendly win against France in Paris.
On June 5, 2007, Ayala captained Argentina for a record 58th time in a friendly against Algeria. He had equaled Diego Maradona's record of 57 captaincies a few days earlier.
On July 17, 2007, Ayala announced he was retiring from international football. This was two days after playing in the 2007 Copa América Final, where Argentina lost 3–0 to Brazil. He scored an own goal in that final. Ayala said his decision had "nothing to do with what happened in the final." Javier Zanetti then took over as captain.
After His Playing Career
Racing Club Role
On December 30, Roberto Ayala retired from playing professional football. On December 21, 2011, he was hired as a football coordinator at Racing Club. However, a new management team took over in September 2013, and Ayala left the club on September 19, 2013.
Valencia CF Role
In December 2013, Ayala became a technical director for Valencia. His job was to be in charge of the South American area. This meant he would look for young talented players there. He left Valencia in the middle of 2015.
Working with Argentina's National Team
On January 10, 2019, Ayala joined the coaching staff of the Argentina national football team. He became a field assistant to the manager, Lionel Scaloni.
How He Played
Roberto Ayala is seen as one of the best and most successful defenders of all time. He was mainly known for his great ability to head the ball and his strong tackling. He was also a great leader and played very consistently throughout his career. He was a complete defender, also known for his speed, how well he controlled the ball, and his accurate passes from the back.
His Achievements and Awards
River Plate
- Argentine Primera División: 1994 Apertura (a type of league championship)
Napoli
- Coppa Italia runner-up: 1996-97 (finished second in the cup)
Milan
- Serie A: 1998–99 (won the Italian league title)
Valencia
- La Liga: 2001–02, 2003–04 (won the Spanish league title)
- UEFA Cup: 2003–04 (won a major European club competition)
- UEFA Super Cup: 2004 (won a match between two European club champions)
- UEFA Champions League runner-up: 2000–2001 (finished second in Europe's top club competition)
- UEFA Intertoto Cup runner-up: 2005 (finished second in a summer club competition)
Argentina (as a player)
- Olympic Gold Medal: 2004 (won gold at the Olympics)
- Pan American Games: 1995 (won gold at the Pan American Games)
- Copa América runner-up: 2004, 2007 (finished second in the South American championship)
- FIFA Confederations Cup runner-up: 1995 (finished second in an international tournament)
Individual Awards
- South American Team of the Year: 1994
- UEFA Club Best Defender of the Year: 2000–01
- European Sports Media Team of the Year: 2003–04
- Copa América Team of the Tournament: 2004
- 2006 FIFA World Cup All-Star Team
- IFFHS Argentina All Times Dream Team (Team B): 2021
Argentina (as assistant manager)
- FIFA World Cup: 2022 (won the World Cup)
- Copa América: 2021, 2024 (won the South American championship); third place: 2019
- CONMEBOL–UEFA Cup of Champions: 2022 (won a match between European and South American champions)
Personal Life
Roberto Ayala is married to Veronica. They have four children: Francisco, Sofía, Pilar, and Martina.
See also
In Spanish: Roberto Ayala para niños
- List of men's footballers with 100 or more international caps
