Sebastián Viera facts for kids
Viera with Atlético Junior in 2020
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| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Mario Sebastián Viera Galaín | ||
| Date of birth | 7 March 1983 | ||
| Place of birth | Florida, Uruguay | ||
| Height | 1.84 m | ||
| Playing position | Goalkeeper | ||
| Club information | |||
| Current club | Real Cartagena (manager) | ||
| Youth career | |||
| Quilmes Florida | |||
| Atlético Florida | |||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps† | (Gls)† |
| 2003–2005 | Nacional | 58 | (0) |
| 2005–2009 | Villarreal | 75 | (0) |
| 2009–2010 | AEL | 20 | (0) |
| 2011–2023 | Atlético Junior | 481 | (11) |
| Total | 634 | (11) | |
| National team | |||
| 2004–2009 | Uruguay | 15 | (0) |
| Teams managed | |||
| 2024– | Real Cartagena | ||
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Mario Sebastián Viera Galaín (born on March 7, 1983) is a former professional Uruguayan footballer. He played as a goalkeeper for many years. Today, he is a manager for the Categoría Primera B club Real Cartagena.
Sebastián Viera played football for 20 years. Most of this time was spent with the Colombian club Atlético Junior. He also played in his home country, Uruguay, and in Spain and Greece.
Viera was also part of the Uruguay national team. He played with them in the 2004 Copa América tournament.
Contents
Viera's Football Journey: Club Career Highlights
Sebastián Viera was born in Florida, Uruguay. He started his professional football career with Club Nacional de Football. In 2005, his team won the 2005 Uruguayan Primera División without losing any games.
After three seasons, Viera was expected to join the Premier League club Arsenal in August 2005. However, the manager, Arsène Wenger, decided not to sign him. This was because Viera did not pass his medical check-up.
Playing in Spain with Villarreal
Later, Viera signed a four-year contract with Villarreal CF in Spain. He became the main goalkeeper for the next two seasons. But he missed both semi-final games of the 2005–06 UEFA Champions League against Arsenal.
During the 2007–08 season, Viera stopped being the main goalkeeper. Diego López joined the team and took his place. Viera did not play any La Liga games in the 2008–09 season. He left the club in July 2009.
On December 7, he signed a contract with the Greek team Athlitiki Enosi FC. He was allowed to play starting in January 2010. However, his contract ended in December of that year.
Success with Atlético Junior in Colombia
In April 2011, Viera joined Atlético Junior in Colombia. He stayed with this team until he retired at age 40. During his 12 years in Barranquilla, he helped the team win seven trophies. These included three Categoría Primera A championships.
In 2020, a website called La Cháchara held a poll. Viera was voted the second-most important player in Atlético Junior's history. He played a total of 638 games for the team. He also scored 11 goals from free kicks, which is a lot for a goalkeeper!
Interestingly, Viera was one of only two goalkeepers that FC Barcelona's Lionel Messi could not score against. Messi played against Viera three times and never managed to get a goal past him. The other goalkeeper was Renan.
After retiring as a player, Viera started working as a coach. On August 20, 2024, he became the manager of Primera B team Real Cartagena.
Representing His Country: International Career
Viera played his first game for the Uruguay national team on July 18, 2004. This was a Copa América quarter-final match against Paraguay. He was called in at the last minute because the main goalkeeper was injured. He also played in the game where Uruguay lost to Brazil after a penalty shootout.
Over five years, Viera played 15 games for Uruguay.
Family Life
Sebastián Viera's father, who is also named Mario, was also a professional footballer and a goalkeeper.
Achievements and Awards: Honours
Nacional
Atlético Junior
- Categoría Primera A: 2011, 2018, 2019
- Copa Colombia: 2015, 2017
- Superliga Colombiana: 2019, 2020
See also
In Spanish: Sebastián Viera para niños
- List of goalscoring goalkeepers
