Sergio Romero facts for kids
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Romero playing for Argentina in 2017
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| Personal information | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Full name | Sergio Germán Romero | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Date of birth | 22 February 1987 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Place of birth | Bernardo de Irigoyen, Misiones, Argentina | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Height | 1.92 m (6 ft 4 in) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Position(s) | Goalkeeper | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Team information | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Current team
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Boca Juniors | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Number | 1 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Youth career | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1996–1997 | Almirante Brown | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1997–2003 | CAI | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2003–2006 | Racing Club | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Senior career* | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2006–2007 | Racing Club | 4 | (0) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2007–2011 | AZ | 90 | (0) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2011–2015 | Sampdoria | 71 | (0) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2013–2014 | → Monaco (loan) | 3 | (0) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2015–2021 | Manchester United | 7 | (0) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2021–2022 | Venezia | 16 | (0) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2022– | Boca Juniors | 61 | (0) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| International career | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2007–2008 | Argentina U20 | 23 | (0) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2008 | Argentina Olympic | 4 | (0) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2008–2018 | Argentina | 96 | (0) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Medal record
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| *Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 18:50, 10 January 2025 (UTC) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Sergio Germán "Chiquito" Romero (born 22 February 1987) is an Argentine professional footballer. He plays as a goalkeeper for Boca Juniors.
Romero started his career at Racing Club in Argentina in 2007. He then moved to the Dutch club AZ Alkmaar and won the Eredivisie league title in 2009. Two years later, he joined the Italian team Sampdoria. In 2013, Romero played for Monaco on loan.
He signed with Manchester United in July 2015. There, he was often a backup goalkeeper but played in important matches. Romero was the main goalkeeper for Manchester United during their 2016–17 UEFA Europa League journey. He played in the final and helped the team win by not letting any goals in. He played 61 games for United over six seasons. In 2022, he returned to Argentina to play for Boca Juniors, where he won the Argentine Primera División.
Romero has played for the Argentina national team more than any other goalkeeper, with over 90 games since 2009. He has played in two World Cups and three Copa América tournaments. He was part of the team that finished second in the 2014 FIFA World Cup, and also in the 2015 and 2016 Copa América tournaments. He also won a gold medal at the 2008 Olympics.
Contents
Club Career Highlights
Starting at Racing Club
Sergio Romero was born in Bernardo de Irigoyen, Misiones. He began playing football in youth teams like Almirante Brown and CAI. Later, he joined Racing Club.
Romero moved from the youth team to the main team at Racing Club in 2006. He made his first appearance in the Argentine Primera División in 2007. He competed for the main goalkeeper spot and played a few games before moving to Europe.
Time at AZ Alkmaar
In 2007, Romero joined AZ Alkmaar in the Netherlands. The team was managed by Louis van Gaal. Romero made his debut in September 2007. He soon became the team's regular starting goalkeeper.
In the 2008–09 season, Romero became the clear first-choice goalkeeper. He had an amazing run where he didn't let any goals in for 950 minutes (over 15 hours!). During this time, he signed a new contract. AZ Alkmaar won the Eredivisie league title in the 2008–09 season, which was a big achievement.
For the 2009–10 season, the manager Louis van Gaal left. Romero helped AZ win the Johan Cruyff Shield, a super cup match. He also played in the UEFA Champions League for the first time. Despite some injuries, he played many games that season.
In the 2010–11 season, Romero continued to play for AZ. He also made his UEFA Europa League debut. At the end of this season, AZ finished 4th in the league, qualifying for the Europa League again.
Moving to Sampdoria
In August 2011, Romero joined Sampdoria in Italy. The team had just been moved down to Serie B, a lower league. Romero's goal was to help them get back to Serie A, the top league.
He made his debut soon after joining. Even though he missed some games due to playing for his country or injuries, he was a regular player. Sampdoria finished sixth and won their playoff games to get promoted back to Serie A. Romero played a key role in their promotion.
In the 2012–13 season, Romero continued as the main goalkeeper for Sampdoria in Serie A. He kept a clean sheet in his first Serie A game against A.C. Milan. He played 33 games that season.
Loan to Monaco
For the 2013–14 season, Romero was loaned to Monaco in France. He was mostly a backup goalkeeper there, playing behind Danijel Subašić. He played three league games and six cup games, helping Monaco finish second in the league.
Return to Sampdoria
After his loan, Romero returned to Sampdoria. He was mostly a backup goalkeeper again. He played 11 games in the 2014–15 season. His contract ended, and he left the club in June 2015.
Playing for Manchester United
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On 27 July 2015, Manchester United signed Romero for free. He joined his former AZ manager, Louis van Gaal, there. Romero was given the number 20 shirt.
He made his Premier League debut on 8 August 2015. He played well and helped United win 1–0. He didn't let in any goals in his first three league games. After David de Gea returned to the team, Romero became the second-choice goalkeeper but often played in cup competitions.
In the 2016–17 season, Romero continued to be the main goalkeeper for cup games, especially in the UEFA Europa League. The new manager, José Mourinho, said Romero deserved to play in these games. Romero kept many clean sheets in the Europa League. He played in the 2017 Europa League final and helped Manchester United win 2–0 against Ajax.
On 12 December 2019, Romero played his 50th game for Manchester United. He kept a clean sheet in a 4–0 win against his old club AZ. This meant he had kept 31 clean sheets in 50 games, which is a great record.
Romero did not play in the 2020–21 season. He left Manchester United on 4 June 2021 when his contract ended. He played 61 games for the club and kept 39 clean sheets.
Venezia and Boca Juniors
On 11 October 2021, Romero signed with Venezia in Italy. He played 16 games for them.
On 8 August 2022, Romero returned to Argentina after 15 years in Europe. He signed a contract with Boca Juniors. He has continued to play for Boca Juniors, extending his contract until December 2025. He helped Boca Juniors win the Argentine Primera División title.
International Career
Youth Teams
Romero played for Argentina's youth teams. He was part of the team that won the 2007 FIFA U-20 World Cup in Canada. He also played in the 2008 Summer Olympics football tournament, where Argentina won the gold medal.
Senior National Team
Romero was first called up to the senior Argentina team by coach Diego Maradona. He made his debut on 9 September 2009. He played in the game against Uruguay that helped Argentina qualify for the 2010 FIFA World Cup.
Romero was Argentina's starting goalkeeper at the 2010 FIFA World Cup. He kept a clean sheet in their first game against Nigeria. He played in all five of Argentina's matches until they were knocked out by Germany in the quarter-finals.
He was also part of Argentina's team for the 2011 Copa América. Argentina hosted the tournament but lost in the quarter-finals. Romero kept two clean sheets during the competition.
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Romero was the starting goalkeeper for Argentina at the 2014 FIFA World Cup in Brazil. In the semi-final, he was named Man of the Match for saving two penalties against the Netherlands. This helped Argentina reach the 2014 FIFA World Cup Final, where they lost 0–1 to Germany. His great performances led to him being nominated for the Golden Glove award for the best goalkeeper of the tournament.
At the 2015 Copa América, Romero saved a penalty in the quarter-final shootout against Colombia. Argentina reached the final but finished as runners-up in both the 2015 and 2016 Copa América tournaments.
In 2018, Romero was chosen for Argentina's squad for the 2018 FIFA World Cup. However, he had to withdraw due to a knee injury.
Personal Life
Sergio Romero is nicknamed "Chiquito," which means "little one" in Spanish. This is because he is shorter than his brothers, especially his brother Diego, who is a professional basketball player and much taller.
Romero is married to Eliana Guercio, and they have four children together.
Career statistics
Club
| Club | Season | League | National cup | League cup | Continental | Other | Total | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Racing Club | 2005–06 | Primera División | 0 | 0 | — | — | — | — | 0 | 0 | ||||
| 2006–07 | Primera División | 5 | 0 | — | — | — | — | 4 | 0 | |||||
| Total | 4 | 0 | — | — | — | — | 4 | 0 | ||||||
| AZ | 2007–08 | Eredivisie | 12 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 2 | 0 | — | 14 | 0 | ||
| 2008–09 | Eredivisie | 28 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | — | — | 29 | 0 | ||||
| 2009–10 | Eredivisie | 27 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | 6 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 35 | 0 | ||
| 2010–11 | Eredivisie | 23 | 0 | 3 | 0 | — | 5 | 0 | — | 31 | 0 | |||
| Total | 90 | 0 | 5 | 0 | — | 13 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 109 | 0 | |||
| Sampdoria | 2011–12 | Serie B | 29 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | 1 | 0 | 30 | 0 | ||
| 2012–13 | Serie A | 32 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | — | — | 33 | 0 | ||||
| 2013–14 | Serie A | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | — | 0 | 0 | ||||
| 2014–15 | Serie A | 10 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | — | — | 11 | 0 | ||||
| Total | 71 | 0 | 2 | 0 | — | — | 1 | 0 | 74 | 0 | ||||
| Monaco (loan) | 2013–14 | Ligue 1 | 3 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | — | 9 | 0 | ||
| Manchester United | 2015–16 | Premier League | 4 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 0 | — | 10 | 0 | |
| 2016–17 | Premier League | 2 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 12 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 18 | 0 | |
| 2017–18 | Premier League | 1 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 10 | 0 | |
| 2018–19 | Premier League | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | 6 | 0 | ||
| 2019–20 | Premier League | 0 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 9 | 0 | — | 17 | 0 | ||
| 2020–21 | Premier League | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 | 0 | ||
| Total | 7 | 0 | 17 | 0 | 9 | 0 | 28 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 61 | 0 | ||
| Venezia | 2021–22 | Serie A | 16 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | — | 16 | 0 | |||
| Boca Juniors | 2022 | Primera División | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | — | 0 | 0 | |||
| 2023 | Primera División | 32 | 0 | 4 | 0 | — | 13 | 0 | — | 49 | 0 | |||
| 2024 | Primera División | 29 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | 9 | 0 | — | 39 | 0 | |||
| Total | 61 | 0 | 5 | 0 | — | 22 | 0 | — | 88 | 0 | ||||
| Career total | 252 | 0 | 34 | 0 | 10 | 0 | 63 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 359 | 0 | ||
International
| National team | Year | Apps | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|
| Argentina | 2009 | 4 | 0 |
| 2010 | 11 | 0 | |
| 2011 | 10 | 0 | |
| 2012 | 9 | 0 | |
| 2013 | 10 | 0 | |
| 2014 | 13 | 0 | |
| 2015 | 13 | 0 | |
| 2016 | 15 | 0 | |
| 2017 | 8 | 0 | |
| 2018 | 3 | 0 | |
| Total | 96 | 0 | |
Honours and Awards
AZ
- Eredivisie: 2008–09
- Johan Cruyff Shield: 2009
Manchester United
- FA Cup: 2015–16; runner-up: 2017–18
- EFL Cup: 2016–17
- FA Community Shield: 2016
- UEFA Europa League: 2016–17; runner-up: 2020–21
Boca Juniors
- Argentine Primera División: 2022
- Supercopa Argentina: 2022
- Copa Libertadores runner-up: 2023
Argentina U20
- FIFA U-20 World Cup: 2007
Argentina Olympic
- Olympic Games Gold Medal: 2008
Argentina
- FIFA World Cup runner-up: 2014
- Copa América runner-up: 2015, 2016
Individual Awards
- UEFA Europa League Squad of the Season: 2016–17
- Copa Libertadores Team of the Tournament: 2023
Images for kids
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Romero (rear, centre) and other members of the team meet President of Argentina Cristina Fernández de Kirchner at the Casa Rosada after the 2014 FIFA World Cup Final.
See also
In Spanish: Sergio Germán Romero para niños
