Javier Saviola

Javier Pedro Saviola (born December 11, 1981 in Buenos Aires) is an Argentine football player.

Nicknamed El Conejo ("The Rabbit"), he made his debut for Argentine side River Plate at the age of 16, and went on to be a prolific goalscorer and develop a reputation as a phenomenal prospect, being named South American Footballer of the Year in 1999 and in 2005 was named in FIFA 100 list.

Saviola starred in the 2001 edition of the World Youth Cup, held in (and won by) Argentina. He was top scorer and was voted player of the tournament. He also achieved at that tournament the record of top scorer of all the World Youth Cups played up to date. That summer, he moved on to FC Barcelona where he had two irregular seasons, as coaches (Louis Van Gaal and later Frank Rijkaard) didn't see him fit into their gameplan, and did not allow Saviola to become a staple of the team. He obtained Spanish citizenship, and therefore does not take up one of the few non-European Union places.

In the summer of 2004, Saviola was transferred, on loan, to AS Monaco FC of the French league. Due to Rijkaard's lack of interest on him, Saviola was again transferred on loan in the summer of 2005, this time to Sevilla FC, to replace Julio Baptista who moved to Real Madrid. On May 2006, Saviola conquered with Sevilla the 2006 UEFA Cup.

Saviola played in the 2004 Olympic Games and won the Olympic Gold Medal with the Argentine squad. Under coach Marcelo Bielsa, Saviola had few playing opportunities for Argentina, but after Bielsa's resignation in 2004, new coach José Pekerman has given Saviola more play.

Saviola has been called up to represent Argentina at the 2006 FIFA World Cup , alongside Hernán Crespo, Lionel Messi, Carlos Tévez and Julio Cruz. Luciano Figueroa and Luciano Galletti were in contention for a place on the roster but Saviola's excellent form towards the end of the 2005-06 season secured his place in the squad. He then rewarded Pekerman's confidence in him with a goal against Côte d'Ivoire in the country's opening game, and two assists in the 6-0 victory against Serbia and Montenegro.

Arsenal F.C., Bolton Wanderers F.C., PSV and Panathinaikos have shown interest in the 24-year-old since his one-year loan contract with Sevilla ended after the World Cup. His Barcelona contract is due to expire in 2007, and Barcelona's unwillingness to keep Saviola has meant that himself and his agent have had to look elsewhere once again. On 12 July, his agent told The Sun that Arsenal was almostly certainly set to be his destination for the 2006/07 season. [http://www.soccerway.com/news/2006/July/12/saviola-to-join-gunners

Career stats

**All-Time Club Performance**
Club	Season	Domestic League		Domestic Cup		European Competition		Total
Club	Season	App	Goals	App	Goals	App	Goals	App	Goals
FC Sevilla	05-06	30	14
Total		30	14
AS Monaco	04-05	34	11
Total		34	11
FC Barcelona	03-04	34	17
	02-03	41	20
	01-02	30	21
Total		105	58
River Plate	2001
	2000
	1999
	1998
Total
Career Totals

External links

Gourt Home::Gourt :: Javier Saviola

Career stats

External links