Gonzalo Higuain biography
Gonzalo Gerardo Higuaín (born December 10 1987 in Brest, France, Finistère, France) is an Argentina-France Football (soccer). He currently plays as a striker at the Spanish club Real Madrid.
Biography
Gonzalo Higuaín was born in France while his father, professional Argentine footballer Jorge Higuaín, was playing for Stade Brest 29, at that time in the French Ligue 1. Having left the country at the age of 10 months, he did not return to France until the 1998 FIFA World Cup. Even though he does not speak French, he holds a French passport, because his father was naturalized French. But in January 2007, he successfully applied for the Argentine nationality.
He is the younger brother of Federico Higuaín, who plays football for Independiente.
Club career
River Plate
Following his double strike in the
Major football rivalries Boca Juniors vs River Plate local derby against Boca Juniors, Club Atlético River Plate manager Daniel Passarella declared that he had an 'enormous future' and was 'destined for superstardom'.
Touted by many as a star of the future, he attracted the interest of several big clubs such as A.C. Milan, S.S. Lazio, Manchester United F.C. and Chelsea F.C.. After Real Madrid C.F. capture of another South American starlet, Marcelo Vieira da Silva Júnior, rumours were mounting that Higuaín and Fernando Ruben Gago of Boca Juniors would be signing for the Whites in the future.
Real Madrid
2006/2007
Real Madrid successfully signed Higuaín for €13 million, after River Plate had earlier turned down a €10 million offer for the 19-year-old striker from Real.
The striker announced at the signing of his six and a half-year contract, "it's great to have the chance of playing for such an important club as Real Madrid. I feel proud that Madrid has noticed me."
Higuaín's first game for Real Madrid was against Real Zaragoza at home. Higuaín shone by creating several chances and delivering the assist which resulted in Madrid's 1-0 crucial win against Zaragoza.
Higuaín's first ever goal for Real Madrid came during the 62nd minute in Real Madrid's draw with local rivals Atlético Madrid on February 24 2007. His first home goal for Real Madrid came in the dying minutes of Real's crucial encounter with Espanyol on May 12 2007. With the match tied at 3-3, Higuaín won the ball with a sliding tackle before exchanging a one-two with Jose Antonio Reyes and slotting the ball into the net. It was this goal which enabled Real Madrid to overtake rivals Barcelona into first place and propelled them to their 30th League Title.
2007/2008
On May 4, 2008, with Real Madrid down 1-0 against Osasuna, and needing just 3 points from their final fours games, Higuaín came on for Saviola in the 67th minute and from a free kick, assisted Arjen Robben's equalizer in the 88th minute. Higuaín then struck the winning goal two minutes later to clinch Real Madrid's 31st La Liga championship and has now become a new idol for Real Madrid fans.
Despite being Real Madrid's title hero, Higuain found himself on the bench for Barcelona's visit to the Bernabeu four days later. However, as he had in previous games, Higuain came on to devastating effect, scoring with his first touch within a minute and helped his team to a crushing 4-1 victory.
2008/2009
On August 24, 2008 he became Real Madrid's cup hero, scoring in the 89th minute, giving Real Madrid a victory over Valencia CF and it's eighth Supercopa de España. After the close of the summer transfer window, Real Madrid revealed that they have turned down a €25 million offer for Higuain from Zenit St. Petersburg.
International career
Higuaín initially rejected calls from both the Argentine under 20s and French national teams, specifically a friendly against Greece national football team, November 15 2006, claiming at the time he was undecided for which country he would prefer to play.
Higuaín's international career was looking set to mirror that of David Trézéguet, whose father was Argentinian, but went on to play successfully for France. When Les Bleus called up Higuaín against Greece, they assigned him the shirt number 20, the number originally worn by Trézéguet. He was dubbed the new "David Trézéguet". Nevertheless, at the beginning of 2007 Higuaín expressed his desire to play for Argentina, and started the procedures to obtain Argentine citizenship.
In February 2008, Higuaín was called up by the Argentina national football team, for a friendly match against Guatemala. He scored two goals in his debut and Argentina won 5 : 0. Unfortunately, it was not officially recognized as FIFA as an "A" international match, and will not count towards his caps and goals in international play.
Club career statistics
Honours
Real Madrid
Domestic
- La Liga
- Supercopa de España
Gonzalo Higuain in the news
Real Madrid Confirm Higuaín Is Out For Seven To Ten Days - Goal.com
Goal.com LatinoamericaReal Madrid Confirm Higuaín Is Out For Seven To Ten DaysGoal.com, Switzerland - Dec 31, 2008Real Madrid have confirmed that Gonzalo Higuaín will miss the game against Villarreal this weekend due to his tonsillitis... Real Madrid will start 2009 ...Briefs-Higuain out of Real's clash with Villarreal Reuters.ukTONSILLITIS RULES OUT HIGUAIN Sportinglife.comHiguain out with tonsillitis SoccerwayGoal.comall 12 news articles
read moreReal Madrid Without Parejo For Three Weeks - Goal.com
Telegraph.co.ukReal Madrid Without Parejo For Three WeeksGoal.com, Switzerland - Jan 4, 2009It is another blow to Real Madrid, after Gonzalo Higuain was ruled out for around ten days. Of course, they join Mahamadou Diarra and Ruud Van Nistelrooy on ...Real youngster Parejo out of action for month Monsters and Critics.comLa Liga: Robben stunner downs Villarreal ESPNReal Madrid Won 1-0 to Villareal BSNblogSportinglife.comall 158 news articles
read moreHiguain goal gives Ramos first victory - CNN International
Higuain goal gives Ramos first victoryCNN International - Dec 20, 2008(CNN) -- A third minute goal from Gonzalo Higuain gave Real Madrid a 1-0 victory over Valencia, coach Juande Ramos' first Primera Liga win since taking ...Higuain tally enough as Madrid tops Valencia Sports NetworkHiguaín Gives Real Madrid Crucial Valencia Victory Goal.comHiguain brings Madrid back to life SportsYA!Tribalfootball.com - Sportinglife.comall 170 news articles
read moreReal Madrid Will Have Successful New Year - Higuaín - Goal.com
Goal.comReal Madrid Will Have Successful New Year - HiguaínGoal.com, Switzerland - Dec 26, 2008Gonzalo Higuaín is hoping that he can be part of a successful Real Madrid side in the second half of the season after the team struggled for form in the ...
read moreHuntelaar Preparing To Make Real Madrid Debut - Goal.com
SkySportsHuntelaar Preparing To Make Real Madrid DebutGoal.com, Switzerland - Jan 2, 2009... debut this weekend with Juande Ramos likely to be forced to rush the Dutchman back into action because Gonzalo Higuaín is suffering from tonsilitis. ...Soccer-Spain roundup-Real near full strength for Villarreal game Reuters.ukPREVIEW: Contrasting start to 2009 for Barcelona and Real Madrid Earthtimes (press release)Villarreal's Pires eyes first away win over Real International Herald Tribuneall 99 news articles
read moreJuande Ramos Is A Serious Coach - Higuaín - Goal.com
Telegraph.co.ukJuande Ramos Is A Serious Coach - HiguaínGoal.com, Switzerland - Dec 18, 2008Gonzalo Higuaín has today spoken out about the change of personnel at Real Madrid, saying that Juande Ramos is a 'serious coach', who talks with the players ...Real show signs of improvement, but can Barca be caught? Reuters UKall 146 news articles
read moreTevez To Ditch Manchester United For Real Madrid? - Goal.com
Tevez To Ditch Manchester United For Real Madrid?Goal.com, Switzerland - Dec 31, 2008However, it remains to be seen whether the giants of the Bernabeu are actually interested in Tevez, given they already have Raul, Gonzalo Higuain and ...
read moreHiguaín Relishes Real Madrid's Valencia Win - Goal.com
Goal.comHiguaín Relishes Real Madrid's Valencia WinGoal.com, Switzerland - Dec 20, 2008Gonzalo Higuaín continued his impressive goal-scoring run on Saturday night, and he was understandably pleased with the team's performance. ...
read moreReal Madrid Can Win In The Camp Nou - Higuaín - Goal.com
Goal.comReal Madrid Can Win In The Camp Nou - HiguaínGoal.com, Switzerland - Dec 11, 2008Gonzalo Higuaín was in defiant mood today as he told the press that Real Madrid can win in the Camp Nou, and that they will be going there for all three ...Zenit St Petersburg SkySportsChampions League - Juve edge Real to top group Yahoo! EurosportReal Madrid 3 - 0 Zenit St Petersburg ESPNChannel News Asia - Goal.comall 398 news articles
read moreLa Liga round up - Cherwell Online
La Liga round upCherwell Online, UK - 16 hours agoHuntelaar replaced the flu-struck Gonzalo Higuaín up front with Raúl. But the star performance was from Arjen Robben. The former Chelsea winger is having ...
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