Álvaro Saborío

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Álvaro Saborío
Personal information
Full name Álvaro Alberto Saborío Chacón
Date of birth March 25, 1982 (1982-03-25) (age 26)
Place of birth    San Carlos, Costa Rica
Height 1.83 m (6 ft 0 in)
Playing position Forward
Club information
Current club FC Sion
Number 9
Senior clubs1
Years Club App (Gls)*
2001-2006
2006-
Deportivo Saprissa-
FC Sion
149 (109)
065 0(31)   
National team2
2002- Costa Rica 39 (11)

1 Senior club appearances and goals
counted for the domestic league only and
correct as of June 1, 2008.
2 National team caps and goals correct
as of March 26, 2008.
* Appearances (Goals)

Álvaro Saborío Chacón (born March 25, 1982) is a Costa Rican soccer player, who currently plays striker for FC Sion of Switzerland.

Saborio began his professional career with Deportivo Saprissa in his native Costa Rica, although he played for a couple of seasons in some youth Mexico's clubs.[1] Saborío was the leading goal-scorer of the 2003-2004 Costa Rican season, finishing the year with 25 goals, five above Whayne Wilson.

He is also an important player for the Costa Rica national football team at numerous levels. He represented the U-23 team at the 2004 Olympics, scoring the Qualifying goal that took them there, and subsequently starting 3 of four games for the team, scoring a goal against Portugal. He has also been capped for the full national team 22 times bagging 7 goals, playing for the team during 2006 World Cup Qualifying.

With Saprissa, he has won a national championship and a CONCACAF Champions Cup, and was part of the team that played the 2005 FIFA Club World Championship Toyota Cup, where Saprissa finished third behind São Paulo Futebol Clube and Liverpool F.C. At the tournament, he scored two goals and ended up tied with 3 more players as the top scorers.

He moved to Switzerland outfit FC Sion after playing for Costa Rica at the 2006 World Cup. He currently has 14 goals for the match them as being partnered upfront with Poland's Zbigniew Zakrzewski.

His performances in Switzerland have caught the eye of Stoke City's manager Tony Pulis who aims to bring him to the Championship in the summer transfer window.

Álvaro's Signiture
Álvaro's Signiture

[edit] International career

Saborío, better known as "le Gigì", has been notably recognized for his accomplishments with Deportivo Saprissa, and the high amount of goals he has scored in a short period of time. But after a year at the club his Costa Rican Coach got a hold of him and he took part in the 2006 FIFA World Cup. He was mostly a substitute for Costa Rica national football team, behind Rónald Gómez and former Man City forward Paulo César Wanchope. Altogether he has 39 caps for Costa Rica and has managed to score 11 goals.[2]

[edit] References