Ariel Graziani
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Ariel Graziani | ||
| Personal information | ||
|---|---|---|
| Full name | Ariel José Graziani Lentini | |
| Date of birth | June 7, 1971 | |
| Place of birth | Empalme Villa Constitución, Argentina | |
| Height | 182 cm | |
| Playing position | Striker | |
| Club information | ||
| Current club | Atlético Empalme | |
| Senior clubs1 | ||
| Years | Club | App (Gls)* |
| 1993 1993-1994 1995 1995 1996-1997 1997-1998 1998-1999 1998 1999 1999 2000 2000-2001 2002 2003 2003-2004 2005-2006 2007-Present |
Newell's Old Boys Sport Boys Aucas Ciclista Lima Emelec CD Veracruz Monarcas Morelia New England Revolution Dallas Burn Emelec Dallas Burn San Jose Earthquakes Barcelona SC Lanús Barcelona SC LDU Quito Atlético Empalme |
0 (0) 33 (9) 30 (19) 9 (5) 69 (52) 17 (6) 38 (17) 3 (0) 8 (4) 5 (0) 48 (26) 28 (14) 40 (23) 17 (4) 18 (7) 49 (27) |
| National team | ||
| 1997-2000 | Ecuador | 34 (15) |
|
1 Senior club appearances and goals |
||
Ariel José Graziani Lentini (born June 7, 1971 in Empalme Villa Constitución, Argentina) is football player. He is a naturalized Ecuadorian striker who represented the Ecuador national team on 34 occasions between 1997 and 2000.[1] After retiring in Ecuador he is only able to play amateur football, he has chosen to play for Argentinian fifth-level club Atlético Empalme since May, 2007.
Contents |
[edit] Career
Graziani has been a top goalscorer for practically every team for which he has played. He made his professional debut in 1993 with Newell's Old Boys of Argentina, where he was teammates with Diego Maradona until he transferred later that year to Sport Boys of the Peruvian First Division.
Graziani transferred to the Ecuadorian First Division to play for Aucas in 1995, and moved a year later to join Emelec. During his two years with the club, 1996 and 1997, he led the league in scoring while helping Emelec earn league titles. His standout play earned him a transfer to Morelia of the Mexican First Division. Again he was one of the top goalscorers for his club and the league.
In 1999, Ariel was acquired by Major League Soccer for a transfer fee of slightly less than $2 million, which at the time was the highest transfer fee ever paid by the league. Graziani was allocated to New England Revolution but played in only three games for the Revolution before he was traded to the Dallas Burn for Colombian international Leonel Álvarez.
Ariel was the leading goalscorer for the Burn in 2000 with 15 goals and 2001 with 11 goals until he was traded to the San Jose Earthquakes for El Salvadorian international Ronald Cerritos. In 2002 with the Earthquakes, Graziani, while the team's leading goalscorer with 15 goals, failed to connect adequately with strike partner Landon Donovan. MLS loaned out the final year of his contract. A bidding war between Emelec and Barcelona SC ensued where, in the end, Barcelona offered MLS more money.
In 2003, Graziani, was the top scorer in Ecuador with Barcelona SC. He also scored what was voted the top goal in that year's Copa Libertadores against the eventual winners Boca Juniors. In 2004, he signed with Lanús in Argentina but only managed 4 goals in 17 games and eventually left the same year to return to Barcelona SC and scored 8 goals from 18 games. In 2005, Graziani signed for LDU Quito. He played there until December, 2006, when he officially retired. Nevertheless, in May, 2007, he signed with Atlético Empalme, where he started his career. Empalme in 2007 plays for Santa Fe Province in zone 9 of the Torneo del Interior C, a complex regional fifth-level tournament.
[edit] Achievements
Graziani has played in 33 games for the Ecuadorian national team during his career, scoring 15 goals for his adopted country.
[edit] References
[edit] External links
- Career details at National football teams
- Major League Soccer
