Juan Sebastian Veron

Juan Sebastián Verón (La Plata, Buenos Aires, Argentina, March 9, 1975) is an Argentine former soccer player and current vice president of the Estudiantes de La Plata club of the Argentine First Division. Verón, both for his career during 11 seasons with Estudiantes, as well as his outstanding time in Europe, is considered one of the greatest legends of Argentine soccer, also being named as one of the best Argentine midfielders of his generation and in history. In 2004, he was included in the FIFA 100 list of the 125 greatest living footballers, selected by Pelé as part of FIFA's centenary celebrations.

As the son of Estudiantes legend Juan Ramón La Bruja Verón, Sebastián made his debut with El Pincha in 1994. After being relegated to the B Nacional and returning to the top flight the following season, La Brujita was transferred to Boca Juniors in 1996, to later make the leap to Europe, first in Sampdoria, and then in Parma, where he would obtain his first successes in the old continent; he won the Italian Cup and the UEFA Cup, and was also chosen as one of the best midfielders in Italian soccer.In 1999 he would come to Lazio, winning Serie A, the Italian Cup and the Italian Super Cup. After short steps through Manchester United, Chelsea and Inter, Verón would return to Estudiantes in 2006, where he would win the First Division for the club after 23 years, and would finish consecrating himself by obtaining the 2009 Copa Libertadores. He would finally announce his retirement in 2012, although he would later make small comebacks in 2013 and 2017, to finally dedicate himself as a sports manager at Estudiantes.

He made his debut with the Argentine National Team in 1996, to play in the 1998 World Cup in France. Later he would stand out as the main emblem of Marcelo Bielsa's team for the 2002 Korea-Japan World Cup, where Verón would have one of the most controversial Argentine soccer. This would cause his participation in the national team to become more interrupted, playing the 2007 Copa América and the 2010 World Cup in South Africa for his subsequent retirement from the selected team.

Trajectory

Beginnings: Students (1993-1995)

During his first stage in Students, in 1995.

After spending the first five years of his life in Colombia, where his father played, he returned to Argentina and entered the youth teams of Club Estudiantes de La Plata. He officially debuted in regular First Division tournaments, with Estudiantes, in a match against Deportivo Mandiyú, for the 1994 Clausura Tournament, at the Jorge Luis Hirschi Stadium, although he already had a professional background of having played a 1993 Copa Centenario match., against Rosario Central on the gymnastics field, on July 10, 1993, a match in which they lost 1-0. He has worked since his inception as a central midfielder and organizing midfielder, characterized by his punching power, vision of the game and outstanding technique.

The year of his debut in the First Division, Estudiantes were relegated and Verón was part of the team that, the following season, won the 1994/95 National B Championship with a record of points.

Boca Juniors (1996)

Back in the top flight, and with a few games played during the 1995 Opening Tournament with Estudiantes, he was transferred to Boca Juniors for a figure close to 3 million dollars, a club in which he played 17 games and converted 4 goals, one of them against Estudiantes at La Bombonera, in 1996.

Arrival in Europe: Sampdoria and Parma (1996-1999)

After passing through Boca, he was hired by Sampdoria in Italy, where he stayed until 1998, when he was incorporated by Parma F.C., forming one of the best teams of those years along with players like Fabio Cannavaro, Lilian Thuram, Hernán Crespo, Enrico Chiesa, Faustino Asprilla, and Gianluigi Buffon. At that club, he won the Italian Cup and the UEFA Cup in 1999, writing one of the best stages in the history of the Parmesan team.

Lazio (1999-2001)

Lazio, with Sven-Göran Eriksson, brought him in to play in the 1999/00 season and formed a group with several outstanding Argentine soccer players such as Hernán Crespo, Claudio López, Roberto Sensini and Diego Simeone. With the team from the capital, he won the Serie A scudetto after 24 years, again the Italian Cup and the Italian Super Cup, against Inter Milan, in a memorable game that ended 4-3.

Manchester United (2001-2003)

In 2001 he was bought by Manchester United FC of England, for about 42.5 million euros, the highest transfer in the history of English football at that time. In his second year at this institution, he managed to win the 2002/03 Premier League, before being signed by Chelsea FC.

Last years in Europe: Chelsea and Inter Milan (2003-2006)

2004-2006: its last stage in European football, in Inter Milan.

In the transfer market of 2003, he was incorporated in exchange for 22.5 million euros, a significant drop in the player's price after only two seasons at Manchester United FC.

In 2004 he returned to Italian soccer, after being loaned out to Inter Milan, where he played until the end of the 2005/06 season, winning the Italian Cup twice, an Italian Super Cup and a league title, designated to Inter after the so-called Calciopoli scandal.

Return to Students of La Plata (2006-2012)

Verón, celebrating the 2009 Copa Libertadores de América.

After ten seasons in European soccer, he returned to the club where he was born, Estudiantes de La Plata. His first official match was against Quilmes Atlético Club, as a visitor, at the start of the 2006 Apertura Tournament, with a 1-0 victory. During this championship, Estudiantes beat their classic rival, Gimnasia y Esgrima La Plata, 7-0, with the particularity of having been the first classic that Verón played in his career, added a series of ten consecutive victories and became champion by defeating Boca Juniors in the tiebreaker final played at the Amalfitani Stadium, 2-1.

In early 2008, he was scouted by the D.C. United of the United States of America to join the squad, but he rejected the important economic proposal to continue in Estudiantes. There were also polls from San Lorenzo de Almagro, River Plate, Boca Juniors and even an eventual interest from Inter Milan.

Celebrating, together with José Luis Calderón, the 2006 championship with La Plata Students.

In their third year after the return of the soccer player, Estudiantes reached the round of 16 of the 2008 Copa Libertadores and the final of the 2008 Copa Sudamericana, losing, in extra time, 2-1 on aggregate, against Internacional from Brazil. That season, the traditional survey of the newspaper El País consecrated Verón as Soccer Player of the Year in South America, after the outstanding campaign at the national level (he shared second place in the Clausura 2008 Tournament) and international level of his club.

In 2009, they won the 50th edition of the Copa Libertadores, after Estudiantes beat Cruzeiro de Belo Horizonte 2-1 in the final, as a visitor, after drawing the first leg (0-0) at the Ciudad de La Plata Stadium. He was considered by Conmebol as the "best player in the final" and, later, "best player in the Copa Libertadores". Later, Estudiantes would lose the 2009 Club World Cup final against FC Barcelona, an instance that Verón played for the first and only time in his career. In the previous transfer market, he had renewed the contract that linked him with Estudiantes, prolonging the link for a new season, but reducing the amount of it by 45%.

The following year, with Verón as team captain, Estudiantes became runner-up in the 2010 Clausura Tournament and champion of the Apertura Tournament that same year, finishing with 45 points, beating Vélez Sarsfield by two points. Thus, Estudiantes de La Plata obtained the fifth official title in its history in Argentine soccer. He also added a new participation in the Copa Libertadores, the third in a row, being eliminated in the quarterfinals against Inter from Brazil, and in the Recopa Sudamericana, which he lost against Liga Deportiva Universitaria de Quito.

Running a corner shot, during his last retreat, on May 10, 2014, in front of San Lorenzo. Behind, a flag in allusion to his nickname.

On October 14, 2011, he announced that he would retire at the end of the Apertura Tournament of that year, although he later extended the term for six months, also playing the Clausura 2012 Tournament and playing his last match against Unión de Santa Fe, on October 24 of June. On December 10, 2012, he took over as sports director of Estudiantes de La Plata. However, Verón then extended his football stage until the end of the 2013/14 First Division Championship.

Coronel Brandsen Association (2012)

After announcing his retirement from professional practice at the end of the 2012 Clausura Tournament, on June 29, 2012 he was presented as a new player of the Coronel Brandsen Association, of the La Plata Amateur Soccer League, a team with which he became champion on December 1 of that year. He played 28 games and scored 3 goals.

First return and withdrawal in Students (2013-2014)

In July 2013, he confirmed his return to professional soccer to play the 2013/14 season with Estudiantes de La Plata, a club from which he retired after a game with Tigre played on May 18, 2014, for the last date of the Final Tournament of that year, a contest in which his team finished in 3rd position.

Second return to Estudiantes de La Plata (2017)

On December 28, 2016, at the age of 41 and after being retired from professional soccer for two and a half years, he signed an 18-month contract with Estudiantes de La Plata, a club where he simultaneously served as president and footballer of the entity, in an unprecedented event in the history of that entity. He played five games in the group stage of the Copa Libertadores 2017 and achieved the record of becoming, at the age of 42, the longest-serving Argentine professional footballer in play that tournament.

Clubs

Club	Country	Year
Students of La Plata	Argentina	1993-1995
Boca Juniors		1996
U. C. Sampdoria	ItalyItaly	1996-1998
Parma F. C.		1998-1999
S. S. Lazio		1999-2001
Manchester United F. C.	EnglandEngland	2001-2003
Chelsea F.C.		2003-2004
F. C. Internazionale	ItalyItaly	2004-2006
Students of La Plata	Argentina	2006-2012
A. C. B. Colonel Brandsen		2012
Students of La Plata		2013-2014
Students of La Plata		2017

As a sports manager

President of the Students of La Plata

On October 4, 2014, five months after his retirement from professional practice, he prevailed in the elections of the Club Estudiantes de La Plata and was named president of the club. His group, ADN Estudiantes, obtained 75% of the votes against 25% of list 1, headed by the ruling party candidate and, until then, acting president, Enrique Lombardi. In 2017, he was re-elected in his position for a new three-year term, until 2020.

His presidency is marked by several milestones in the club's history, such as the inauguration of the new Estudiantes stadium, the incorporation of gender policies at the institutional level or the obligation to continue studies for players in the youth divisions of the club.

National team

Verón (below, first from the right), with the team of the Copa América 2007.

His first match in the Argentine National Team was the friendly played on June 20, 1996, against the Polish National Team at the La Ciudadela Stadium in Tucumán, summoned by coach Daniel Passarella to later play the qualifying matches South American to the 1998 World Cup. He completed, with interruptions, fourteen years as a member of the Argentine team and played in the 1998, 2002 and 2010 World Cups, reaching the highest quarterfinal instance.

On February 27, 2007, after winning the Argentine First Division soccer tournament with Estudiantes de La Plata, the coach Alfio Basile called him to train with the Argentine national team after an absence of more than three years. He returned to official competitions in the 2007 Copa América, on June 28, 2007, in a match in which Argentina beat the United States 4-1.

With Diego Armando Maradona as coach, Verón participated in the 2010 South American Qualifiers for South Africa and, after eight years, he returned to the highest competition in national team soccer, forming part of the starting team in the matches against Nigeria and Greece. His last participation was in the round of 16 match against Mexico, in which he entered in the final minutes.

Participation in International Tournaments

Tournament	Headquarters	Outcome	Parties	Goles	Assistance
South American Championship Sub-17, 1991	Paraguay	Third place	5	0	?
1991 Sub-17 World Cup	Italy	Third place	5	1	?
South American Preolympic 1996	Argentina	Subfield	5	0	?
1998 Football World Cup	France	Final rooms	5	0	4
2002 Football World Cup	South Korea and Japan	First phase	3	0	1
Copa América 2007	Venezuela	Subfield	5	0	0
2010 Soccer World Cup	South Africa	Final rooms	3	0	1
Total			31	1	6

Participations in Qualifiers

Style of Play

Verón was a talented, complete, and versatile midfielder, who usually played in the role of playmaker; he was capable of playing both as a striker and in midfield, or even in front of the defensive line, as an organizing pivot, due to his ability to read the game, recover the ball, dictate the pace of the game and orchestrate the movements of his team's attack from deeper positions on the pitch with his excellent passing quality, in addition to his ability to provide assists and create scoring chances for his teammates. Mostly acting in a free role through midfield, he could also get ahead and score goals with his powerful punch.

A strong, athletic, tenacious, and self-sacrificing player, Verón had physical display, punching power, and excellent technical quality, as well as vision, creativity, a great range of passes, and a powerful shot from distance with both legs. He also he was an excellent set-piece taker, known for his powerful free kicks with a jump rope. Due to his strong leadership and mentality, Verón was able to take over and captain several of the teams that he integrated, but it also led him to several media confrontations with other players, such as Diego Maradona and Juan Pablo Sorín. Verón named Carlos Bilardo, Marcelo Bielsa, and Sven-Göran Eriksson as the main coaches who most influenced him in his career.

Statistics

Verón, raising the trophy of Campeón del Bicentenario with Students of La Plata, by obtaining the 2010 Opening of Argentine football.

As a player

Club	Div	Season	League			Cups national(1)			Tournaments international(2)			Total			Media Shotgun(3)
			Part.	Goles	Assist.	Part.	Goles	Assist.	Part.	Goles	Assist.	Part.	Goles	Assist.
Students of La Plata Argentina
	1. a	1993-94	7	0	?	1	0	?	-			8	0	?	0.00
	2. a	1994-95	38	5	?	-			4	2	?	42	7	?	0.17
	1. a	1995	15	2	?	-			1	0	?	16	2	?	0.13
		2006-07	30	2	6	-			-			30	2	6	0.06
		2007-08	18	7	1	-			8	2	1	26	9	2	0.35
		2008-09	18	3	4	-			24	2	7	42	5	11	0.12
		2009-10	27	4	7	-			11	1	3	38	5	10	0.13
		2010-11	24	2	2	-			8	0	1	32	2	3	0.06
		2011-12	20	2	4	-			1	0	1	21	2	5	0.1
		2013-14	22	0	2	-			-			22	0	2	0.00
		2017	-			-			5	0	1	5	0	1	0.00
	Total club		219	27	26	1	0	0	62	7	14	282	34	40	0.12
Boca Juniors Argentina
	1. a	1996	17	4	?	-			-			17	4	?	0.24
	Total club		17	4	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	17	4	0	0.24
UC Sampdoria ItalyItaly
	1. a
		1996-97	32	5	2	2	0	0	-			34	5	2	0.15
		1997-98	29	2	5	3	0	0	2	0	0	34	2	5	0.06
	Total club		61	7	7	5	0	0	2	0	0	68	7	7	0.1
Parma AC ItalyItaly
	1. a	1998-99	26	1	8	6	3	2	10	0	6	42	4	16	0.1
	Total club		26	1	8	6	3	2	10	0	6	42	4	16	0.1
SS Lazio ItalyItaly
	1. a
		1999-00	31	8	11	4	0	1	12	2	2	47	10	14	0.21
		2000-01	22	3	6	3	0	1	7	1	3	32	4	10	0.13
	Total club		53	11	17	7	0	2	19	3	5	79	14	24	0.18
Manchester United EnglandEngland	1. a
		2001-02	26	5	1	1	0	0	13	0	6	40	5	7	0.13
		2002-03	25	2	3	6	0	1	11	4	5	42	6	9	0.14
	Total club		51	7	4	7	0	1	24	4	11	82	11	16	0.13
Chelsea FC EnglandEngland
	1. a	2003-04	7	1	0	1	0	0	6	0	1	14	1	1	0.07
	Total club		7	1	0	1	0	0	6	0	1	14	1	1	0.07
Inter de Milan ItalyItaly	1. a
		2004-05	24	3	2	5	0	1	10	0	3	39	3	6	0.08
		2005-06	25	0	6	1	1	0	9	0	1	35	1	7	0.03
	Total club		49	3	8	6	1	1	19	0	4	74	4	13	0.05
Total in your career			480	60	70	33	4	6	142	14	41	658	79	117	0.12
(1) The national cups refer to the Copa del Rey, Copa Italia, Supercopa de Italia. (2) The international cups refer to the Champions League, UEFA Europa League, European Super Cup, Club World Cup, Copa Libertadores and Copa Sudamericana. (3) Half of goals per encounter. It does not include goals in friendly matches.

Selections

Selection	Year	Friendly			South America(1)			World(2)			Total			Average score
		Part.	Goles	Assist.	Part.	Goles	Assist.	Part.	Goles	Assist.	Part.	Goles	Assist.
Sub-17 Argentina	1991	-			5	0	?	5	1	?	10	1	?	0.1
	Total	0	0	0	5	0	?	5	1	?	10	1	?	0.1
Sub-23 Argentina	1996	-			5	0	?	-			5	0	?	0.00
	Total	0	0	0	5	0	?	0	0	0	5	0	?	0.00
Adult Argentina
	1996	1	0	0	1	0	0	-			2	0	0	0.00
	1997	-			8	1	1	-			8	1	1	0.13
	1998	8	0	1	-			5	0	3	13	0	4	0.00
	1999	4	1	2	-			-			4	1	2	0.25
	2000	1	0	0	9	3	2	-			10	3	2	0.3
	2001	1	0	0	7	2	4	-			8	2	4	0.25
	2002	3	1	1	-			3	0	1	6	1	2	0.17
	2003	2	1	0	3	0	0	-			5	1	0	0.2
	2004	-			-			-			0	0	0	0.00
	2005	-			-			-			0	0	0	0.00
	2006	-			-			-			0	0	0	0.00
	2007	-			5	0	0	-			5	0	0	0.00
	2008	-			1	0	0	-			1	0	0	0.00
	2009	-			6	0	2	-			6	0	2	0.00
	2010	2	0	0	-			3	0	1	5	0	1	0.00
	Total	22	3	4	40	6	9	11	0	5	73	9	18	0.12
Total career		22	3	4	50	6	9	16	1	5	88	10	18	0.11
(1) Includes Copa América (1995-99) and Clasificatorias Sudamericanas (1996-01). In the case of the Olympic Selection, it includes data from the Pan American Games (1995) and South American Preolympics (1996). (2) Includes Soccer World Cup (1994-02) and FIFA Confederations Cup (1995). In case of Olympic selection, it includes data from the Olympic Games (1996)

Statistical summary

Honours of Prizes

Regional Tournaments

Tournament	Club	Headquarters	Year
Closing Tour	Colonel Brandsen	The Horns	2012

National Championships

Title	Club	Headquarters	Year
National Championship B	Students of La Plata	The Silver	1994/95
Cup Italy	Parma AC	Florence	1998/99
Series A	SS Lazio	Rome	1999/00
Cup Italy		Milan	1999/00
Supercopa de Italia		Rome	2000
Premier League	Manchester United	Manchester	2002/03
Cup Italy	Inter de Milan	Milan	2004/05
Supercopa de Italia		Turin	2005
Cup Italy		Milan	2005/06
Series A		Rome	2005/06
Opening Tour	Students of La Plata	Buenos Aires	2006
		Quilmes	2010

International tournaments

Title	Club	Headquarters	Year
UEFA Cup	Parma AC	Moscow	1998/99
European Super Cup	SS Lazio	Monaco	1999
Copa Libertadores	Students of La Plata	Belo Horizonte	2009

Individual awards

Filmography

• Reporting Canal+ (12/05/2014), "Fiebre Maldini: 'Juan Sebastián Verón (I)' in Plus.es
• Reporting Movistar+ (21/03/2016), "Fiebre Maldini: 'Juan Sebastián Verón (II)' in Plus.es