Fabricio Coloccini

Fabricio Coloccini (born 22 January 1982) is an Argentine former professional footballer who played as a centre-back.

Coloccini began his club career at Boca Juniors in his native Argentina attracting the attention of A.C. Milan.

He failed to establish himself there and was loaned to four clubs.

On 1 February, Coloccini was substituted against Sunderland in the 93rd minute.

Up until this point, he had played every minute of every game for Newcastle all season.

He was dropped for the 1–1 draw with Stoke City, but played in Newcastle's 1–0 defeat to Aston Villa, which saw them relegated.

Despite Newcastle's relegation, Coloccini stayed on and was the mainstay of the club's defence all season, partnering the likes of Steven Taylor, Mike Williamson, Fitz Hall and Tamás Kádár in the sturdiest rearguard of the championship.

He scored two goals for Newcastle since relegation, a header at Cardiff City, and another header at Watford.

The club was eventually promoted back to the Premier League as champions, and Coloccini's great contributions awarded him a place in the Championship's Team of the Year.

Coloccini scored his third Newcastle goal against Wigan Athletic in the fourth minute of injury time as they came from two goals down to draw 2–2 at St James' Park, with that being his first goal in the Premier League on the same day that he captained Newcastle for the first time.

Born in Córdoba, Córdoba Province, Coloccini started his career in the youth team of Argentinos Juniors, but made his professional debut in 1998 with Boca Juniors.

He made one league appearance, as a starting line-up, in his one and only season with Boca.

He played in Walter Samuel's position, who received a call-up from the Argentina national team.

Coloccini scored in his only match, leveling the scores in a 2–2 draw with Unión de Santa Fé.

In 1999, at the end of the Apertura championship, Coloccini moved to A.C. Milan.

He was at the centre of a controversy between Boca and Milan, because the transfer from Argentina to Italy was not agreed between the clubs.

Instead, Milan arranged terms with Coloccini's father (also a former football player), who exercised his parental rights to remove the minor from Argentina.

After that, FIFA ordered Milan to pay Boca compensation.

In 2000, Coloccini was loaned to San Lorenzo where he helped the team to win the 2001 Clausura tournament.

At youth level, he was a member of the sides that won 2001 FIFA World Youth Championship, and the gold medal at the 2004 Olympics.

On April 1, 2022, Coloccini was announced as the new Venezuela U-20 manager.

From 2001 to 2004, Coloccini served three consecutive loans in La Liga: Alavés (netting six league goals), Atlético Madrid, and Villarreal, where he was always first-choice.

At international level, Coloccini represented Argentina on 39 occasions between 2003 and 2014, scoring one goal, and was a member of the teams that reached the finals of the 2004 Copa América and the 2005 FIFA Confederations Cup; he also took part at the 2006 FIFA World Cup.

After having only appeared once for A.C. Milan officially, Coloccini joined Deportivo La Coruña in January 2005, on a six-year deal.

During his three-and-a-half seasons stint, he was an undisputed starter, and appeared in all the matches during 2007–08 netting four goals, good enough for a UEFA Intertoto Cup berth for the club.

After making his reputation at Deportivo La Coruña he joined Newcastle United in August 2008 and, in July 2011, was promoted to club captain.

Coloccini joined Newcastle United on a five-year contract in August 2008 for a fee of up to £10.3 million.

Two days later, he made his debut against the reigning league champions, Manchester United, playing 90 minutes in a 1–1 away draw.

Since his debut, Coloccini was one of the most consistent inclusions in Newcastle's squad, and formed a partnership with fellow newcomer Sébastien Bassong in his first season.

He was not immune to the pressures of representing Newcastle's infamous defence, coming under his most intense criticism for his performance in Newcastle's 5–1 defeat to Liverpool.

Despite his mistakes in the game, manager Joe Kinnear voiced his support for Coloccini, stating that he believed his "Mr. Reliable" would bounce back.

Coloccini scored a striker's finish in a 1–1 draw with Tottenham Hotspur on 22 January 2011, the day of his 29th birthday and his 100th Newcastle appearance.

He continued his fine form for Newcastle into April, reforming his partnership with Mike Williamson after a brief time with Steven Taylor in January.

On 2 April, Coloccini made numerous forward runs and forward roaming to help supply Peter Løvenkrands' goal in the 4–1 win over Wolves.

Manager Alan Pardew, along with pundit Jamie Redknapp complimented the defender for his contributions to the team's attack, calling him a "top, top player".

On 8 July 2011, Coloccini was named Newcastle captain for the 2011–12 season.

He and Taylor rekindled their partnership and were central to one of the Premier League's meanest defences, conceding a mere eight goals in the first 11 games.

In April 2012 he was named in the PFA Team of the Year.

He scored his first goal of the season in the 122nd minute to win the game against Championship club Nottingham Forest in a 4–3 thriller in the third round of the League Cup that saw Forest equalise on three occasions.

On 5 July 2016, Coloccini returned to Argentina to join San Lorenzo, with whom he had previously been on loan.