| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Sebastián Alejandro Battaglia | ||
| Date of birth | November 8, 1980 | ||
| Place of birth | Santa Fe, Argentina | ||
| Height | 1.80 m (5 ft 11 in) | ||
| Playing position | Defensive midfielder | ||
| Club information | |||
| Current club | Boca Juniors | ||
| Number | 5 | ||
| Youth career | |||
| –1998 | Boca Juniors | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps† | (Gls)† |
| 1998–2003 | Boca Juniors | 102 | (9) |
| 2004–2005 | Villarreal | 29 | (1) |
| 2005– | Boca Juniors | 122 | (9) |
| National team‡ | |||
| 2003–2009 | Argentina | 10 | (0) |
| * Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 14:31, June 25, 2011 (UTC). † Appearances (Goals). |
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Sebastián Alejandro Battaglia (born November 8, 1980) is an Argentine football midfielder who currently plays with Argentine club Boca Juniors.
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Even though he was born in Santa Fe Province, Sebastián began his career with the Boca Juniors' reserve team. He made his professional debut on May 31, 1998, and quickly became an important player for Boca Juniors'. He played for 5 years at the club, when in the middle of the 2003–2004 season, Villarreal CF of Spain bought 50% of his contract for 2.8 million euros and acquired his services. Villarreal was considered an excellent destination for Battaglia as there were already plenty of former Boca players players such as Martín Palermo, Juan Román Riquelme, Diego Cagna, Rodolfo Arruabarrena and Fabricio Coloccini at the club.
Battaglia played only a season and a half at Villareal, and never displayed the form that had made him such a hot property in Argentina. His family also had trouble adjusting to their new life in Spain. After an injury stopped him playing for almost 6 months, he decided to return with his family to Argentina. In July 2005, after some prolonged negotiations between Boca Juniors and Villarreal, he got his wish.
Back at Boca Juniors he recaptured his old form and started to improve his game, becoming club captain and being called-up to the Argentina national squad to participate in the World Cup Qualifiers match against Peru on October 8, 2005. He was also a starter in the friendly match against Qatar in November of the same year.
During the 'Torneo de Verano' of 2008, Battaglia scored in the Superclásico against arch rivals River Plate, in a game where which Boca Juniors won 2–0. On May 4, 2008, in the 'Torneo Clausura' Battaglia would again score against River Plate, by heading in a goal from a corner which won Boca the game at 1–0.
On December 23, 2008 Battaglia was part of the team that won the 2008 Apertura championship, making him and Guillermo Barros Schelotto the two most decorated Boca Juniors players in history with 16 professional titles each.[1]
| Argentina national team | ||
|---|---|---|
| Year | Apps | Goals |
| 2003 | 3 | 0 |
| 2004 | 0 | 0 |
| 2005 | 3 | 0 |
| 2006 | 0 | 0 |
| 2007 | 0 | 0 |
| 2008 | 2 | 0 |
| 2009 | 2 | 0 |
| Total | 10 | 0 |
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