Christian Abbiati

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Christian Abbiati

Abbiati playing for Milan in 2012
Personal information
Full nameChristian Abbiati
Date of birth (1977-07-08) 8 July 1977
Place of birthAbbiategrasso, Italy
Height1.91 m (6 ft 3 in)
Playing positionGoalkeeper
Club information
Current clubMilan
Number32
Youth career
1991–1992Trezzano
1992–1993Assago
1993–1994Corsico
Senior career*
YearsTeamApps(Gls)
1994–1998Monza52(0)
1995–1996Borgosesia (loan)29(0)
1998–Milan255(0)
2005–2006Juventus (loan)19(0)
2006–2007Torino (loan)36(0)
2007–2008Atlético Madrid (loan)21(0)
National team
1998–2000Italy U2120(0)
2003–2005Italy4(0)
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 03:43, 20 January 2014 (UTC).
† Appearances (Goals).

Christian Abbiati (born 8 July 1977 in Abbiategrasso, Milan) is an Italian professional footballer who plays as a goalkeeper for Serie A club Milan.

Abbiati who is been with Milan since 1998 started his career with Monza, has played more than 300 official matches for Milan. He has also spent loan spells at Borgosesia Calcio, Juventus, Torino and Atletico Madrid His honours include three Serie A titles, one Coppa Italia, two Supercoppa Italiana victories, one UEFA Champions League and one UEFA Super Cup.

Although he was selected by Italy at Euro 2000 and the 2002 World Cup, he did not represent them until a 2-1 friendly win against Switzerland in 2003. He has been capped 4 times by the national team.

Abbiati broke Sebastiano Rossi's record for the most appearances as a goalkeeper for Milan.[1]

Club career

Milan

His debut in Serie A came on 17 January 1999 as a 92nd-minute substitute for Sebastiano Rossi. He then became Milan's first choice goalkeeper, for four years, until he lost his starting spot to backup Dida early in the 2002–03 season after picking up an injury during a Champions League qualifying match in August 2002. Dida's top form effectively grounded Abbiati's playing time to a halt.

On 25 August 2004, a brief controversy surfaced when an editorial criticizing Dida and Milan coach Carlo Ancelotti appeared on Abbiati's official website, stating that Dida had made mistakes in a friendly against Sampdoria and that Ancelotti was blocking a move that would have sent Abbiati to Palermo.[2] Abbiati denied that he'd written the piece and said that it had been posted by his webmaster. "I never speak to the person who looks after my site. I would never judge one of my teammates."[3] Though his webmaster claimed responsibility for the article, speculation nonetheless arose that it had been actually penned by Abbiati due to his frustration at warming the bench.

Abbiati literally played all of thirty seconds in Milan's 2004–05 Champions League campaign, when he came on as a substitute in the 74th minute after Dida had been struck by a flare thrown from the crowd during the quarter-final second leg against Internazionale, which was ultimately suspended less than a minute later. His last match in a Milan kit came on 20 May 2005 in a 3–3 home draw with Palermo, a match that saw the starters rested for the upcoming Champions League Final, which Milan lost to Liverpool after throwing away a 3–0 half time lead.

Loan spells

Abbiati announced his desire to move to another club in order to contend for the #1 spot and was therefore loaned to Genoa for the 2005–06 season in July 2005, but he immediately returned to Milan after Genoa were relegated to Serie C1 due to a match-fixing scandal.

Abbiati in 2008

Juventus & Torino

He was soon on the move again, as he was shipped to Juventus as a temporary replacement for incumbent Gianluigi Buffon, who had suffered a dislocated shoulder during the Luigi Berlusconi Trophy match against Milan in August 2005. With long-awaited regular playing time at his disposal, he flourished with the Bianconeri, but when Buffon returned to the starting lineup six months later, Abbiati's services were no longer needed, and he left at the end of the season for another Turin squad when Milan loaned him to Torino F.C. in July 2006.

Atlético Madrid

Despite expressing his desire to stay for another season, he and Torino ultimately parted ways due to a salary dispute. He was once again loaned out by Milan for the third time in three seasons, this time to Spanish club Atlético Madrid until June 2008.[4] He began the season on the bench until an injury to incumbent Leo Franco put him in the starting lineup. On 29 December, he expressed interest in staying with Atlético beyond the '07–08 season. "My adaptation has gone better than I expected. I am happy at this club because they have helped me so much. I like playing in Spain and I think I will learn a lot during the time that I have left here."[5]

Return to Milan

Christian Abbiati in action for Milan in 2012

Abbiati returned to Italy after being called back by Milan for the 2008–09 season and took over as first choice from Željko Kalac after a solid preseason. However, on 15 March 2009, his season was cut short following a severe knee injury in the first half of Milan's 5–1 league win over A.C. Siena, after he suffered ligament damage to his right knee from a collision with teammate Giuseppe Favalli. He was ruled out of action for six months following rehabilitation and knee surgery.[6] In 28 appearances, he kept eleven clean sheets and conceded 27 goals. On 8 November, nearly eight months after the injury, Abbiati was called up as Milan's third-choice behind Dida and new acquisition Flavio Roma for Milan's 2–1 away win over S.S. Lazio.

In 2010–11, Abbiati returned as the starting goalkeeper for Milan after Dida's departure. He added 2 more year to his contract in July.[7] He made some crucial saves in the first half of the season and was one of the primary reasons to Milan holding a top spot by January 2011. On 7 May 2011, after a series of good performances in crucial matches in the second half of the season, Milan clinched their first Serie A trophy in 7 years.

International career

Abbiati received his first call-up for Italy as the third goalkeeper for Euro 2000, after Gianluigi Buffon withdrew from the squad through injury, and was part of the squad that participated in the 2000 Summer Olympics. However, he did not earn his first cap until a 2–1 victory over Switzerland on 30 April 2003. Abbiati was left off the 2006 World Cup roster but he was recalled to the national team in September 2006. In March 2009, three days before his season-ending knee injury, he said that he would refuse a future call-up for Italy in a non-starting role.[8]

Personal life

In September 2008, Abbiati declared that he is a fascist. "I am not ashamed to proclaim my political beliefs. I share [the] ideals of fascism, such as the fatherland and the values of the Catholic religion."[9]

Abbiati is married to an Italian woman, Stefania Abbiati.[10] Abbiati and Stefania daughter, Giulia Abbiati, was born 30 January 2000.[10]

Career statistics

Club

As of 1 February 2014
Abbiati before a match for Milan
Club Season League Cup Europe Total
Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals
Monza 1994-95 1 0 - - - - 1 0
Borgosesia 1995-96 29 0 - - - - 29 0
Monza 1996-97 25 0 - - - - 25 0
1997-98 26 0 2 0 - - 28 0
Milan 1998-99 18 0 - - - - 18 0
1999-00 29 0 - - 6 0 35 0
2000-01 21 0 4 0 7 0 32 0
2001-02 34 0 1 0 11 0 46 0
2002-03 3 0 8 0 6 0 17 0
2003-04 2 0 51 72 1 0 8 0
2004-05 3 0 4 0 1 0 8 0
Juventus 2005-06 19 0 2 0 6 0 27 0
Torino 2006-07 36 0 2 0 - - 38 0
Atlético Madrid 2007-08 21 0 - - 9 0 30 0
Milan 2008-09 28 0 - - - - 28 0
2009-10 9 0 1 0 1 0 11 0
2010-11 35 0 1 0 6 0 42 0
2011-12 31 0 13 14 9 0 41 0
2012-13 28 0 1 0 7 0 36 0
2013-14 15 0 2 0 7 0 24 0
Total for Milan 256 0 26 0 62 0 346 0
Career totals 413 0 32 0 77 0 524 0
1Including 1 match in the Supercoppa Italiana 2003
2Including 1 goal against in the Supercoppa Italiana 2003
3Including 1 match in the Supercoppa Italiana 2011
4Including 1 goal against in the Supercoppa Italiana 2011

Honours

Club

Milan

Orders

5th Class / Knight: Cavaliere Ordine al Merito della Repubblica Italiana: (2000)

References

  1. "Abbiati in Milan history books". Footballitalia. Retrieved 1 October 2013. 
  2. August 2004 editorial – christianabbiati.it, 25 August 2004 (in Italian)
  3. Abbiati calms Milan rift – Football Italia, 26 August 2004
  4. AC Milan to loan goalkeeper Christian Abbiati to Atletico Madrid – SLAM! Sports, 26 June 2007
  5. Abbiati Wants to Extend Atlético Stay – Goal.com, 29 December 2007
  6. Complex knee injury rules Abbiati out for season – AFP, 16 March 2009
  7. "VAI CHRISTIAN!". AC Milan (in Italian). 20 July 2010. Retrieved 6 May 2011. 
  8. Milan's Abbiati: I Don't Want To Be Third Choice For Italy – Goal.com, 12 March 2009
  9. I'm a fascist, says AC Milan star Christian AbbiatiThe Guardian, 27 September 2008
  10. 10.0 10.1 "La nascita di Giulia". christianabbiati.it (in Italian). Retrieved 6 April 2013. 

External links

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