Pablo Zabaleta
Pablo Javier Zabaleta Girod (; born 16 January 1985) is an Argentine former professional footballer who played as a right back. He made 333 appearances over nine seasons for Manchester City before signing for West Ham United in the summer of 2017. He has represented Argentina at the 2011 and 2015 Copa América, and was part of their team which finished as runners-up in the 2014 FIFA World Cup.
About Pablo Zabaleta in brief
Pablo Javier Zabaleta Girod (; born 16 January 1985) is an Argentine former professional footballer who played as a right back. He made 333 appearances over nine seasons for Manchester City before signing for West Ham United in the summer of 2017. He has represented Argentina at the 2011 and 2015 Copa América, and was part of their team which finished as runners-up in the 2014 FIFA World Cup. Before joining Manchester City, he played for La Liga club RCD Espanyol, where he won the 2005–06 Copa del Rey. He is known for his tenacious style of play, and has captained his club on numerous occasions. He also won the FA Cup, the Premier League, the League Cup and the Community Shield with Manchester City. He was also part of the Argentina team which won gold at the 2008 Olympics. He began his career at Club Atlético San Lorenzo de Almagro in 2002 after progressing through their youth ranks, having been signed at the age of 12 from local club Obras Sanitarias. He started playing as a defensive midfielder but eventually moved to the right side of midfield. In January 2007, he suffered a shoulder injury that kept him off the pitch for almost three months, already having established himself as an undisputed first team choice.
In July 2011, he agreed a three-year contract with Premier League club Manchester City after rejecting an offer from Juventus. He scored his first goal for City on 17 January 2009, the only goal of the game in a 1–0 league win over Wigan Athletic. On 21 November 2010, he assisted a Carlos Tevez goal, helping his compatriot to earn his ninth goal for the club during the 2010–11 season. On 1 January 2011, ZabalETA played his 100th game for Man City in all competitions, coming off the bench against Blackpool. On 14 May 2011, Zabaleta started and played the full 90 minutes at right-back in a 4–0 Premier League win over Blackburn Rovers Park. This win secured a win for the Citizens and put them seven points ahead of Liverpool and Tottenham Hotspur in the race for fourth place in the league. On 5 October, he received his first red card in English football when he was sent off in a 3–2 loss to Liverpool in his fourth Premier League appearance. In the summer 2011, it was reported that Italian club Roma were keen on signing him, but Manchester City insisted the player was not for sale.
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