13 Facts About Roberto Abbondanzieri

Roberto Abbondanzieri spent most of his career for the Boca Juniors in his homeland, as well as Getafe of La Liga and Internacional of Brazil.

Roberto Abbondanzieri played with the club until 1997, when he moved to Boca Juniors to be the reserve goalkeeper.

Roberto Abbondanzieri trained in the shadow of Oscar Cordoba until the Colombian goalie suffered an injury during the Clausura tournament of 1999.

When he recovered from his injury Roberto Abbondanzieri was Cordoba's understudy until February 2002, when Cordoba moved to Italian club Perugia.

Roberto Abbondanzieri changed his name in July 2002 from Abbondancieri, a misspelling that arose at Argentinian customs when his grandfather immigrated there, to the original spelling that he uses today.

Roberto Abbondanzieri was named South American Goalkeeper of the Year in 2003.

In June 2006, after weeks of speculation, Roberto Abbondanzieri signed a three-year contract with Spanish first division Getafe CF, claiming that "it's the right time for me to go to Europe".

On 10 April 2008, in a UEFA Cup quarterfinal second-leg match against Bayern Munich, Roberto Abbondanzieri made a vital error in extra time, failing to hold a routine ball from a distant free kick.

Roberto Abbondanzieri participated in the Copa Libertadores, where Boca fell to Defensor Sporting of Uruguay in the round of 16.

Roberto Abbondanzieri continued to be Argentina's first choice goalkeeper under Alfio Basile following the 2006 World Cup.

In November 2012, Roberto Abbondanzieri was named as assistant to his former Boca teammate Martin Palermo when he was hired by Godoy Cruz.

On 28 November 2020, Roberto Abbondanzieri was appointed as assistant coach at Chilean club Curico Unido, under Martin Palermo.

However, at the end of May 2021, Roberto Abbondanzieri announced that he would step back from football to spend more time with his family.