Diego Colotto

Diego Daniel Colotto (born 10 March 1981) is an Argentine retired footballer who played as a central defender.

Diego Colotto
Colotto in 2013
Personal information
Full name Diego Daniel Colotto
Date of birth (1981-03-10) 10 March 1981
Place of birth Río Cuarto, Argentina
Height 1.84 m (6 ft 0 in)
Position(s) Centre back
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2001–2004 Estudiantes LP 116 (4)
2005–2007 Tecos 82 (9)
2007–2008 Atlas 31 (2)
2008–2012 Deportivo La Coruña 113 (8)
2012–2015 Espanyol 82 (7)
2015 Pune City 3 (0)
2016 Lanús 3 (0)
2016–2018 Quilmes 28 (0)
Total 458 (30)
National team
2001 Argentina U20 7 (1)
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only

After starting out at Estudiantes he went on to spend most of his professional career in Spain, with Deportivo[1] and Espanyol.

Club career

Born in Río Cuarto, Córdoba, Colotto started his professional career with Estudiantes de La Plata, making his Primera División debut on 16 February 2001 in a 1–1 draw against Club Atlético Vélez Sarsfield and eventually becoming an automatic first-choice with the La Plata club. In December 2004, Tecos F.C. from Mexico paid US$1,100,000 for his services and, almost three years later, he was signed by another team in the country, Club Atlas, playing nearly 150 competitive matches between the two.

On 30 August 2008, Colotto signed for Deportivo de La Coruña in Spain, for €2.5 million.[2] In his first season in La Liga he backed up Alberto Lopo and Zé Castro[3][4] but, on 2 October, scored twice against SK Brann in the first round of the UEFA Cup: after the Galicians lost 0–2 in Norway, his brace – after heading home two corner kicks – took the game to extra time and an eventual penalty shootout, where the home team prevailed to reach the group stage.[5]

In the following seasons, Colotto relegated Portuguese Castro to the bench and partnered Lopo at the heart of the back sector, under Miguel Ángel Lotina.[6][7] In the 2009–10 campaign two of his three league goals came in both matches against CD Tenerife (1–0 away,[8] 3–1 at the Estadio Riazor[9]) as Deportivo finished tenth.

On 22 June 2012, free agent Colotto joined fellow league team RCD Espanyol on a three-year contract.[10] In 2013–14, he equalled a career-best four goals[11][12][13][14] as the Catalans narrowly avoided relegation.

Colotto spent the 2015 season in the Indian Super League, with FC Pune City.[15] In February 2016, at nearly 35, he returned to his country and agreed to a six-month deal at Club Atlético Lanús with the option of further extending it.[16]

Colotto spent the 2016–17 campaign with Quilmes Atlético Club, acting as team captain[17] and eventually suffering relegation to the Primera B Nacional. He was then released on 19 July 2017 alongside six players as the board of directors feared injuries that would imply that the contracts be automatically renewed,[18] only to return the following month and put pen to a paper to a new contract.[19]

International career

Colotto was part of the Argentina under-20 team that competed at the 2001 FIFA World Youth Championship on home soil. He played all the matches and minutes for the eventual winners during the tournament, scoring in the final against Ghana (3–0).[20]

Honours

Club

Deportivo

International

Argentina

References
  1. Colotto no olvida al Dépor (Colotto does not forget Dépor); La Opinión A Coruña, 28 May 2013 (in Spanish)
  2. El Dépor contrata a Diego Colotto y vende a Xisco al Newcastle (Dépor hire Diego Colotto and sell Xisco to Newcastle); La Voz de Galicia, 1 September 2008 (in Spanish)
  3. Zé Castro avisa a Colotto (Zé Castro warns Colotto); Mundo Deportivo, 4 September 2008 (in Spanish)
  4. Colotto puede ser titular tras toda una vuelta casi en blanco (Colotto may start after 19 matches unused); La Opinión A Coruña, 14 March 2009 (in Spanish)
  5. UEFA Cup: Depor survive Brann penalty scare; ESPN Soccernet, 2 October 2008
  6. Lotina planea cambios en la medular ante el Sevilla (Lotina planning midfield changes against Sevilla); ABC, 8 September 2010 (in Spanish)
  7. Lotina dará descanso en la Copa a Colotto, un fijo en la defensa (Lotina to rest defensive mainstay Colotto in Cup); La Opinión A Coruña, 12 January 2011 (in Spanish)
  8. Colotto header secures Depor win; ESPN Soccernet, 3 October 2009
  9. Depor ease to maximum points; ESPN Soccernet, 6 March 2010
  10. Diego Colotto ficha por el Espanyol (Diego Colotto signs for Espanyol); Vavel, 22 June 2012 (in Spanish)
  11. El Espanyol rompe el traje al Athletic (Espanyol tear Athletic a new one); El País, 16 February 2014 (in Spanish)
  12. Sabella, Colotto es Pincha (Sabella, Colotto is a Pincha); Olé, 9 March 2014 (in Spanish)
  13. Espanyol y Rayo apalabran la permanencia (Espanyol and Rayo negotiate survival); Marca, 13 April 2014 (in Spanish)
  14. El Espanyol se salva y desploma a Osasuna (Espanyol save themselves and make Osasuna collapse); Diario AS, 11 May 2014 (in Spanish)
  15. FC Pune City sign up Argentine defender Diego Colotto; The Hindu, 24 August 2015
  16. Diego Colotto es nuevo jugador de Lanús (Diego Colotto is a new Lanús player); ESPN, 6 February 2016 (in Spanish)
  17. El realismo de Colotto (Colotto's down-to-earthness); Olé, 20 December 2016 (in Spanish)
  18. Quilmes excluyó a siete jugadores (Quilmes ousted seven players)‚ El Gráfico, 19 June 2017 (in Spanish)
  19. Diego Colotto renovará su contrato y seguirá el Quilmes un año más (Diego Colotto will renew his contract and will stay another year in Quilmes)‚ Perspectiva Sur, 19 July 2017 (in Spanish)
  20. Diego Colotto – FIFA competition record
  21. Fútbol | Segunda División – El Deportivo culmina el ascenso a Primera División (Football | Second Division – Deportivo confirm promotion to Primera División); RTVE, 27 May 2012 (in Spanish)
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