Roberto Ayala
Argentine centre-back who captained the national team a record 63 times and won two La Liga titles with Valencia.
Roberto Fabián Ayala (born 14 April 1973), nicknamed El Ratón, is an Argentine former footballer who played as a centre-back for the Argentina national team, as well as Valencia and Real Zaragoza in Spain, Milan and Napoli in Italy, and Ferro Carril, River Plate and Racing Club in Argentina. He captained Argentina in a record 63 matches, played in three FIFA World Cups, and made 115 international appearances.
- Role
- Centre-back
- National Caps
- 115
- Captaincy Record
- 63 matches
- World Cups Played
- 3 (1998, 2006; non-playing in 2002)
- Club Legacy
- Valencia CF (La Liga Champion 2001–02, 2003–04; UEFA Cup Winner 2003–04)
Verified Timeline
Lore & Background
Ayala began his career at Ferro Carril Oeste, then moved to River Plate. He was loaned from Parma to Napoli, then played for Milan before joining Valencia in 2000. At Valencia, he made 275 appearances over seven years, won two La Liga titles and the UEFA Cup, and was named best defender for the 2000–01 UEFA Champions League. He later played for Real Zaragoza and Racing Club. He retired from professional football on 30 December 2010.
In Their Own Story
On 17 July 2007, two days after the Copa América final where Argentina lost 3–0 to Brazil—a match in which Ayala scored an own goal—he announced his retirement from international football. He clarified that his decision 'has nothing to do with what happened in the final.' This followed a historic run where he became Argentina's most capped player on 7 February 2007, surpassing Diego Simeone in a friendly against France. Earlier, on 5 June 2007, he had captained the team for a record 58th time, having equaled Maradona's mark of 57 just days prior against Switzerland. His international debut came on 16 November 1994 under coach Daniel Passarella against Chile, launching a career that saw him score a header in the 2006 World Cup quarter-final against Germany before his spot kick was saved by Jens Lehmann.
Reader's Guide
Ayala made his Argentina debut on 16 November 1994 against Chile. He won silver at the 1996 Olympics and gold at the 2004 Olympics. He played in the 1998 World Cup, was a non-playing squad member in 2002 due to a last-minute injury, and played in the 2006 World Cup, scoring a header against Germany. He earned his 100th cap on 30 May 2006. He became Argentina's most capped player on 7 February 2007. He retired from international football on 17 July 2007 after the Copa América final. After retiring, he worked as a football coordinator at Racing Club, as a technical director for Valencia, and joined the Argentina national team technical staff as a field assistant of manager Lionel Scaloni in January 2019.
Did You Know?
- Ayala captained Argentina in a record 63 matches.
- He scored an own goal in the 2007 Copa América final against Brazil.
- He was named to the FIFA World Cup All-Star Team in 2006.
- He is married to Veronica and has four children: Francisco, Sofía, Pilar and Martina.
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