Fabricio Coloccini

Fabricio Coloccini (born 22 January 1982, in Córdoba, Argentina, Córdoba Province (Argentina)) is an Argentina Association football Defender (association football) who plays for Newcastle United F.C..

Club career

Coloccini started his career in the youth team of Argentinos Juniors, but made his professional debut in 1998 with Boca Juniors. In 1999, at the end of the Apertura championship, he moved to A.C. Milan. In 2001, he was loaned to Club Atlético San Lorenzo de Almagro where he helped the team to win the 2001 Primera Division Argentina tournament. In 2002, he was loaned to Deportivo Alavés and then to Atlético Madrid later in the same year, before moving to Villarreal CF in 2003 (again on loan) and after finally playing a match for Milan, he moved to Deportivo de La Coruña in 2004.

Coloccini was the center of a controversy between Boca Juniors and A.C. Milan because the transfer from Argentina to Italy wasn't agreed between the clubs. Instead, Milan arranged terms with Coloccini's father (also a former football player), who exercised his parental rights to remove the minor from Argentina. After that, FIFA ordered Milan to pay Boca compensation.

Coloccini joined Newcastle United F.C. on a five-year contract in August 2008 for a fee of up to £10.3 million. Two days later Coloccini made his debut against the reigning Premier League Champions, Manchester United.

International career

Coloccini was part of the Argentina national under-20 football team that won the 2001 FIFA World Youth Championship FIFA World Youth Championship, as well as part of the gold medal winning Argentina national football team at the Football at the 2004 Summer Olympics. He also participated in the 2005 Confederations Cup, scoring one goal in the Confederations Cup game against Cameroon national football team. In the 2006 FIFA World Cup, he played in two games, as a substitute against the Netherlands national football team and as a starter against Germany national football team in quarterfinals.

Coloccini also holds an Italian passport due to his ancestry.