Diego Pérez (footballer)

Diego Fernando Pérez Aguado (Spanish pronunciation: [ˈdjeɣo ˈpeɾes]; born 18 May 1980), nicknamed "Ruso" (Spanish for "Russian"), is a retired Uruguayan footballer who last played as a defensive midfielder for Italian Serie A club Bologna. He has played 89 matches for the Uruguay national football team, including the 2010 FIFA World Cup and the 2001, 2004, 2007 and 2011 editions of the Copa América.

This article uses Spanish naming customs: the first or paternal family name is Pérez and the second or maternal family name is Aguado.

Diego Pérez
Pérez playing for Uruguay in 2011
Personal information
Full name Diego Fernando Pérez Aguado
Date of birth (1980-05-18) 18 May 1980
Place of birth Montevideo, Uruguay
Height 1.78 m (5 ft 10 in)
Playing position(s) Defensive midfielder
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
1999–2003 Defensor Sporting 125 (11)
2003–2004 Peñarol 13 (2)
2004–2010 Monaco 146 (2)
2010–2015 Bologna 128 (0)
Total 412 (15)
National team‡
2001–2014 Uruguay 89 (2)
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 1 June 2015 (UTC)
‡ National team caps and goals correct as of 11 June 2014

Club career

Pérez was born in Montevideo. At the age of 19, Pérez joined one of the clubs of his hometown, Defensor Sporting, soon becoming a first-team regular. He joined a larger club from Montevideo, C.A. Peñarol, in 2003 but only played 13 games with them before being shipped off to France to play for Didier Deschamps' AS Monaco. During his time at Monaco he had to battle for his place in the defensive midfield spot against Lucas Bernardi, Akis Zikos and Gerard López and was especially favored by the manager Francesco Guidolin during the Italian's reign in the 2005–06 season.

Bologna

On 31 August 2010, he was signed by Italian Serie A team Bologna for €2.1 million (including 5% solidarity contribution to youth clubs).[1][2][3] No fee was scheduled to pay on that day, but 2 equal installments was scheduled on 31 December 2010 and 30 June 2011.[3][4] At Bologna, he has teamed up with fellow Uruguayan internationals, Henry Damián Giménez, Gastón Ramírez and Miguel Britos, before this left the squad to join S.S.C. Napoli. In Pérez first season in the Serie A, Bologna managed 16th place and finished six points clear of relegation, confirming a fourth successive season in the Italian top flight. He also managed three assists during the campaign, tied for most on the team along with Riccardo Meggiorini.[5]

After without a club for 1½ months, Pérez signed a new two-year contract with Bologna in August 2013.[6] He retired at the end of the 2014–2015 season.

International career

Pérez was capped for Uruguay in four successive editions of the Copa América, helping his country lift their 15th South American championship in 2011. He was also selected to 2010 FIFA World Cup. On 16 July 2011, he scored his first goal for the national team in a match against hosts Argentina in the Copa America quarterfinals, although he was also sent off in the same match.[7] Pérez was back for the final match against Paraguay, starting in defensive midfield in a 3–0 win.[8][9]

International goals
#DateVenueOpponentScoreResultCompetition
1.16 July 2011Estadio Brigadier General Estanislao López, Santa Fe, Argentina Argentina1–01–12011 Copa América
2.23 June 2013Itaipava Arena Pernambuco, Recife, Brazil Tahiti3–08–02013 FIFA Confederations Cup
Correct as of 7 October 2015[10]

Personal life

His older brother Omar Pérez is also a professional footballer, who played for Cerro as a midfielder.

Honours

International
Uruguay
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References
  1. "Perez è del Bologna" (in Italian). Bologna FC 1909. 31 August 2010. Archived from the original on 3 September 2010. Retrieved 6 September 2010.
  2. "Diego Perez s'engage avec Bologne". AS Monaco FC (in French). 31 August 2010. Archived from the original on 26 July 2011. Retrieved 6 September 2010.
  3. Bologna FC 1909 Accounts and Report (in Italian)
  4. "Bilancio intermedio al 31 dicembre 2010: Nota integrativa: parte 2" (PDF). Bologna FC 1909 (in Italian). 4 April 2011. Archived from the original (PDF) on 28 April 2011. Retrieved 14 June 2011.
  5. ESPN profile: Bologna ESPN Soccernet
  6. "Perez al Bologna" (in Italian). Bologna FC 1909. 17 August 2013. Archived from the original on 31 December 2013.
  7. "Uruguay destruye el sueño de Argentina y clasifica a las semis". Fox Sports (in Spanish). 16 July 2011. Archived from the original on 20 July 2011. Retrieved 16 July 2011.
  8. Copa America joy for Uruguay Sky Sports, 24 July 2011
  9. Uruguay light the way ESPN Soccernet, 25 July 2011
  10. Diego Fernando Pérez - International Appearances
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