Juan Román Riquelme

Early years

Riquelme was born as the eldest of eleven children in a poor family, one day before Argentina won the 1978 World Cup. He began playing football in the localities of San Fernando, playing for different local clubs, before gaining the opportunity to trial with the junior teams of Argentinos Juniors. After trialling, he was signed by the club where he began playing as a central midfielder. Boca Juniors and River Plate spotted him when he was a youth player for Argentinos Juniors. In 1996, however, Riquelme was transferred from Argentinos Juniors U-20 to Boca Juniors U-20 for a fee of US$800,000, during an operation insisted by trainer Carlos Salvador Bilardo which led to the then president of Boca Juniors, Mauricio Macri, establishing various purchases of Argentinos Juniors youth players.

Boca Juniors

On 10 November 1996, aged 18, Riquelme made his Primera División debut in a 2–0 win against Unión de Santa Fe. Two weeks later, he scored his first senior goal in a 6–0 triumph over Huracán. After making his debut, Riquelme began a long journey to break a streak of no championships for the team since winning the Apertura 1992. In the 1996–97 season, Bilardo would be fired and replaced by Héctor "Bambino" Veira, but Boca continued with mediocre results, finishing mid table in both Apertura and Clausura tournaments, with Riquelme himself scoring 4 goals and making 22 appearances in the campaign. After almost obtaining the championship in the 1997–98…

After a successful stint with Argentina's under-20 team, Riquelme was called up to the Argentina national team by coach Daniel Passarella for their last qualifying match for the 1998 World Cup on 16 November 1997. A 19-year-old Riquelme debuted for Argentina when he entered the field in the last minutes of the 1–1 draw against Colombia at La Bombonera. His first major tournament for Argentina was at the 1999 Copa América. In 2000, Riquelme participated at the 2000 CONMEBOL Men Pre-Olympic Tournament, which saw Argentina fail to qualify for the 2000 Summer Olympics. He appeared three times and scored one goal during the competition. Riquelme scored his first international goal in a 3–1 away victory during a friendly against Libya in Tripoli on 30 April 2003. On 17 November 2004, Riquelme scored his second international goal for Argentina during a 3–2 home victory in a 2006 FIFA World Cup qualification match against Venezuela. Before departing for the 2005 FIFA Confederations Cup, Riquelme scored in Argentina's 3–1 home victory against Brazil on 8 June, during their 2006 FIFA World Cup qualifier in Buenos Aires. On 9 October 2005, Riquelme scored his seventh international goal in a 2–0 home victory against Peru during a 2006 FIFA World Cup qualification match. Riquelme scored a penalty in the 81st minute. Riquelme's eighth international goal came in a 1–0 victory over Qatar in a friendly match in Doha on 16 November 2005. In 2006, Riquelme was named captain of the Argentina…

Considered one of the best playmakers in the world in his prime, as well as one of the most talented Argentine players of his generation, Riquelme was a "classic number ten", who was best known for his grace, flair, and elegance on the pitch, as well as his creative and intelligent passing. A tall and slender offensive midfield playmaker, he combined outstanding passing range, vision, anticipation, technique, close control, and dribbling skills with prolific goalscoring ability from midfield. A selfless team player, he usually played in a free central role, operating as an attacking midfielder behind the strikers (known as the "enganche" in Argentina), but was also capable of playing in a more withdrawn position as a deep-lying playmaker, due to his ability to dictate the tempo of his team's play in midfield, orchestrate attacking moves, and create space and chances for teammates. He has been recognised as one of the "last true number 10s" due to his playmaking abilities and unique playing style. During his time under Van Gaal at Barcelona, Riquelme was also occasionally deployed out of position as a right winger. His skill and creative style of play drew comparisons with Diego Maradona, in his youth, even though, unlike Maradona, Riquelme was neither quick nor a particularly energetic dribbler. A tactically astute player, he also possessed good decision-making, and a good understanding of the game. Moreover, he was an excellent free kick taker. Despite his talent, however,…

Riquelme's brother, Sebastián, was also a professional footballer. Sebastian retired in 2022.