Marcos Rojo

Estudiantes LP

Rojo grew up in La Plata, Argentina and joined his local side Estudiantes at the age of ten. In 2009, he was promoted to the club's main team, after signing his first professional contract. He spent three years with the club, making 43 appearances and scoring three goals for the team. He played in the 2009 FIFA Club World Cup Final, coming on for extra time as Estudiantes lost 2–1 to Barcelona in Dubai. During his time at Estudiantes, Rojo won a Copa Libertadores and an Argentine Primera División title. The defender spent most matches as a left-back and developed a reputation as a capable attacker, scoring his first goal in a 2–1 defeat against LDU Quito in the 2010 Recopa Sudamericana.

Spartak Moscow

In December 2010, Rojo signed a five-year contract with Spartak Moscow. He scored his only goal for Spartak on 20 April 2011, netting the opening goal of a 2–1 defeat of Krasnodar in the quarter-finals of the Russian Cup.

Sporting CP

In July 2012, Rojo moved from Spartak Moscow to Sporting CP for £3.5 million, signing a four-year contract. Rojo made his Primeira Liga debut for Sporting on 19 August 2012, playing the entire match and receiving a yellow card in a 0–0 draw with Vitória de Guimarães. He received his first red card for Sporting in a league match against Porto on 7 October 2012, picking up two cautions within three minutes as Sporting fell to a 2–0 defeat. He scored his first goal for Sporting on 28 April 2013, netting the…

Rojo was first capped on 9 February 2011, in a 2–1 friendly victory against Portugal at the Stade de Genève, Geneva. Later that year he was included in Argentina's squad as they hosted the 2011 Copa América, and played the opening match on 2 July, a 1–1 draw against Bolivia. Javier Zanetti replaced him at left-back for the rest of the tournament as Argentina reached the quarter-finals.

In June 2014, Rojo was named in Argentina's squad for the 2014 FIFA World Cup. He made his FIFA World Cup debut in their 2–1 victory over Bosnia and Herzegovina at the Maracanã, playing the full match in defence, and contributing to Sead Kolašinac's own goal. In the team's third group match, Rojo scored his first international goal, the winner in a 3–2 victory against Nigeria. The country reached the final before losing to Germany, and Rojo was the only Argentinean named in the Castrol Index Top 11 for the tournament. Rojo was selected by coach Gerardo Martino for the 2015 Copa América. At the end of Argentina's goalless quarter-final against Colombia in Viña del Mar, Rojo missed in the penalty shootout but his team advanced nonetheless. On 30 June, he opened the scoring in a 6–1 semi-final defeat of Paraguay which put Argentina into the final. He played the entirety of the decisive match against the hosts at the Estadio Nacional de Chile, which Argentina lost on a penalty shootout after a goalless draw. A year later for the Copa América Centenario in the United States, Rojo was again in…

According to football magazine Four Four Two, Rojo was more comfortable as a left-back rather than as a centre-back in his first season at Sporting, due to a number of positional errors and mistimed tackles; in his second season, his speed helped him in defence. They also attributed a good aerial threat to him, while noting that disciplinary problems remained. In addition to his usual positions at centre-back and left-back, Rojo can play as a winger. On signing for Manchester United, it was theorised that he could feature as a wing-back in Louis van Gaal's preferred 3–5–2 formation.

Rojo is married to Eugenia Lusardo, a lingerie model based in Lisbon. They have three daughters. Rojo has a number of tattoos, including the English words "Pride" and "Glory" on each thigh. In December 2014, Rojo had an affair with a woman he had met at a night club. He accused her of blackmail and took out an injunction to stop newspapers publishing his name in the story. The injunction on his name was lifted in April 2015 due to concerns that other footballers could be suspected of the affair, but it remains in place to prevent the release of images of Rojo.