Rodrigo Javier De Paul (; born 24 May 1994) is an Argentine professional
footballer
A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby ...
who plays as a
midfielder
A midfielder is an outfield position in association football.
Midfielders may play an exclusively defensive role, breaking up attacks, and are in that case known as defensive midfielders. As central midfielders often go across boundarie ...
or an
attacking midfielder
A midfielder is an outfield position in association football.
Midfielders may play an exclusively defensive role, breaking up attacks, and are in that case known as defensive midfielders. As central midfielders often go across boundarie ...
for
La Liga
The Campeonato Nacional de Liga de Primera División, commonly known simply as Primera División in Spain, and as La Liga in English-speaking countries and officially as LaLiga Santander for sponsorship reasons, stylized as LaLiga, is the men' ...
club
Atlético Madrid
Club Atlético de Madrid, S.A.D. (; meaning "Athletic Club of Madrid"), known simply as Atleti in the Spanish-speaking world and commonly referred to at international level as Atlético Madrid, is a Spanish professional football club based in ...
and the
Argentina national team.
Club career
Racing Club
Born in
Sarandí,
Greater Buenos Aires
Greater Buenos Aires ( es, Gran Buenos Aires, GBA), also known as the Buenos Aires Metropolitan Area ( es, Área Metropolitana de Buenos Aires, AMBA), refers to the urban agglomeration comprising the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires and the adj ...
, De Paul joined
Racing Club's youth setup in 2002, aged eight. He was called up to the main squad on 24 June 2012, while still a junior, for a match against
Vélez Sarsfield, but remained unused in the 1–2 home loss.
On 10 February 2013, De Paul played his first match as a professional,
replacing Mauro Camoranesi
Mauro Germán Camoranesi Serra (, ; born 4 October 1976) is an Italian football manager and former player who played as a right midfielder or right winger.
Camoranesi began his career in Argentina in 1995, where he played for Aldosivi and B ...
in the 86th minute of a 0–3 loss at
Atlético de Rafaela
Asociación Mutual Social y Deportiva Atlético de Rafaela, known simply as Atlético de Rafaela, is an Argentine sports club based in the city of Rafaela, in Santa Fe Province. The club is mostly known for its professional football team, that ...
. He scored his first goal a month later, netting the last through a long-range shot in a 3–0 win at
San Martín de San Juan
Club Atlético San Martín, mostly known as San Martín de San Juan, is an Argentine football club from the city of San Juan. The team currently plays in the Argentine Primera B Nacional, the second division of the Argentine football league syste ...
.
De Paul appeared in 19 matches during the
2012–13 campaign. He then played a key part in
2013–14, featuring in 35 matches and scoring four times.
Valencia
On 9 May 2014, it was announced that
Valencia CF
Valencia Club de Fútbol (, ca-valencia, València Club de Futbol ), commonly referred to as Valencia CF (or simply Valencia) is a professional football club based in Valencia, Spain, that currently plays in La Liga, the top flight of the S ...
agreed to a US$6.5 million deal for De Paul with Racing. He signed a five-year deal with ''Los Che'' on 6 June, and made his
La Liga
The Campeonato Nacional de Liga de Primera División, commonly known simply as Primera División in Spain, and as La Liga in English-speaking countries and officially as LaLiga Santander for sponsorship reasons, stylized as LaLiga, is the men' ...
debut on 23 August under head coach
Nuno Espírito Santo
Nuno Herlander Simões Espírito Santo (born 25 January 1974), often referred to as simply Nuno, is a Portuguese football manager and former footballer who played as a goalkeeper. He is currently the manager of Saudi Professional League club Al ...
, replacing
Paco Alcácer
Francisco "Paco" Alcácer García (; born 30 August 1993) is a Spanish professional Association football, footballer who plays as a Forward (association football)#Striker, striker for UAE Pro League club Sharjah FC, Sharjah.
Having come through ...
in the 65th minute in a 1–1 away draw against
Sevilla FC
Sevilla Fútbol Club () is a Spanish professional football club based in Seville, the capital and largest city of the autonomous community of Andalusia, Spain. It plays in Spanish football's top flight, La Liga. Sevilla have won the UEFA Eu ...
, but being
sent off
In sports, an ejection (also known as dismissal, sending-off, disqualification, or early shower) is the removal of a participant from a contest due to a violation of the sport's rules. The exact violations that lead to an ejection vary depending ...
just one minute later due to fouling
Aleix Vidal.
He scored his first goal for the club on 4 December 2014 in the 2–1 win against
Rayo Vallecano
Rayo Vallecano de Madrid, S.A.D. (), often abbreviated to Rayo (Spanish for "thunderbolt"), is a Spanish professional football club based in Madrid, in the neighbourhood of Vallecas. Rayo was founded on 29 May 1924, and currently compete in La ...
in the
Copa del Rey
The Campeonato de España–Copa de Su Majestad el Rey, commonly known as Copa del Rey or simply La Copa and formerly known as Copa del Presidente de la República (1932–36) and Copa del Generalísimo (1939–76), is an annual knockout footb ...
. He followed this up with his first La Liga goal on 9 April 2015 against
Athletic Bilbao
Athletic Club ( eu, Bilboko Athletic Kluba; es, Athletic Club de Bilbao), commonly known as Athletic Bilbao or just Athletic, is a professional football club based in the city of Bilbao in the Basque Country of Spain. They are known as ''Los Le ...
, making 29 appearances in all competitions during his first season at the club.
After making 14 appearances in all competitions during the first half of the 2015-16 season, including two in the
Champions League. On 4 February 2016, he was loaned out by then Valencia manager
Gary Neville
Gary Alexander Neville (born 18 February 1975) is an English football pundit and former player. He is also a co-owner of English Football League club Salford City. After retiring from football in 2011, Neville went into punditry and was a comm ...
to his former side
Racing Club. He scored his first and only goal in a victory against Bolívar on 24 February in the
Copa Libertadores
The CONMEBOL Libertadores, also known as the Copa Libertadores de América ( pt, Copa Libertadores da América), is an annual international club football competition organized by CONMEBOL since 1960. It is the highest level of competition in S ...
.
Udinese
On 20 July 2016, De Paul was transferred to Italian
Serie A
The Serie A (), also called Serie A TIM for national sponsorship with TIM, is a professional league competition for football clubs located at the top of the Italian football league system and the winner is awarded the Scudetto and the Copp ...
club
Udinese. He made his debut on 20 August 2016 against
AS Roma
' (''Rome Sport Association''), commonly referred to as Roma (), is a professional football club based in Rome, Italy. Founded by a merger in 1927, Roma has participated in the top tier of Italian football for all of its existence, except for ...
in a 4–0 defeat. He scored his first goal for the club on 29 January 2017 against
AC Milan
Associazione Calcio Milan (), commonly referred to as AC Milan or simply Milan, is a professional football club in Milan, Italy, founded in 1899. The club has spent its entire history, with the exception of the 1980–81 and 1982–83 season ...
in a 2–1 victory.
He started the
2018–19 season with four goals in the first six matches of the Serie A season. He would finish the season as Udinese top goal scorer with nine goals during the
2018–19 Udinese Calcio season
The 2018–19 season was Udinese Calcio's 39th season in Serie A and their 24th consecutive season in the top-flight. The club competed in Serie A, finishing 12th, and the Coppa Italia, where they were eliminated in the third round.
Spanish coach ...
and also nine assists.
On 15 October 2019, De Paul signed a new five-year contract at Udinese. He would score seven goals and gain six assists for Udinese in Serie A during the 2019–20 season.
De Paul became Udinese's
club captain in December 2020, replacing
Kevin Lasagna.
Atlético Madrid
On 12 July 2021, De Paul signed a five-year contract with
Atlético Madrid
Club Atlético de Madrid, S.A.D. (; meaning "Athletic Club of Madrid"), known simply as Atleti in the Spanish-speaking world and commonly referred to at international level as Atlético Madrid, is a Spanish professional football club based in ...
. He joined his new club just days after winning the
Copa América
The Copa América ( en, America Cup) or CONMEBOL Copa América, known until 1975 as the South American Football Championship (''Campeonato Sudamericano de Fútbol'' in Spanish and ''Campeonato Sul-Americano de Futebol'' in Portuguese), is the t ...
with Argentina. On 7 December 2021, he scored his first goal for the club in a 3–1 away win against
FC Porto
Futebol Clube do Porto, MHIH, OM (), commonly known as FC Porto or simply Porto, is a Portuguese professional sports club based in Porto. It is best known for the professional football team playing in the Primeira Liga, the top flight of Por ...
in the final group game of the
2021–22 UEFA Champions League
The 2021–22 UEFA Champions League was the 67th season of Europe's premier club football tournament organised by UEFA, and the 30th season since it was renamed from the European Champion Clubs' Cup to the UEFA Champions League.
Real Madrid d ...
.
International career
De Paul made his senior international debut for
Argentina
Argentina (), officially the Argentine Republic ( es, link=no, República Argentina), is a country in the southern half of South America. Argentina covers an area of , making it the second-largest country in South America after Brazil, t ...
in a 4–0 victory against
Iraq
Iraq,; ku, عێراق, translit=Êraq officially the Republic of Iraq, '; ku, کۆماری عێراق, translit=Komarî Êraq is a country in Western Asia. It is bordered by Turkey to Iraq–Turkey border, the north, Iran to Iran–Iraq ...
on 11 October 2018, and later became a regular under manager
Lionel Scaloni; he was part of the Argentina squad that finished third in the
Copa América 2019
Copa or COPA may refer to:
COPA
COPA may refer to:
* Computer Operator Programming Assistant. trade of ITI
* Child Online Protection Act, a former U.S. law to protect minors from certain material on the internet
* Canadian Owners and Pilots Ass ...
after beating
Chile
Chile, officially the Republic of Chile, is a country in the western part of South America. It is the southernmost country in the world, and the closest to Antarctica, occupying a long and narrow strip of land between the Andes to the eas ...
2–1 in the third-place match.
On 3 July 2021, De Paul scored the opening goal in a 3–0 win over
Ecuador
Ecuador ( ; ; Quechuan languages, Quechua: ''Ikwayur''; Shuar language, Shuar: ''Ecuador'' or ''Ekuatur''), officially the Republic of Ecuador ( es, República del Ecuador, which literally translates as "Republic of the Equator"; Quechuan ...
in the quarter-finals of the
2021 Copa América
The 2021 Copa América was the 47th edition of the Copa América, the international men's football championship organised by South America's football ruling body CONMEBOL. The tournament took place in Brazil from 13 June to 10 July 2021. The to ...
in Brazil. In the
final
Final, Finals or The Final may refer to:
* Final (competition), the last or championship round of a sporting competition, match, game, or other contest which decides a winner for an event
** Another term for playoffs, describing a sequence of con ...
of the tournament against the hosts
Brazil
Brazil ( pt, Brasil; ), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Portuguese: ), is the largest country in both South America and Latin America. At and with over 217 million people, Brazil is the world's fifth-largest country by area ...
, De Paul's long pass set up
Ángel Di María
Ángel Fabián Di María (born 14 February 1988) is an Argentine professional footballer who plays for club Juventus and the Argentina national team. He can play as either a winger or attacking midfielder.
Di María began his career with ...
to score the only goal of the match, allowing Argentina to capture their joint record 15th Copa América title and their first major international title since
2008
File:2008 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Lehman Brothers went bankrupt following the Subprime mortgage crisis; Cyclone Nargis killed more than 138,000 in Myanmar; A scene from the opening ceremony of the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing ...
.
He was also part of the squad that won the
2022 FIFA World Cup
The 2022 FIFA World Cup is an international football tournament contested by the men's national teams of FIFA's member associations. The 22nd FIFA World Cup is taking place in Qatar from 20 November to 18 December 2022; it is the first Wo ...
.
Personal life
Rodrigo's mother is of
Italian
Italian(s) may refer to:
* Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries
** Italians, an ethnic group or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom
** Italian language, a Romance language
*** Regional Ita ...
descent, which earned him
Italian citizenship
Italian nationality law is the law of Italy governing the acquisition, transmission and loss of Italian citizenship. Like many continental European countries it is largely based on ''jus sanguinis''. It also incorporates many elements that are ...
.
De Paul was in a relationship with Argentine model Camila Homs for twelve years. They have two children together. In January 2022, the couple confirmed that they were separating. De Paul has been in a relationship with Argentine singer
Tini Stoessel
Martina Stoessel Muzlera (; born 21 March 1997), known professionally as Tini (stylised in all caps), is an Argentine singer, songwriter, actress, dancer and model. She began her career by appearing on the Argentine children's television series ...
since August 2022.
Career statistics
Club
International
:''Scores and results list Argentina's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each De Paul goal.''
Honours
Argentina
*
FIFA World Cup
The FIFA World Cup, often simply called the World Cup, is an international association football competition contested by the senior List of men's national association football teams, men's national teams of the members of the ' (FIFA), the ...
:
2022
File:2022 collage V1.png, Clockwise, from top left: Road junction at Yamato-Saidaiji Station several hours after the assassination of Shinzo Abe; Anti-government protest in Sri Lanka in front of the Presidential Secretariat; The global monkeyp ...
*
Copa América
The Copa América ( en, America Cup) or CONMEBOL Copa América, known until 1975 as the South American Football Championship (''Campeonato Sudamericano de Fútbol'' in Spanish and ''Campeonato Sul-Americano de Futebol'' in Portuguese), is the t ...
:
2021
File:2021 collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: the James Webb Space Telescope was launched in 2021; Protesters in Yangon, Myanmar following the coup d'état; A civil demonstration against the October 2021 coup in Sudan; Crowd shortly after t ...
*
CONMEBOL–UEFA Cup of Champions
The CONMEBOL–UEFA Cup of Champions, previously known officially as the European/South American Nations Cup and commonly as the Artemio Franchi Cup, is an official intercontinental football match organised by CONMEBOL and UEFA and contested ...
:
2022
File:2022 collage V1.png, Clockwise, from top left: Road junction at Yamato-Saidaiji Station several hours after the assassination of Shinzo Abe; Anti-government protest in Sri Lanka in front of the Presidential Secretariat; The global monkeyp ...
Individual
*Copa América Team of the Tournament:
2021
File:2021 collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: the James Webb Space Telescope was launched in 2021; Protesters in Yangon, Myanmar following the coup d'état; A civil demonstration against the October 2021 coup in Sudan; Crowd shortly after t ...
References
External links
Profileat the Atlético Madrid website
*
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:De Paul, Rodrigo
1994 births
Living people
Argentine people of Italian descent
People from Avellaneda Partido
Argentine footballers
Association football midfielders
Argentine Primera División players
Racing Club de Avellaneda footballers
La Liga players
Valencia CF players
Atlético Madrid footballers
Serie A players
Udinese Calcio players
Argentine expatriate footballers
Argentine expatriate sportspeople in Spain
Argentine expatriate sportspeople in Italy
Expatriate footballers in Spain
Expatriate footballers in Italy
Argentina international footballers
2019 Copa América players
2021 Copa América players
2022 FIFA World Cup players
FIFA World Cup-winning players
Copa América-winning players
Footballers from Buenos Aires