From punching Spurs new boy Erik Lamela to bicycle kicking his way to success, there’s an interesting character underneath this Johnny Depp-looking exterior
He’s the man who just joined Southampton, looks like Johnny Depp, and drives a mini plastered with the Argentine flag despite playing for the Italian national side. You might say he’s some man for one man.
That aside, he’s a real footballing talent, something which can’t be ignored either. Something which we really admire is his penchant for a spectacular bicycle kick, no matter what type of situation he finds himself in.
But we’ll head back to the start of Osvaldo’s career for this story. He was born in Argentina, and started his playing career there with Huracan in the second division of the Argentine leauge. However, his talent was noticed early, and after less than a year he was snapped up by Atalanta in Italy. There, he only played three games before moving to Lecce, where he was a more regular fixture in the team. That was only a part ownership deal (something which occurs regularly in European and South American football) so after he impressed for them, Atalanta bought all of his rights, and then sold him to Fiorentina.
He was equally good there, but his journeying around Italy wasn’t finished yet, as he signed for Bologna on loan in 2009. From there he moved to Espanyol, where many La Liga fans might be more familiar with him. It was there that he finally hit his highest tally of goals, and the world of European football woke up to his talent.
His move to Espanyol had originally been a loan, but he was snapped up on a permanent deal and began knocking in a goal every second game.
With a scoring rate like that, and Espanyol in constant financial difficulties, he ended up on the move again in 2011, but Roma this time had to fork over some real cash to get him: €15 million.
He became a star of that team and a fan favourite, not least because he was incredibly stylish and looks a bit like Johnny Depp. That sartorial sophistication meant he was featured in the most stylish men of the Premier League despite being a new addition to the league. Back to his time at Roma however, where he did plenty more of that bicycle kicking stuff.
His time in the Italian capital wasn’t without controversy however, as after a defeat to Udinese, it seems that Osvaldo and Lamela had a bit of a disagreement, and that ended in a punch up. Well, we say punch up, Osvaldo decked Lamela and it ended there by all accounts. Spurs fans will be looking forward to having the young Argentine in their ranks, but this was one of the many signs that in terms of character, he might be lacking a little bit.
Anyway, back to the matter at hand. Like many Argentines, Osvaldo also held Italian citizenship. In fact, it is believed that there are as many as 4 million people in Argentina who hold Italian passports. Anyway, he clearly had a connection to the country in which he was born, which was well evidenced by his brilliantly decorated Mini. By all accounts, the insides are similarly decked out with the Argentine colours, and the sun from the flag on the headrests.
So naturally, he ended up being called up for Italy, after Diego Maradona managed to somehow miss him off the list for Argentina, while calling up approximately 765 other players and 14 amateurs during his tenure.
His move to Southampton came this summer, and while it surprised a few, perhaps Mauricio Pochettino was able to pull in a few Argentine connections and have the banter with Pablo, we’ll never know. Saints fans can look forward to seeing him scoring freely (we hope) in the Premier League, and we’ll be looking forward to more bicycle kicks. Also, he looks cool even when he’s meeting the Pope.
