Paris Saint-Germain has always had a romantic affair with Brazilian players. Some of the more prolific players in the club’s near 50-year history have come from the South American country. However, there’s another area on the continent that’s beginning to supply the capital club with potential legends.
The reason for this article is due to the current squad’s reliance on Angel Di Maria and Mauro Icardi partly because of injuries and partly because they’re quality players. Icardi is scoring and breaking PSG records while Di Maria is having a Ballon d’Or-worthy season. As a result, it got me thinking about the impact Argentina has had on the capital club.
Since 2000, the amount of Argentines to dawn the PSG colors has grown. Let’s go down memory lane to see the impact players from Argentina who have made a significant impact during their time in Paris.
The History of Argentines in Paris
In 2001, PSG would bring two Argentines to help with their defense in Gabriel Heinze and Mauricio Pochettino. Both would become the first impactful Argentinians as they spent a significant amount of time with Les Parisiens. Pochettino would appear in 94 matches over two seasons scoring six goals; meanwhile, Heinze appeared in 131 matches while scoring eight goals.
🔴🔵Le but victorieux de Mauricio Pochettino en 2002/03 (1-0). #PSGLOSC pic.twitter.com/ikEzfpBI98
— Histoire du #PSG (@Histoire_du_PSG) February 6, 2017
After the departures of Heinze and Pochettino, the club saw a bit of a drought when it came to Argentines. They did bring the likes of Martin Cardetti, Juan Pablo Sorin, and Marcelo Gallardo; however, all three men played less than 30 matches with PSG, resulting in short stints with the club.
It wouldn’t be until 2011 when Qatar Sports Investment took over that PSG would see another player from Argentina. One of the first big signings QSI made after their takeover was bringing over Javier Pastore from Palermo. El Flaco would go on to become the longest-tenured Argentine, spending seven years in Paris while appearing in 269 matches and scoring 45 goals.
Javier Pastore in 2014 – such a unique player in his prime PSG days but constantly plagued by injury. pic.twitter.com/mgG0QLbWEs
— Get French Football News (@GFFN) April 2, 2019
Although Pastore spent the longest time in Paris, he by no means is the most talented. Arguably the most talented and frustrating for that matter will go to Di Maria. Fideo came to PSG as a bust at Manchester United where he lasted only one season. Despite that, the 31-year-old resurrected his career thus far; in 199 appearances for the club, he’s scored 78 goals making him the highest-scoring Argentine to play for PSG.
Finally, Icardi is more than likely going to continue his tenure in Paris past the loan period this season. Also, if Icardi’s start is any indicator of how his PSG career will play out, then the Argentine will rack up a lot of goals. If health is on his side, then it’s not out of the question to believe that he can become one of the clubs top goal scorers.
Brazil has brought the flare to Paris with players like Leonardo, Neymar Jr., Ronaldinho, etc. However, Argentina is starting to leave a mark on the club, and it will only continue to grow heading into the future.
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