Leandro Cufré
Encyclopedia
Leandro Damián Cufré is an Argentinian footballer, currently plays as a defender
Defender (association football)
Within the sport of association football, a defender is an outfield player whose primary role is to prevent the opposition from attacking....

 for GNK Dinamo Zagreb.

Career

Cufré began his professional career at Gimnasia La Plata U-19 before being promoted to the first-team squad
Club de Gimnasia y Esgrima La Plata
Club de Gimnasia y Esgrima La Plata Gimnasia y Esgrima was promoted to the first division after becoming champions of the División Intermedia of Argentine football in 1915. Later, in 1929, the club would become champions of the Primera División...

 in January 1996. He went on to play 129 games, scoring 4 goals in the progress.

AS Roma

Cufré moved to Roma
A.S. Roma
Associazione Sportiva Roma, commonly referred to as simply Roma, is a professional Italian football club based in Rome. Founded by a merger in 1927, Roma have participated in the top-tier of Italian football for all of their existence but one season in the early 50s...

 in January 2002. During his time at the Italian giants, he played 80 games, scored two goals and received the award for Best Defender in Italy. He was also loaned out to fellow Italian side Siena, where he played 35 times.

AS Monaco FC

Cufré moved to France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...

 in Summer 2006, joining Ligue 1
Ligue 1
Ligue 1 , is the French professional league for association football clubs. It is the country's primary football competition and serves as the top division of the French football league system. Ligue 1 is one of two divisions making up the Ligue de Football Professionnel, the other being Ligue 2....

 side AS Monaco
AS Monaco FC
Association Sportive de Monaco Football Club are a French football club based in Fontvieille, Monaco. The club was founded in 1924 and currently play in Ligue 2, the second tier of French football. The team plays its home matches at the Stade Louis II located within Fontvieille...

 During his time at the club, he made 61 appearances and managed to score three goals. Cufré was a regular starter and, eventually, vice-captain of the team.

Hertha BSC

On 29 January 2009, Bundesliga
Fußball-Bundesliga
The Fußball-Bundesliga is a professional association football league in Germany. At the top of Germany's football league system, it is the country's primary football competition. It is contested by 18 teams and operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the 2. Bundesliga...

 side Hertha Berlin announced that they had loaned Cufré from AS Monaco until the end of the 2008–09 season. He returned to Monaco in June 2008.

Gimnasia La Plata

On 18 July 2009, Cufré returned to Gimnasia La Plata after eight years in Europe. On 16 August 2009, after a mini "soap opera," the Argentine wingback asked for – and was granted – his release due to a conflictive relation with Leonardo Madelón, the head coach at the time (though, personal reasons were officially cited).

Dinamo Zagreb

On 19 August 2009, he officially signed a contract with Croatian champions Dinamo Zagreb
Dinamo Zagreb
GNK Dinamo Zagreb, commonly referred to as Dinamo Zagreb , or by their nickname Modri are a Croatian football club based in Zagreb. They play their home matches at Stadion Maksimir. They are the most successful club in Croatian football, having won thirteen Croatian championship titles, ten...

 who had reportedly been persuading him to join the club since the summer transfer window opened. Cufré became a favourite with the Dinamo fans because of his commitment on the pitch. He played in many important matches for Dinamo. In 2011 he was linked with a transfer to Crvena Zvezda (Red Star Belgrade) but the deal fell through. Cufre played in 53 matches for Dinamo.

International career

Leandro Cufré has earned 17 caps for Argentina
Argentina
Argentina , officially the Argentine Republic , is the second largest country in South America by land area, after Brazil. It is constituted as a federation of 23 provinces and an autonomous city, Buenos Aires...

, his first appearance coming in 2000. He was part of the Argentina Under-20
Argentina national under-20 football team
The Argentina national under-20 football team is the representative of Argentina in FIFA sponsored tournaments that pertain to that age level....

 team that won the 1997 FIFA World Youth Championship
1997 FIFA World Youth Championship
The 1997 FIFA World Youth Championship was the 11th staging of the FIFA World Youth Championship. It was held from June 16 to July 5, 1997 in Malaysia.-Venues:-Qualification:The following 24 teams qualified for the 1997 FIFA World Youth Championship...

 in Malaysia.
Cufré was also a member of the Argentina squad for the 2006 FIFA World Cup
2006 FIFA World Cup
The 2006 FIFA World Cup was the 18th FIFA World Cup, the quadrennial international football world championship tournament. It was held from 9 June to 9 July 2006 in Germany, which won the right to host the event in July 2000. Teams representing 198 national football associations from all six...

 in Germany. On 30 June 2006, Cufré was red carded
Misconduct (football)
Misconduct in association football is any conduct by a player that is deemed by the referee to warrant a disciplinary sanction in accordance with Law 12 of the Laws of the Game. Misconduct may occur at any time, including when the ball is out of play, during half-time and before and after the...

 for violent conduct in an altercation following the World Cup quarter-final match against Germany
Germany national football team
The Germany national football team is the football team that has represented Germany in international competition since 1908. It is governed by the German Football Association , which was founded in 1900....

, which Argentina lost 4–2 on penalties. Germany's Per Mertesacker
Per Mertesacker
Per Mertesacker is a German footballer who plays as a defender for Arsenal and Germany. Mertesacker is a youth product of Hannover 96 and he made his senior league debut in November 2003. Mertesacker was soon dubbed "the Defence Pole" by German tabloids and gained a reputation for his good...

 said Cufré, an unused substitute in the match, "attacked me even though I did not do anything. I have three or four red marks on my thigh and then he kicked me again in the groin." FIFA
FIFA
The Fédération Internationale de Football Association , commonly known by the acronym FIFA , is the international governing body of :association football, futsal and beach football. Its headquarters are located in Zurich, Switzerland, and its president is Sepp Blatter, who is in his fourth...

 president Sepp Blatter
Sepp Blatter
Joseph S. Blatter , commonly known as Sepp Blatter, is a Swiss football administrator, who serves as the 8th and current President of FIFA . He was elected on 8 June 1998, succeeding João Havelange. He was re-elected as President in 2002, 2007, and 2011...

 said "I am furious about that and our disciplinary committee will monitor this incident. We will take some steps towards those who are identified as being the 'provocateurs' of this incident." FIFA fined Cufré CHF
Swiss franc
The franc is the currency and legal tender of Switzerland and Liechtenstein; it is also legal tender in the Italian exclave Campione d'Italia. Although not formally legal tender in the German exclave Büsingen , it is in wide daily use there...

 10,000 and suspended him for four matches. For this attack, Cufré received a red card, which made him the first player ever to be sent off in a World Cup match after the final whistle.

Honours

Dinamo Zagreb
  • Croatian First League (2): 2009–10
    2009–10 Prva HNL
    The 2009–10 Prva HNL season was the nineteenth season of the Prva HNL since its establishment in 1992. It began on 24 July 2009 and ended on 13 May 2010...

    , 2010–11
    2010–11 Prva HNL
    The 2010–11 Prva HNL season was the twentieth season of the Prva HNL since its establishment in 1992. It began on 23 July 2010 and ended on 21 May 2011...

  • Croatian Cup
    Croatian Cup
    The Croatian Cup is an annually held football tournament for Croatian football clubs and is the second most important competition in Croatian football after the Prva HNL league championship. It is governed by the Croatian Football Federation and usually runs from late August to May...

     (1): 2010–11
    2010–11 Croatian Cup
    The 2010–11 Croatian Cup is the twentieth season of Croatia's football knockout competition.The defending champions are Hajduk Split, having won their 5th title the previous year by defeating Šibenik in the final....


External links

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