About

Emiliano "Emilio" Adrian Insúa Zapata (born 7 January 1989) is an Argentine footballer who plays in the left-back or centre back positions, and he currently playing for English Premier League club Liverpool.

Background

Club Football

Insúa began his football career with youth team Pinocho in Argentina, later moving to, Buenos Aires-based team, Boca Juniors. The left-back did not break into the first-team at La Bombonera but nevertheless caught the attention of Liverpool. The defender agreed to an 18 month loan deal with the Merseyside club on 28 November 2006, beginning his loan period in January. Insúa soon got a chance to impress, making his first-team debut against Portsmouth on 28 April 2007. However, he only made one more league appearance that season.

His loan deal was made permanent in August 2007 in the deal which saw Gabriel Paletta moved to Boca Juniors . The following season Insúa made only three more first-team league appearances but found success with Gary Ablett's Premier Reserve League winning team; along with other Liverpool FC youngsters.His performances impressed manager Rafael Benítez enough to offer him a new deal at the club. Insúa signed a three year contract on 2 July 2008. Insua was given the number 22 shirt for the start of the 2008-2009 campaign.In December 2008 Insua got a run of games in the Liverpool team, due to an injury to Fábio Aurélio and also due to the disappointing form of Andrea Dossena. His biggest opportunity came on December 21, 2008 against Arsenal F.C. Insua greatly impressed during his spell of games, leaving many fans believing that he is almost Liverpool's first choice left back.

International Football

The player succeeded on the Under-20's international scene, playing 3 games to finish with the runner-up medal at the South American U-20 Championship, which served as a qualifier for the World U-20 World Cup where he played seven games and aiding the Argentina Under-20 team to victory against the Czech Republic in the FIFA U-20 World Cup final on 22 July 2007. On January 5, 2009, Liverpool announced that Emiliano will be participating in the 2009 South American Youth Championship in Venezuela, meaning he will miss crucial Premier League matches against Everton FC, Wigan Athletic FC, and the massive top-of-the-table head-to-head with rivals Chelsea FC. He is captain of the Argentina national under-20 football team.

International Goals

Awards and Honours

Personal Awards

Career Statistics

M = Matches, G = Goals, A = Assists

Personal Info

Wife / Girlfriend

Sponsors

Important Links

Official Liverpool FC profile

References