Peru: Claudio Pizarro

Written by Timothy Nyangacha

Source: Charis Sevis (Flickr)

37 year old forward Claudio Pizarro, who is the captain for the national team, has the potential to have a breakout performance at this year’s Copa America. Pizarro is expected to be the most experienced player on the national team, making 85 appearances and scoring 20 goals for Peru in all competitions over his 17 year international career [3]. As of March 2016, he was only six goals shy of becoming Peru’s all-time top scorer [4].

Pizarro made his first major appearance for the senior national team at the 1999 Copa America held in Paraguay and was in the starting lineup for three matches [2]. He has also competed in the 2004, 2007, and 2015 Copa Americas [2]. Peru has had some success throughout his international career at the Copa America tournament, coming in third place at the 2015 Copa America [3]. However, the nation has not qualified for a World Cup since 1982 [4].

At the club level, Pizarro has had an incredibly successful career in the German Bundesliga. In his three stints with club Werder Bremen (1999-2001, 2008-2012, 2015-) and two stints with Bayern Munich (2001-2007, 2012-2015), “Pizarro has scored more Bundesliga goals than any other non-German player, and with a total of 188 strikes for Bayern and Bremen [as of April 20, 2016], is the fifth top goal scorer in Bundesliga history” [2, 6]. He played on Bayern squads that won 6 Bundesliga titles, the 2012-2013 UEFA Champions League title, and the 2013 FIFA Club World Cup [1]. Pizarro also played for Chelsea for the 2007-2008 season [2]. He made some history this season with Werder Bremen, becoming the oldest player ever to score a hat trick in the Bundesliga in a March 2, 2016 match against Bayer Leverkusen [5].

For Peru to have success at this year’s Copa America Centenario, Pizarro will likely have to make a significant impact with his excellent technique and goal-scoring capabilities.

How To Cite This Article: Nyangacha, Timothy. “Peru: Claudio Pizarro.” Sites.duke.edu., accessed MM/DD, YYYY, http://sites.duke.edu/wcwp/tournament-guides/copa-america-centenario-2016-guide/players-to-watch-at-the-copa-america-centenario-2016/peru-claudio-pizarro/

 

Bibliography

[1] “C. Pizarro.” Soccerway.com., accessed 04/28, 2016, http://int.soccerway.com/players/claudio-miguel-pizarro-bossio/2054/.

[2] “Claudio Pizarro.” Worldfootball.net., accessed 04/28, 2016, http://www.worldfootball.net/player_summary/claudio-pizarro/2/.

[3] “Peru National Football Team.” Wikipedia.org., last modified April 27, 2016, accessed 04/28, 2016, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peru_national_football_team#Copa_Am.C3.A9rica.

[4] “Pizarro: My Dream is to Reach the World Cup with Peru.” FIFA.com., last modified March 7, 2016, accessed 04/28, 2016, http://www.fifa.com/worldcup/news/y=2016/m=3/news=pizarro-my-dream-is-to-reach-the-world-cup-with-peru-2768967.html.

[5] Davie, Chris. “Claudio Pizarro Breaks Bundesliga Record that Lasted 31 Years.” Goal.com., last modified March 3, 2016, accessed 04/28, 2016, http://www.goal.com/en-us/news/87/germany/2016/03/03/20948312/claudio-pizarro-breaks-bundesliga-record-that-lasted-31.

[6] Uersfeld, Stephan. “Claudio Pizarro Hints at New Werder Bremen Deal.” Espnfc.us., last modified April 20, 2016, accessed 04/28, 2016, http://www.espnfc.us/werder-bremen/story/2854709/claudio-pizarro-hints-at-new-werder-bremen-deal.

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