Leandro Atilio Romagnoli (born March 17, 1981 in Buenos Aires) is an Argentine footballer who currently plays for Club Atlético San Lorenzo de Almagro in the Argentine first division.

Mainly an attacking midfielder, his thin build, short stature and playing style are reminiscent of compatriot Osvaldo Ardiles. What Romagnoli - nicknamed Pipi - lacks in physical strength, he makes up for with dribbling ability.

[edit] Club career

Romagnoli made his professional debuts in December 1998, aged 17, with Club Atlético San Lorenzo de Almagro. By his second season, he was an automatic first-choice, and went on appear in roughly 200 overall matches for the club.

In 2005, Romagnoli signed with Mexico's CD Veracruz but, in January of the following year, was on the move again, now to Sporting Clube de Portugal, first on loan. The player initially found it difficult to adjust to the faster pace and more physical approach in Europe. However, Romagnoli came into his own in the 2006–07 season, in a superb end-of-season run for both club and player; the move was made permanent in that summer.

After having appeared in only 16 matches in 2008–09, being out of favour with manager Paulo Bento, Romagnoli left the club in early August 2009. He quickly signed a return to San Lorenzo.

[edit] International career

Romagnoli was part of the Argentina Under-20 team that won the 2001 FIFA World Youth Championship. He made his debut with the full side against the United States, on February 8, 2003, playing 12 minutes in a 1–0 friendly win.^[1]

[edit] Honours

[edit] Club

• Argentine League: Clausura 2001
• Mercosur Cup: 2001
• South American Cup: 2002
• Portuguese Cup: 2006–07, 2007–08
• Portuguese Supercup: 2007, 2008

[edit] International

• FIFA U-20 World Cup: 2001

[edit] References

[edit] External links

• Argentine League statistics (Spanish)
• Stats and profile at Zerozero
• PortuGOAL profile
• NationalFootballTeams data
• Guardian statistics