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Tue 16 March 2021 | 8:30

Top Facts About Diego Forlan, Two-Time Winner of European Golden Shoe

Meet the two-time winner of both the Pichichi Trophy and the European Golden Shoe, Diego Forlan. He is a Uruguayan professional football manager and former player who played as a forward. Stay tuned and find out the untold top facts about Diego Forlan in this article.

During his career Diego Forlan played in big clubs like Manchester United, Villarreal, Atletico Madrid and other clubs. The footballer is a remarkable player with a unique tactic and style of play. According to Diego Forlan stats he is one of the best top scorers. In this article we will also fill you in with the details about Diego Forlan transfer market stats.

Don’t miss the story of how the football legend set foot in the road of fame. We will start with Diego Forlan childhood and then go through his remarkable achievements during his career; Of course the story is not just about football and professional career, it is also about Diego Forlan personal life. The footballer is a married man you might want to know the details about

Diego Forlan wife

and kids as well.

Top Facts About Diego Forlan You Probably Didn’t Know

Forlan played at international level as well. He made a great appearance and amazed everyone with his remarkable performance. Since he first debut on 2002 until 2015 the footballer scored 36 goals just on international level for his country. He is an ambidextrous footballer who is capable of playing with either foot. Find out the top facts about Diego Forlan in this article. Now without further adding let’s begin.

Diego Forlan Childhood and Early Life

Let’s start with

Diego Forlan Childhood

. Diego Forlan was born in Montevideo, Uruguay, on 19th May 1979. Diego Forlan parents are both Uruguayan. The footballer was raised in a family of professional footballers. He is the son of former footballer Pablo Forlan. His grandfather was also a professional footballer who played at international level. Forlan decided to follow his father’s footsteps and become a professional footballer. In his early days Forlan played tennis but eventually pursed football as a career. As a footballer he showed remarkable skills and a promising future was waiting for him. Diego Forlan parents encouraged their son to fulfill his dream.

Diego Forlan age was 12 when his 17-year-old sister Alejandra had a car accident with her boyfriend. Neither of them had their seatbelts on. Her boyfriend was killed instantly, and she was paralyzed for life.

Diego Forlan parents

were devastated when they heard about their daughter’s car accident. Diego Maradona met Forlan’s father, and he helped raise a fund to help Alejandra with her treatment. Back in 1995, Diego went to France by manager Laszlo Boloni, and he stayed on trial at AS Nancy for several months. Eventually, the club didn’t sign a contract with him, and Forlan went back to South America.

Forlan Joins the Red Devils

The talented footballer played for lots of South American clubs like Argentine side

Independiente

. According to Diego Forlan stats he scored 37 goals in 80 league games. His goal scoring abilities put him under the spotlight and European clubs were looking forward to sign a contract with him. In January 2002, Independiente got a £7 million offer from

Middlesbrough

to buy the player in 18 installments.

Forlan flew to England, but the last minute Manchester United offered the same fee plus more profitable salary for Forlan all in one payment. At a press conference the footballer explained: “Manchester United is a big club, so I've decided to go there, the thing is, they offered more money than Middlesbrough.” Later he joined Manchester United. On 22 January 2002, Forlan signed a contract with Sir Alex Ferguson the famous manager of Manchester United.

On 29 January, he made his debut for the club in a 4-0 victory as a substitute at Bolton Wanderers. Forlan appeared in 13

Premier League

and five UEFA Champions League games in the 2001-02 season but he didn’t score any goals. He scored his first Premier League goal in a 1-1 draw over

Aston Villa

on 26 October. More

top facts about Diego Forlan

are in the way.

Diego Forlan Odd Goal Celebration

On 2 November, the footballer appeared in his next Premier League game, at home against Southampton. He substituted for Phil Neville the team’s goal scorer in 79th-minute and scored the winning goal with a kick over goalkeeper Antti Niemi in the 85th minute. The goal made lots of headlines and became notable due to the odd goal celebration of the Uruguayan footballer. Forlan ripped off his Jersey but later as the game went on he had a hard time putting it back so he continued shirtless.

On 1 December, the talented footballer scored twice for

Red Devils

as he scored in the 64th and 67th minute of an away 2–1 Premier League victory at rivals Liverpool. On 18 January 2003, Forlan scored the winning goal as Manchester defeated

Chelsea

in the Football League Cup finals. The talented footballer went on with his remarkable performance and scored numerous goals for his team. But this was just the beginning and Forlan made his way to the top. Learn more top facts about Diego Forlan in the following.

Forlan Manchester United Third Best Scoring Striker

On 18 January 2003, once again Forlan scored the winning goal over Chelsea, and the Red Devils defeated them but this time in a Premier League game. In the 2003-04 season the Red Devils won the Premier League title and based on

Diego Forlan stats

he scored six goals and became the club’s third best scoring striker after Ruud van Nistelrooy and Ole Gunnar Solskjær. His next season at Manchester United wasn’t so pleasant as he made 3 appearances but didn’t score any goal for the team.

Forlan didn’t perform in the team’s 3-0 win against

Millwall

in the 2004 FA Cup Final on 22 May 2004. Although the footballer didn’t make lots of success with the Red Devils but the team’s fans still remember the two goals he scored over

Liverpool

and sing his name: “He came from Uruguay, he made the Scousers cry.” Forlan admits that this still makes him smile. Find out more top facts about Diego Forlan in the following.

Diego Forlan Joins Villarreal

According to

Diego Forlan transfer market stats

on 21 August 2004, he reached agreement with the Spanish club, Villarreal. The footballer made his debut for the club on 30 August 2004, in an away game against Valencia. Forlan scored his first goal in the 77th minute of a 2–1 loss. The footballer showed a remarkable performance and amazed everyone with his scoring abilities.

In a 2-0 home victory against

Real Zaragoza

on 3 October, he scored his second goal and later scored an equalizer in a 1–1 draw at Mallorca and the final goal of a 4–0 victory at home against Numancia. From 12 December 2004 to 16 January 2005, he scored 7 goals in five Primera Division games including a brace in a 3-0 home win against

Barcelona

on 9 January. More top facts about Diego Forlan are in the way.

Forlan The Winner of Pichichi Trophy and The European Golden Boot

On 22 May 2005, Forlan scored the first hat-trick in his whole career with all the goals in a 3-3 away draw over eventual league champions Barcelona. After two weeks the top scorer grabbed a brace in a 4-1 win against local rivals Levante. Villarreal finished the season in third place and got qualified for the Champions League for the first time in the club’s history. Forlan is a talented footballer, technically gifted, hardworking and creative player with great vision. His speed, intelligence has turned him into a tough opponent.

The football legend won the 2004–05 Pichichi Trophy for several goals he scored in

La Liga

. The trophy is awarded every La Liga season to the top scorers by sports newspaper Marca. So far Lionel Messi won the award seven times. The footballer also shared the 2005 European Golden Boot with Arsenal striker Thierry Henry. Villarreal reached Champions League semi-finals and later they were defeated by

Arsenal

. The 2006-07 season was the final season for Forlan, and he finished with 19 goals in 36 league games. Find out more top facts about Diego Forlan in the following.

Forlan Helped Atletico Madrid Qualify for The Champions League

According to Diego Forlan transfer market stats in June 2007 he was linked to the Spanish club Atletico Madrid. He signed a contract with the club for the reported fee of £18 million. In February 2008, the footballer returned to England so he could play in the UEFA Cup clash over Bolton Wanderers (the same club he made his Manchester United debut against) however the game ended in a 1-0 defeat for Madrid.

Forlan worked hard and once again showed his remarkable goal-scoring abilities and amazed everyone. He assisted the club qualify for the

Champions League

for the first time in ten years. Forlan scored the winning goal over Deportivo de La Coruna. He finished his first season with 23 goals in 53 games. He also formed a friendship with fellow teammate

Sergio Aguero

. Find out more

top facts about Diego Forlan

in the following.

The Two-Time Winner of Pichichi Trophy and The Golden Boot

In the 2008-09 season, the footballer grabbed a brace over Espanyol and helped his team to a Champions League qualification for a second successive year. Forlan scored the goal of the season against Los Rojiblancos and Atletico Madrid won the game 3-2. Forlan performance and the numerous goals he scored have turned him into a remarkable football legend. He also scored memorable winning goals against Barcelona, his previous club Villarreal, and Valencia. On 23 May 2009, the top scorer scored his second hat-trick over Athletic Bilbao which earned him the second La Liga Pichichi Trophy and the European Golden Boot.

He had a great season and finished with 32 goals in 33 games. The 2009–10 season wasn’t pleasant like the previous season as

Atletico Madrid

experienced some setbacks. The start of the season was the worst since they relegated in 2000. On 24 October 2009, Forlan scored a penalty and missed the second one. It was a 1-1 draw over

Mallorca

. The result was devastating and the team’s supporters and fans protested. Forlan received criticism for his performance and he was left out of the next game. Forlan improved his performance in the second half of the season and scored several goals.

The team got qualified for the finals of both the Europa League and Copa del Rey. He finished the season with 28 goals. Forlan started the next season winning the UEFA Super Cup, defeating Inter Milan 2–0 in Monaco on 27 August 2010. However, the rest of the season wasn’t so good as the footballer wen 12 games in all competitions without scoring any goals. Later he grabbed a brace in a 3-0 victory over Osasuna on 13 November. More

top facts about Diego Forlan

are in the way.

Forlan Uruguay’s Top Scorer of All Time

During his career, the footballer served for more than ten big clubs. He also played at the international level playing for

Uruguay national team

. He scored several memorable goals. He won an award as the best player in the world cup in 2010. He was also awarded the Golden Ball and the joint top scorer at the 2010 world cup scoring 5 goals. His 100th cap came in the 2013 FIFA Confederations Cup game over

Nigeria

.

On 11 October 2011, the footballer scored his 32nd goal which turned him into Uruguay's top scorer of all time in official games, taking over Hector Scarone's record who scored 31 goals since 1930. The footballer was a member of the Uruguay squad for the 2014 World Cup in Brazil.

Diego Forlan age

was 35 back then when he replaced Luis Suarez in a game against Costa Rica. He made a shot which was saved by Costa Rican goalkeeper Keylor Navas and Uruguay was defeated 3-1.

On 11 March 2015, the top scorer declared his retirement from the national team. He appeared with 112 caps and scored 36 goals. On 20 December 2019, the retired footballer was appointed as manager of his former club

Penarol

. He didn’t make such a good performance as a manager. Forlan was in charge of 11 games, but the team won only 4 games. On 1 September 2020, he was left out. Currently the footballer plays at the Hong Kong Premier League club

Kitchee

. Find out facts about

Diego Forlan personal life

in the following.

Diego Forlan Wife and His Dating History

Now let’s get into the details of Diego Forlan personal life and his love life. On 9 March 2011, the footballer announced on his Twitter that he and the Argentinian model and actress Zaira Nara got engaged after two years of dating. According to FHM magazine, Zaira was ranked 47th of the world’s sexiest women in 2010. She also appeared on the cover of Argentine editions of Cosmopolitan and Women's Health. However, their relationship didn’t work out and in June 2011, Forlan and his finance got separated. Later Zaira stated: “Now what I can say is thank goodness I didn't get married!”

Currently, Forlan is a married man. He got married to the stunning Uruguayan, Paz Cardoso. Diego Forlan wife is a medicine student. The couple met each other at a club and they were introduced to each other by a mutual friend.  The couple fell in love instantly and started dating. Their relationship went very well and the pair bonded. On July 2, 2013, the stunning beauty walked down the aisle wearing the traditional white dress. They were announced husband and wife among their family and friends.

Diego Forlan children

As for

Diego Forlan children

, the couple is blessed with three kids. Three years after their wedding ceremony, the couple decided to be parents. In February 2016, the pair welcomed their son Martin and in May 2017 their daughter Luz was born. In February 2019, their second boy Cesar was born. The couple couldn’t be happier with three beautiful children. They spent a lot of quality time with the kids and they constantly share pictures of the children on social media.

On February 19, Paz posted a photo of their daughter’s birthday and captioned: “we keep celebrating, happy 5th birthday to the biggest hottie in the house.” Forlan is blessed with a lovely wife and three beautiful kids. Judging by the photos his wife Paz recently posted on her Instagram, the couple is expecting another child. Find out facts about Diego Forlan net worth and salary in the following.

Diego Forlan Net Worth and Salary

Now let’s get into the details of

Diego Forlan salary

and earnings. The footballer was once included in the list of the top paid Uruguayan footballers list. The remarkable footballer showed how down to earth he is by signing a contract with the Hong Kong professional football club which is based in Kowloon. He was the most expensive Kitchee signing. Diego Forlan salary at this club hasn’t been announced and it’s still a mystery for everyone.

Coach Chu Chu-Kwong described Forlan: “He spoke to all the players in the changing room just like a newcomer and never put himself like a big shot which he should be, He is a smart player.” Back in 2009, the footballer took part in a music video for Coti starring along with Argentine Footballer Maxi Rodriguez. At the time Forlan was in Atletico Madrid he received more than £3 million per year.

Diego Forlan net worth

is estimated to be more than £20 million.

Diego Forlan Social Media Accounts

Now let’s get into the details of

Diego Forlan social media accounts

. The footballer is widely followed on social media, and he is very popular. Forlan is available by the username of

@diegoforlancorazo

on Instagram. More than 500k fans follow the football legend. So far he has posted more than 200 pictures. On May 20, 2019, he posted a photo of his 40th birthday along with his wife and kids. He captioned: “Thank you so much for the messages received and for your love!”

As for other Diego Forlan social media accounts, you can find the footballer by the username of

@DiegoForlan7

on Twitter. More than 5 million fans follow Forlan on this platform. On Facebook, he is signed up by the username of

@DiegoForlanOficial

. More than 6 million fans follow the football legend. You can follow Forlan on social media and get more updates on his daily life. Hope you got all the information needed.

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source: SportMob



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