Enzo Francescoli

Enzo Francescoli Uriarte (born 12 November 1961), nicknamed "El Príncipe" ("The Prince"), is a Uruguayan former footballer who played as an attacking midfielder.

He is regarded as one of the best playmakers of his generation and as one of Uruguay's and South America's greatest ever players.

In 1980, he debuted with the Wanderers first team, achieving their best position since their fourth and last national title in 1931, a second-place finish.

His elegant behaviour and playing style earned him the nickname "El Príncipe" ("The Prince"), a nickname inherited from Hannibal Ciocca, a former Wanderers player.

He developed the habit of chewing gum during games in order to avoid dryness in his mouth.

He stated he became so dependent on the habit that he did not feel right when he did not have any gum before games.

In the Uruguayan Primera División in 1981, Francescoli performed well for the team, which finished only behind Peñarol and Nacional.

He played 73 times for the Celeste between 1982 and his retirement in 1997, making him the most capped outfield player in Uruguayan international football at the time.

In February 1982, he made his debut for the Uruguay national team.

Later that year, he made his Copa Libertadores debut, ironically after his worst result with the Wanderers in the national championship, a fifth-place finish.

Despite another successful try-out with South American powerhouse River Plate, which he would later join in 1983, he chose to stay at his high school football team while completing his studies, winning five championships.

In his last year of high school, he received an offer from his hometown club Montevideo Wanderers and joined after graduating.

Vying for a place with his team in the 1983 Copa Libertadores, Francescoli and his team, which included other notable players such as Jorge Barrios, Luis Alberto Acosta, Raúl Esnal and Ariel Krasouski, had a respectable season, finishing first in their group, tied with Nacional, and were only eliminated from the tournament in the quarterfinal play-off match.

After Francescoli won the 1983 Copa América with Uruguay, River Plate signed him later that year for $310,000.

The following year, Francescoli was unable to show his potential, splitting time with other players.

He saw more playing time towards the end of the season when the team reached the Argentine final, but was defeated 3–0 by Ferro Carril Oeste.

Nevertheless, Francescoli, was voted the best South American footballer of 1984 for his performances for River Plate and the Uruguay national team, featuring alongside players such as Nelson Gutiérrez and Antonio Alzamendi, among others.

Eager to excel with River Plate, Francescoli rejected an offer from América de Cali (later found to be funded by the Cali Cartel) which was doing well that year and would go on to become the Copa Libertadores runners-up between 1985 and 1987.

Although the team did not win the championship in 1985, Francescoli was voted Argentina's best player, the first foreign player to be given the honour.

He finally won the Argentine title with River Plate the next season, claiming the 1985–86 Championship which had been re-established as a single tournament.

He ended the season as top scorer with 25 goals, three of which came in a 5–4 victory against Argentinos Juniors for the championship match and qualified for the Copa Libertadores.

He represented his nation at two FIFA World Cups, in 1986 and 1990, also winning the Copa América in 1983, 1987 and 1995.

At club level, Francescoli began his career with Uruguayan club Wanderers.

In neighbouring Argentina, he played for River Plate.

He was the leading scorer and a key player for the club's second Copa Libertadores title.

Francescoli won a total of five Argentine titles in the six years in which he played for the club.

In January 1986, he scored his most famous goal: a decisive bicycle kick which gave River Plate a victory over the Poland national team in a friendly tournament organized by the five largest Argentine clubs.

After winning the Argentine title, Francescoli moved to Europe, where he was signed by Racing Paris, who had just been promoted from the French Second Division.

Nantes was willing to pay $2.5 million for his contract, but River Plate's president at the time, Hugo Santilli, believed Francescoli could fetch a better price.

Francescoli began his European career with Racing Paris in 1986, a long established team which had been in a slump since the 1950s and had recently started a rivalry with its growing neighbour, Paris Saint-Germain founded in 1970, which had won the French title the previous season.

Automotive company Matra decided to sponsor the team, which resulted in the name being changed to Matra Racing in 1987.

He also enjoyed success in France with Racing Paris and Marseille, where his performances proved decisive as the team won the 1989–90 French Division 1.

He later also had spells in Italy with Cagliari and Torino, before returning to River Plate, where he ended his career.

He was considered an elite playmaker in the Uruguay national team.

Seeking to dominate the 1993 Ligue 1, the domestic cups and qualify for the UEFA Champions League, automobile company magnate Jean-Luc Lagardère later provided funding to the club, allowing the team to sign footballers Luis Fernández, Maxime Bossis, Thierry Tusseau, David Ginola, along with Cameroonian Eugène Ekéké, Dutchman Sonny Silooy, German Pierre Littbarski and fellow Uruguayan Rubén Paz.

Francescoli was the only Uruguayan included by Pelé in the FIFA 100 list of the world's greatest living footballers in 2004, and he was also elected by the International Federation of Football History & Statistics as the sixth-greatest Uruguayan player and the 24th greatest South American player of the 20th century.

Francescoli was born in Montevideo into a family of Italian and Basque origin.

Since childhood, he was known as a shy and reserved person who spoke little and, in what he regarded as a virtue, was very observant, being regarded by those who knew him as very kind inside and outside football.

Due to his slender frame, he was nicknamed "El Flaco" ("The Skinny One").

As a young fan of Peñarol, Francescoli passed a try-out but did not join, unimpressed by the lack of playing time.