24th October – Jose Luis Calderon

Jose Luis Calderon was a consistent goalscorer but an argument with the now famous Marcelo Bielsa put an end to his international career.

The striker played for Argentina during the 1997 Copa America but a fall out with Bielsa meant he was never picked again for his national side despite the fact that he was a consistent goalscorer all his career.

With over 600 games and over 200 league goals and a career that lasted from 1989 to 2010 you would expect that he would be a name that was a little more well known in the footballing world. His career started at Cambaceres where he was an instant hit as soon as he broke into their first team, scoring 43 times in just 83 games before a move to his boyhood club Estudiantes.

In his career he would play for Estudiantes three times, and also have three spells at Independiente and Arsenal de Sarandi twice. His record during these spells were mpstly succesful and for the majority he hit a goal on average every two games. Despite his goals he did not get much success on the trophy front until 2006 when he won the Apertura with Estudiantes and followed this up with the Copa Sudamericana with Arsenal.

His third spell for Estudiantes was the least he played as most of his appearances were from the bench, however he did manage to be part of the squad that won the 2009 Copa Libertadores. This seemed like the perfect time to retire and on November 25^th 2009 he announced his retirement at the age of 39.

However, this would not be the end as he was convinced to come out of retirement by Argentinos coach Claudio Borghi. He proved his skills once again, by playing a key part in the their 2010 Clausura championship win. He only scored three goals in 19 games but it was his all round play and experience that really helped the side. In the penultimate game of the season he set up a goal in the 93^rd minute to win the match against former side Independiente.

At the end of his contract he left the club and at the age of nearly 40 he decided to play one last game for first club Cambaceres and scored a penalty kick to complete his career.

He did have a brief spell in Europe, following in the footsteps of Diego Maradona, playing for Italian side Napoli. But this only lasted six games and unfortunately he did not manage a goal.

Calderon was a fantastic finisher and his compilation videos on Youtube are definitely worth a look for anyone that particularly enjoys football from the 1990’s.

The final word can go to the man himself, who said on his final game in tears. “I have the gratitude for all the people who supported me. It’s a shame that my legs tell me enough, but I’m going calm because I closed a cycle in the same place where I started.”

28th September – Willy Caballero

Manchester City definitely needed real competition for Joe Hart and in the summer they signed birthday boy Willy Caballero as they believe they can really push the England number one.

The new goalkeeper is 33 today and this would suggest that he is in the best years of his career and won’t want to just sit on the bench behind Joe Hart. This could be a stroke of genius from Manuel Pellegrini as it will either make Hart play better or if he does have another dip in form like he has done at times during the last two seasons there is an able deputy.

Cabellero is also an Olympic gold winner as helped Argentina win the football tournament in 2004 and he started his career in his country of birth with Boca Juniors, making his debut in 2001. He stayed at the Argentinean giants for three years and helped them win the Argentine Primera Division, the Copa Libertadores and the Intercontinental Cup all in 2003.

But in 2004 he decided it was time for him to try and make his mark in Europe and joined Spanish side Elche. After a difficult start he returned to Argentina in 2006 when he joined Arsenal de Sarandi and appeared in 13 league games for them. When he went back to Spain he got his confidence back and became Elche’s undisputed number one goalkeeper and produced a lot of fantastic performances in his 186 league games for the club which convinced Malaga to sign him on the 10th February 2011.

He made his debut against Villarreal in a 1-1 draw on the 20th February and went on to play in every game until the end of the season. The goalkeeper quickly became a fan favourite as his saves and consistent performances helped the club eventually pull away from the relegation zone after a very difficult season.

The following season started better for the club and the goalkeeper kept his place in the starting lineup and on the 1st October he became a record holder for Malaga. He did not concede a goal for 480 minutes beating Pedro Contreras’ previous record of 429. Unfortunately just a few days later he was sent off against Levante for handling outside the box and his team went on to lose the game 3-0.

He quickly returned to the side and on the 18th January 2012 his contract was extended by the club, tying him down until 2016. However, a fracture in his left hand caused in a game against Espanyol on the 25th March meant he had to sit out the rest of the season. Caballero returned to full fitness and only missed two league games all season during the 2012-13 campaign and helped his team finish in 6th place in La Liga and was seen as one of the best keepers in the division.

On the 8th July 2014 he was reunited with former Malaga manager Manuel Pellegrini at Manchester City after they paid a fee believed to be around £6 million for his services. He made his debut in the Community Shield as City lost 3-0 to Arsenal but he had to wait until the 27th September to make his Premier League debut in a 4-2 win over Hull City.

The final word can go to Manuel Pellegrini. “Caballero can be in any team, he is a very good goalkeeper. If you want to be a top goalkeeper you must have all the attributes, good distribution, to know when to go for the ball, to be good one on one and to not concede early goals. Replacing Hart with Caballero doesn’t make a difference.”