Rodrigo Zalazar Explained

Rodrigo Zalazar
Full Name:Rodrigo Zalazar Martínez
Height:1.80 m[1]
Birth Date:1999 8, df=yes
Birth Place:Albacete, Spain
Position:Midfielder
Currentclub:Braga
Clubnumber:16
Youthyears1:2007–2014
Youthclubs1:Albacete
Youthyears2:2014–2016
Youthclubs2:Málaga
Youthyears3:2016–2017
Youthclubs3:San Félix
Youthyears4:2017–2018
Youthclubs4:Málaga
Years1:2018–2019
Clubs1:Málaga B
Caps1:0
Goals1:0
Years2:2019–2022
Clubs2:Eintracht Frankfurt
Caps2:0
Goals2:0
Years3:2019–2020
Clubs3:Korona Kielce (loan)
Caps3:8
Goals3:0
Years4:2019–2020
Clubs4:Korona Kielce II (loan)
Caps4:10
Goals4:3
Years5:2020–2021
Clubs5:FC St. Pauli (loan)
Caps5:34
Goals5:6
Years6:2021–2022
Clubs6:Schalke 04 (loan)
Caps6:30
Goals6:6
Years7:2022–2023
Clubs7:Schalke 04
Caps7:22
Goals7:1
Years8:2023–
Clubs8:Braga
Caps8:34
Goals8:6
Nationalyears1:2018–2019
Nationalteam1:Uruguay U20
Nationalcaps1:19
Nationalgoals1:1
Nationalyears2:2023–
Nationalteam2:Uruguay
Nationalcaps2:2
Nationalgoals2:2
Club-Update:23:00, 18 August 2024 (UTC)
Nationalteam-Update:23 March 2024

Rodrigo Zalazar Martínez (born 12 August 1999) is a Uruguayan professional footballer who plays as a midfielder for Primeira Liga club Braga and the Uruguay national team.[2]

Club career

Early career

Zalazar joined the youth categories of Albacete Balompié in 2007, aged eight.[3] In 2014, he moved to Málaga CF and was initially assigned to the Cadete squad.[4]

In 2018, after finishing his formation, Zalazar was promoted to Málaga's reserve team in Segunda División B, but remained unregistered for the entire season after the club had no free registration spots;[5] he then refused a loan to a Tercera División side, as his contract was due to expire in the following summer.[6]

Eintracht Frankfurt

On 2 July 2019, Zalazar signed a four-year contract with Bundesliga club Eintracht Frankfurt on 2 July 2019.[7]

Loan to Korona Kielce

Three days after joining Eintracht Frankfurt, Ekstraklasa side Korona Kielce signed Zalazar on a one-year loan deal for 2019–20 season.[8] He made his professional debut on 20 July 2019, coming on as a 70th minute substitute for Erik Pačinda in a 1–0 league win against Raków Częstochowa.[9]

Rarely used in the first team, Zalazar also played for Korona Kielce II in the III liga, scoring three goals in 10 appearances.

Loan to FC St. Pauli

On 6 August 2020, 2. Bundesliga club FC St. Pauli announced the signing of Zalazar on a season-long loan deal.[10] [11] He scored his first professional goal on 19 October, netting the equalizer through a penalty in a 2–2 home draw against 1. FC Nürnberg.[12]

Zalazar finished the 2020–21 season with six goals in 35 appearances overall, as St. Pauli finished in the 10th position.

Schalke 04

On 4 August 2021, Zalazar agreed to join fellow second division side Schalke 04 on a season-long loan with an option to make the move permanent until 2026.[13] On 25 March 2022, Schalke exercised this option, and he agreed to a permanent four-year contract with the club, effective as of 1 July.[14] He ended the campaign as a starter as the club achieved promotion to the Bundesliga as champions.

Zalazar made his debut in the main category of German football on 7 August 2022, starting in a 3–1 away loss against 1. FC Köln. He scored his first goal in the top tier six days later, netting the opener in a 2–2 home draw against Borussia Mönchengladbach.

In June 2023, after Schalke's relegation back to the second level, newspaper Bild reported that Zalazar was seeking a move away from the club.[15]

International career

Born in Spain to Uruguayan parents, Zalazar was eligible to represent both Uruguay and Spain at international level. While his older brother chose Spain, he followed his father's footsteps and chose to play for Uruguay.[16]

Zalazar started to feature for the nation's under-20 team in 2018,[17] [18] being also included in Fabián Coito's squad for the 2019 South American U-20 Championship in January 2019.[2] [19] He played seven matches in the tournament, helping his team to finish third.

In June 2023, Zalazar received his first call-up to the senior team for friendly matches against Nicaragua and Cuba.[20] He made his debut on 14 June, scoring two goals in a 4–1 win against the former.[21]

Personal life

Rodrigo is the son of former Uruguay international footballer José Zalazar, and the brother of former Spanish youth international Kuki Zalazar[22] and Schalke 04 player Mauro Zalazar.[23] He was born in Albacete, Castilla–La Mancha, while his father was a player of the local club Albacete.[16]

Career statistics

Club

[24]

Club!rowspan=2
SeasonLeagueNational cupLeague cupEuropeTotal
DivisionAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoals
Eintracht Frankfurt2019–20Bundesliga00000000
Korona Kielce (loan)2019–20Ekstraklasa801090
Korona Kielce II (loan)2019–20III liga103103
FC St. Pauli (loan)2020–212. Bundesliga34610356
Schalke 04 (loan)2021–222. Bundesliga30621327
Schalke 042022–23Bundesliga22111232
Braga2023–24Primeira Liga3262240110498
2024–25Primeira Liga2000004262
Total34622401525510
Career total13822744015216428

International

Appearances and goals by national team and year
National teamYearAppsGoals
Uruguay202312
202410
Total22

Scores and results list Uruguay's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Zalazar goal.

List of international goals scored by Rodrigo Zalazar
No.DateVenueOpponentScoreResultCompetition
1 14 June 2023 Estadio Centenario, Montevideo, Uruguay 2–0 4–1 Friendly
2 4–0

Honours

Schalke 04

2021–22[25] Braga

Individual

External links

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Rodrigo Zalazar . FC Schalke 04 . 4 August 2022.
  2. Web site: 8 - Rodrigo Zalazar. 27 July 2019.
  3. Web site: Rodrigo Zalazar: talento uruguayo cultivado en Albacete. Rodrigo Zalazar: Uruguayan talent raised at Albacete. Diario AS. es. 4 July 2023. 12 July 2023.
  4. Web site: La saga de los Zalazar. The saga of the Zalazar. Marca. es. 6 November 2014. 12 July 2023.
  5. Web site: Así queda la plantilla del Atlético Malagueño. This is how the Atlético Malagueño squad end up. El Desmarque. es. 1 September 2018. 12 July 2023.
  6. Web site: ¡Incomprensible! Meléndez y Rodri Zalazar, sin ficha. Incomprehensible! Meléndez and Rodri Zalazar, unregistered. Merchán en directo. es. 3 September 2019. 12 July 2023.
  7. Web site: Eintracht Frankfurt sign Rodrigo Zalazar, could be sent out on loan. Eintracht Frankfurt. 27 July 2019.
  8. Web site: Rodrigo Zalazar loaned to Korona Kielce. Eintracht Frankfurt. 27 July 2019.
  9. Web site: RAKÓW CZĘSTOCHOWA VS. KORONA KIELCE 1-0. Soccerway. 27 July 2019.
  10. Web site: Der FC St. Pauli verpflichtet Mittelfeldspieler Rodrigo Zalazar. FC St. Pauli signed midfielder Rodrigo Zalazar. FC St. Pauli. de. 6 August 2020.
  11. Web site: St. Pauli leiht Rodrigo Zalazar von Eintracht Frankfurt aus . St. Pauli is loaning Rodrigo Zalazar from Eintracht Frankfurt. kicker . 6 August 2020 . German . 6 August 2020.
  12. Web site: Zalazar: "I feel very much at home and try to show that on the pitch". FC St. Pauli. 21 October 2020. 12 July 2023.
  13. News: Rodrigo Zalazar joins FC Schalke 04. FC Schalke 04. 4 August 2021.
  14. News: Rodrigo Zalazar signs permanent deal with FC Schalke 04. Schalke 04. 25 March 2022.
  15. Web site: Schalke droht Transfer-Stau. Schalke threatens a transfer jam. Bild. de. 11 June 2023. 12 July 2023.
  16. Web site: Rodrigo Zalazar nació en Albacete y eligió jugar para Uruguay. Rodrigo Zalazar was born in Albacete and chose to play for Uruguay. Radio Uruguay. es. 27 July 2019.
  17. Web site: La Sub-20 uruguaya cuenta con Rodri. The Uruguay under-20s count with Rodri. Málaga CF. es. 12 June 2018. 12 July 2023.
  18. Web site: Rodri Zalazar, campeón con Uruguay sub 20 en Catar. Rodri Zalazar, champion with Uruguay under-20s in Qatar. El Desmarque. es. 24 September 2018. 12 July 2023.
  19. Web site: Sub-20 Plantel para Chile 2019 . Squad of the under-20s for Chile 2019 . AUF . 19 December 2018 . Spanish . 15 January 2019 . https://web.archive.org/web/20190116045859/http://www.auf.org.uy/Portal/NEWS/15122/0/Sub20__Plantel_para_Chile_2019/ . 16 January 2019 . dead .
  20. Web site: Siguen sumándose futbolistas convocados a los entrenamientos. Footballers called up to trainings keep on joining. AUF. es. 5 June 2023. 15 June 2023.
  21. Web site: Selección: Bielsa eligió a Matías Viña como capitán en un equipo con muchos debutantes. National team: Bielsa chose Matías Viña as captain in a team with a lot of debutants. Fútbol.uy. es. 14 June 2023. 15 June 2023.
  22. Web site: Talented midfielder with an eye for goal. Eintracht Frankfurt. 27 July 2019.
  23. Web site: Mauro Zalazar moves to FC Schalke 04. FC Schalke 04. 20 August 2024.
  24. Web site: Rodrigo Zalazar - Club matches. worldfootball.net.
  25. Web site: Schalke crowned 2021/22 Bundesliga 2 champions. 15 May 2022. 16 May 2022.
  26. News: 27 January 2024 . Sp. Braga vence a Taça da Liga pela terceira vez . Sp. Braga wins Taça da Liga for the third time . 28 January 2024 . . pt.
  27. Web site: 13 February 2024 . Zalazar named VITO Midfielder of the Month in Liga Portugal Betclic . 14 February 2024 . Liga Portuguesa de Futebol Profissional.