Alberto Acosta
Encyclopedia
Alberto Federico 'Beto' Acosta (born 23 August 1966) is a retired Argentine
footballer who played as a striker.
In a professional career which spanned 18 years (nearly 700 official games and more than 250 goals), he played for San Lorenzo in four different spells. Additionally, he represented teams in France
, Chile
, Japan
and Portugal
.
Acosta appeared with Argentina
in two Copa América
tournaments.
, Acosta started playing professionally at Unión de Santa Fe
, making his top division debut one month shy of his 20th birthday, in a 0–0 home draw against Argentinos Juniors
. Two years later, he transferred to San Lorenzo de Almagro, netting 34 goals in his first two seasons combined, that being the first of the four spells with the club in an 18-year career.
In 1990, Acosta had his first abroad experience, with France
's Toulouse FC
. After a poor second season, he left in December 1991, having played in seven matches with just one goal, with the club eventually ranking 16th - he returned to San Lorenzo, where he scored a further 19 league goals, which earned him a transfer to country giants Club Atlético Boca Juniors
.
Acosta spent the following three years out of Argentina, starting (and ending) with Universidad Católica
in Chile
, where he rejoined former San Lorenzo teammate Néstor Gorosito
. In 1994, he was crowned the topscorer in South America
n football, finding the net 33 times, in only 25 matches. Also during that first season, he was unable to further help the team for five matches (four after assaulting C.F. Universidad de Chile's Luis Musrri
). In between his spell with Universidad, he played in the J. League Division 1 for Yokohama F. Marinos
.
In December 1998, Acosta signed with Sporting Clube de Portugal. In his first full season, the 33-year-old striker scored 22 times, helping the Lisbon
side to the national championship, after an 18-year wait. He added 14 the following campaign, but was deemed surplus to requirements after the signing of Mário Jardel
, and returned to San Lorenzo for the fourth and last time, netting always in double digits until his 2004 retirement, at the age of 37. Although still physically fit, the scorer of 300 goals in 666 official games opted to retire, instead of being coerced into retirement later on.
Acosta briefly managed Boca (10 June – 20 August 2006) to kick-start his coaching career, then moved to Romania
with FCM Dunărea Galaţi
. In the 2007 summer, he returned to his country, taking charge of fourth division outfit Club Atlético Fénix
.
for Argentina
during three years, Acosta represented the nation in two Copa América
tournaments.
In the 1993 edition in Ecuador
, he converted his penalty shootout attempts in both the quarterfinals and the semifinals, as the national side eventually emerged victorious.
|1986/87||rowspan="2"|Unión
||rowspan="2"|Primera División||39||7
|-
|1987/88||32||8
|-
|1988/89||rowspan="2"|San Lorenzo||rowspan="2"|Primera División||36||19
|-
|1989/90||28||15
|-
|1990/91||rowspan="2"|Toulouse
||rowspan="2"|Ligue 1
||31||6
|-
|1991/92||7||0
|-
|1991/92||rowspan="2"|San Lorenzo||rowspan="2"|Primera División||21||7
|-
|1992/93||19||12
|-
|1992/93||rowspan="2"|Boca Juniors
||rowspan="2"|Primera División||18||7
|-
|1993/94||16||4
|-
|1994||rowspan="2"|Universidad Católica
||rowspan="2"|Primera División||25||33
|-
|1995||20||10
|-
|1996||Yokohama Marinos
||J. League 1||21||10
|-
|1997||Universidad Católica
||Primera División||25||12
|-
|1997/98||rowspan="2"|San Lorenzo||rowspan="2"|Primera División||19||9
|-
|1998/99||13||8
|-
|1998/99||rowspan="3"|Sporting||rowspan="3"|Primeira Liga||13||3
|-
|1999/00||33||22
|-
|2000/01||32||14
|-
|2001/02||rowspan="3"|San Lorenzo||rowspan="3"|Primera División||29||11
|-
|2002/03||30||11
|-
|2003/04||18||10
318||128
38||6
70||55
21||10
78||39
525||238
|}
|1992||6||1
|-
|1993||9||0
|-
|1994||0||0
|-
|1995||4||2
|-
!Total||19||3
|}
Argentina
Argentina , officially the Argentine Republic , is the second largest country in South America by land area, after Brazil. It is constituted as a federation of 23 provinces and an autonomous city, Buenos Aires...
footballer who played as a striker.
In a professional career which spanned 18 years (nearly 700 official games and more than 250 goals), he played for San Lorenzo in four different spells. Additionally, he represented teams in France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
, Chile
Chile
Chile ,officially the Republic of Chile , is a country in South America occupying a long, narrow coastal strip between the Andes mountains to the east and the Pacific Ocean to the west. It borders Peru to the north, Bolivia to the northeast, Argentina to the east, and the Drake Passage in the far...
, Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
and Portugal
Portugal
Portugal , officially the Portuguese Republic is a country situated in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. Portugal is the westernmost country of Europe, and is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the West and South and by Spain to the North and East. The Atlantic archipelagos of the...
.
Acosta appeared with Argentina
Argentina national football team
The Argentina national football team represents Argentina in association football and is controlled by the Argentine Football Association , the governing body for football in Argentina. Argentina's home stadium is Estadio Monumental Antonio Vespucio Liberti and their head coach is Alejandro...
in two Copa América
Copa América
The Copa América —previously known as South American Championship—is an international football competition contested between the men's national teams of CONMEBOL, the sport's continental governing body...
tournaments.
Club career
Born in Arocena, Santa Fe ProvinceSanta Fe Province
The Invincible Province of Santa Fe, in Spanish Provincia Invencible de Santa Fe , is a province of Argentina, located in the center-east of the country. Neighboring provinces are from the north clockwise Chaco , Corrientes, Entre Ríos, Buenos Aires, Córdoba, and Santiago del Estero...
, Acosta started playing professionally at Unión de Santa Fe
Unión de Santa Fe
Club Atlético Unión is a sports club from Santa Fe, the capital city of the province with the same name in Argentina. The club, founded in 1907, has a strong rivalry with Colón de Santa Fe....
, making his top division debut one month shy of his 20th birthday, in a 0–0 home draw against Argentinos Juniors
Argentinos Juniors
Asociación Atlética Argentinos Juniors is an Argentine football club based in La Paternal, Buenos Aires. Founded on August 15, 1904, the club was originally called the “Martyrs of Chicago”, in homage to the eight anarchists imprisoned or hanged after the 1886 Haymarket Riot in Chicago.-Early...
. Two years later, he transferred to San Lorenzo de Almagro, netting 34 goals in his first two seasons combined, that being the first of the four spells with the club in an 18-year career.
In 1990, Acosta had his first abroad experience, with France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
's Toulouse FC
Toulouse FC
Toulouse Football Club is a French association football club based in the city of Toulouse. The club was founded in 1970 and currently play in Ligue 1, the top level of French football. Toulouse plays its home matches at the Stadium Municipal located within the city. The first team is managed by...
. After a poor second season, he left in December 1991, having played in seven matches with just one goal, with the club eventually ranking 16th - he returned to San Lorenzo, where he scored a further 19 league goals, which earned him a transfer to country giants Club Atlético Boca Juniors
Boca Juniors
Club Atlético Boca Juniors is an Argentine sports club based in La Boca neighborhood of Buenos Aires. It is best known for its professional football team, which currently plays in the Primera División....
.
Acosta spent the following three years out of Argentina, starting (and ending) with Universidad Católica
Club Deportivo Universidad Católica
Club Deportivo Universidad Católica is a professional football club based in Santiago, Chile, which plays in the Primera División.Universidad Católica is one of the most successful and popular football clubs in Chile and considered one of the three "big teams"...
in Chile
Chile
Chile ,officially the Republic of Chile , is a country in South America occupying a long, narrow coastal strip between the Andes mountains to the east and the Pacific Ocean to the west. It borders Peru to the north, Bolivia to the northeast, Argentina to the east, and the Drake Passage in the far...
, where he rejoined former San Lorenzo teammate Néstor Gorosito
Néstor Gorosito
Néstor Raúl Gorosito is a retired Argentine footballer.-Playing career:Néstor Pipo Gorosito began his playing career at River Plate, he had 3 spells at San Lorenzo where he scored 72 goals in 241 appearances...
. In 1994, he was crowned the topscorer in South America
South America
South America is a continent situated in the Western Hemisphere, mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a relatively small portion in the Northern Hemisphere. The continent is also considered a subcontinent of the Americas. It is bordered on the west by the Pacific Ocean and on the north and east...
n football, finding the net 33 times, in only 25 matches. Also during that first season, he was unable to further help the team for five matches (four after assaulting C.F. Universidad de Chile's Luis Musrri
Luis Musrri
Luis Eduardo Musrri Saravia is a retired Chilean football player.He played mostly for Universidad de Chile as well as one season with Yunnan Hongta ....
). In between his spell with Universidad, he played in the J. League Division 1 for Yokohama F. Marinos
Yokohama F. Marinos
is a Japanese association football team that participates in the fully professional J. League Division 1; the top Japanese professional football league. Having won the J-League title three times and finished second twice, they are one of the most successful J-League clubs. The team are based in...
.
In December 1998, Acosta signed with Sporting Clube de Portugal. In his first full season, the 33-year-old striker scored 22 times, helping the Lisbon
Lisbon
Lisbon is the capital city and largest city of Portugal with a population of 545,245 within its administrative limits on a land area of . The urban area of Lisbon extends beyond the administrative city limits with a population of 3 million on an area of , making it the 9th most populous urban...
side to the national championship, after an 18-year wait. He added 14 the following campaign, but was deemed surplus to requirements after the signing of Mário Jardel
Mário Jardel
Mário Jardel de Almeida Ribeiro is a former Brazilian professional footballer.Jardel was most noted for his positioning on the field and "being at the right place, at the right time"...
, and returned to San Lorenzo for the fourth and last time, netting always in double digits until his 2004 retirement, at the age of 37. Although still physically fit, the scorer of 300 goals in 666 official games opted to retire, instead of being coerced into retirement later on.
Acosta briefly managed Boca (10 June – 20 August 2006) to kick-start his coaching career, then moved to Romania
Romania
Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeastern Europe, on the Lower Danube, within and outside the Carpathian arch, bordering on the Black Sea...
with FCM Dunărea Galaţi
FCM Dunarea Galati
Dunărea Galaţi is a Romanian professional football club from Galaţi, Galaţi county, south-east Romania, founded in 1970.They currently play in Liga II, Seria I in the 2008-2009 season after finishing 7th in Liga II, Seria I in the 2007-2008 season....
. In the 2007 summer, he returned to his country, taking charge of fourth division outfit Club Atlético Fénix
Club Atlético Fénix
Club Atlético Fénix is a football club from Pilar in Buenos Aires Province, Argentina. The team currently plays in the Primera C Metropolitana, which is the regionalised fourth tier of the Argentine Football Association league system....
.
International career
Having collected 19 capsCap (sport)
In sports, a cap is a metaphorical term for a player's appearance on a select team, such as a national team. The term dates from the practice in the United Kingdom of awarding a cap to every player in an international match of association football...
for Argentina
Argentina national football team
The Argentina national football team represents Argentina in association football and is controlled by the Argentine Football Association , the governing body for football in Argentina. Argentina's home stadium is Estadio Monumental Antonio Vespucio Liberti and their head coach is Alejandro...
during three years, Acosta represented the nation in two Copa América
Copa América
The Copa América —previously known as South American Championship—is an international football competition contested between the men's national teams of CONMEBOL, the sport's continental governing body...
tournaments.
In the 1993 edition in Ecuador
Ecuador
Ecuador , officially the Republic of Ecuador is a representative democratic republic in South America, bordered by Colombia on the north, Peru on the east and south, and by the Pacific Ocean to the west. It is one of only two countries in South America, along with Chile, that do not have a border...
, he converted his penalty shootout attempts in both the quarterfinals and the semifinals, as the national side eventually emerged victorious.
Club
|-|1986/87||rowspan="2"|Unión
Unión de Santa Fe
Club Atlético Unión is a sports club from Santa Fe, the capital city of the province with the same name in Argentina. The club, founded in 1907, has a strong rivalry with Colón de Santa Fe....
||rowspan="2"|Primera División||39||7
|-
|1987/88||32||8
|-
|1988/89||rowspan="2"|San Lorenzo||rowspan="2"|Primera División||36||19
|-
|1989/90||28||15
|-
|1990/91||rowspan="2"|Toulouse
Toulouse FC
Toulouse Football Club is a French association football club based in the city of Toulouse. The club was founded in 1970 and currently play in Ligue 1, the top level of French football. Toulouse plays its home matches at the Stadium Municipal located within the city. The first team is managed by...
||rowspan="2"|Ligue 1
Ligue 1
Ligue 1 , is the French professional league for association football clubs. It is the country's primary football competition and serves as the top division of the French football league system. Ligue 1 is one of two divisions making up the Ligue de Football Professionnel, the other being Ligue 2....
||31||6
|-
|1991/92||7||0
|-
|1991/92||rowspan="2"|San Lorenzo||rowspan="2"|Primera División||21||7
|-
|1992/93||19||12
|-
|1992/93||rowspan="2"|Boca Juniors
Boca Juniors
Club Atlético Boca Juniors is an Argentine sports club based in La Boca neighborhood of Buenos Aires. It is best known for its professional football team, which currently plays in the Primera División....
||rowspan="2"|Primera División||18||7
|-
|1993/94||16||4
|-
|1994||rowspan="2"|Universidad Católica
Club Deportivo Universidad Católica
Club Deportivo Universidad Católica is a professional football club based in Santiago, Chile, which plays in the Primera División.Universidad Católica is one of the most successful and popular football clubs in Chile and considered one of the three "big teams"...
||rowspan="2"|Primera División||25||33
|-
|1995||20||10
|-
|1996||Yokohama Marinos
Yokohama F. Marinos
is a Japanese association football team that participates in the fully professional J. League Division 1; the top Japanese professional football league. Having won the J-League title three times and finished second twice, they are one of the most successful J-League clubs. The team are based in...
||J. League 1||21||10
|-
|1997||Universidad Católica
Club Deportivo Universidad Católica
Club Deportivo Universidad Católica is a professional football club based in Santiago, Chile, which plays in the Primera División.Universidad Católica is one of the most successful and popular football clubs in Chile and considered one of the three "big teams"...
||Primera División||25||12
|-
|1997/98||rowspan="2"|San Lorenzo||rowspan="2"|Primera División||19||9
|-
|1998/99||13||8
|-
|1998/99||rowspan="3"|Sporting||rowspan="3"|Primeira Liga||13||3
|-
|1999/00||33||22
|-
|2000/01||32||14
|-
|2001/02||rowspan="3"|San Lorenzo||rowspan="3"|Primera División||29||11
|-
|2002/03||30||11
|-
|2003/04||18||10
318||128
38||6
70||55
21||10
78||39
525||238
|}
International
|-|1992||6||1
|-
|1993||9||0
|-
|1994||0||0
|-
|1995||4||2
|-
!Total||19||3
|}
Honours
| Season | Club | Title |
|---|---|---|
| Apertura Apertura and Clausura The Apertura and Clausura tournaments are a relatively recent innovation for many Latin American football leagues in which the traditional European football season from August to May is divided in two sections per season, each with its own champion. Apertura and Clausura are the Spanish words for... 1992 |
San Lorenzo | Argentine Primera División Top scorer (12 goals) |
| 1992 | Argentina Argentina national football team The Argentina national football team represents Argentina in association football and is controlled by the Argentine Football Association , the governing body for football in Argentina. Argentina's home stadium is Estadio Monumental Antonio Vespucio Liberti and their head coach is Alejandro... |
FIFA Confederations Cup FIFA Confederations Cup The FIFA Confederations Cup is an association football tournament for national teams, currently held every four years by FIFA. It is contested by the winners of each of the six FIFA confederation championships , along with the FIFA World Cup winner and the host nation, to bring the number of teams... |
| 1993 | Argentina Argentina national football team The Argentina national football team represents Argentina in association football and is controlled by the Argentine Football Association , the governing body for football in Argentina. Argentina's home stadium is Estadio Monumental Antonio Vespucio Liberti and their head coach is Alejandro... |
Copa América Copa América The Copa América —previously known as South American Championship—is an international football competition contested between the men's national teams of CONMEBOL, the sport's continental governing body... |
| 1994 | Universidad Católica Club Deportivo Universidad Católica Club Deportivo Universidad Católica is a professional football club based in Santiago, Chile, which plays in the Primera División.Universidad Católica is one of the most successful and popular football clubs in Chile and considered one of the three "big teams"... |
Chilean Primera División Player of the Year |
| 1994 | Universidad Católica Club Deportivo Universidad Católica Club Deportivo Universidad Católica is a professional football club based in Santiago, Chile, which plays in the Primera División.Universidad Católica is one of the most successful and popular football clubs in Chile and considered one of the three "big teams"... |
Chilean Primera División Top scorer (33 goals) |
| 1994 | Universidad Católica Club Deportivo Universidad Católica Club Deportivo Universidad Católica is a professional football club based in Santiago, Chile, which plays in the Primera División.Universidad Católica is one of the most successful and popular football clubs in Chile and considered one of the three "big teams"... |
South America Top scorer (33 goals) |
| 1994 | Universidad Católica Club Deportivo Universidad Católica Club Deportivo Universidad Católica is a professional football club based in Santiago, Chile, which plays in the Primera División.Universidad Católica is one of the most successful and popular football clubs in Chile and considered one of the three "big teams"... |
Copa Interamericana Copa Interamericana Copa Interamericana was a football trophy contested between the champions of CONMEBOL's Copa Libertadores de América and the winners of CONCACAF's Champions' Cup... |
| 1995 | Universidad Católica Club Deportivo Universidad Católica Club Deportivo Universidad Católica is a professional football club based in Santiago, Chile, which plays in the Primera División.Universidad Católica is one of the most successful and popular football clubs in Chile and considered one of the three "big teams"... |
Copa Chile Copa Chile The Copa Chile is an annual cup competition for Chilean football teams. Due to time constraints and club pressure, the trophy was cancelled in 2000, but returned in 2008... |
| 1995 | Universidad Católica Club Deportivo Universidad Católica Club Deportivo Universidad Católica is a professional football club based in Santiago, Chile, which plays in the Primera División.Universidad Católica is one of the most successful and popular football clubs in Chile and considered one of the three "big teams"... |
Copa Chile Copa Chile The Copa Chile is an annual cup competition for Chilean football teams. Due to time constraints and club pressure, the trophy was cancelled in 2000, but returned in 2008... Top scorer (10 goals) |
| 1997 | Universidad Católica Club Deportivo Universidad Católica Club Deportivo Universidad Católica is a professional football club based in Santiago, Chile, which plays in the Primera División.Universidad Católica is one of the most successful and popular football clubs in Chile and considered one of the three "big teams"... |
Chilean Primera División |
| 1999–2000 | Sporting | Primeira Liga |
| 2002 | San Lorenzo | Copa Sudamericana Copa Sudamericana The Copa Bridgestone Sudamericana de Clubes , known simply as the Copa Sudamericana , is an annual international club football competition organized by the CONMEBOL since 2002. It is the second most prestigious club competition in South American football. CONCACAF clubs were invited between 2004... |