Walter Pandiani

Walter Gerardo Pandiani Urquiza (born 27 April 1976) is a Uruguayan retired footballer who played as a striker. Nicknamed El Rifle (the rifle), his best assets were his strength and aerial ability.
His performances for Peñarol earned him a move to Deportivo de La Coruña in Spain, where he remained for the vast majority of his career, also representing Mallorca, Espanyol (twice) and Osasuna. He also spent a year with Birmingham City in England.
Over the course of 12 seasons, Pandiani amassed La Liga totals of 279 games and 82 goals.

Early years / Deportivo

Born in Montevideo, Pandiani started his career with hometown club Progreso, moving on to Basañez and Peñarol, the latter also in the country's capital, before signing with Deportivo La Coruña in 2000. Never an undisputed starter for the Galician team, he was one of their most important offensive elements, often scoring as a substitute (he netted 13 in the 2003–04 season).

Pandiani, who had a successful loan stint at Mallorca while still at Depor, moved to Birmingham City in the Premier League, also on loan, in January 2005, after a series of run-ins with coach Javier Irureta. He scored a goal on his debut against Southampton in a 2–1 home win, and went on to score three more in the season, prompting manager Steve Bruce to sign him on a permanent contract for a reported fee of £3 million.

Espanyol

Having failed to continue to display his previous form, Pandiani returned to Spain on 13 January 2006, after completing a move to Espanyol for £1 million.

In his first full season he scored only seven La Liga goals, including a first-half hat-trick against eventual champions Real Madrid in the Santiago Bernabéu Stadium, but was top scorer in the 2006–07 UEFA Cup with eleven as his club reached the final, which they lost on penalties to Sevilla.

Osasuna

For 2007–08, Pandiani joined Osasuna. Scarcely used in his first year, he was instrumental for the Navarrese in the following campaign, especially after the arrival in mid-October of coach José Antonio Camacho, finishing as the club's top scorer.

Osasuna's first goal of the 2010–11 season only came in the fourth matchday, and the 34-year-old Pandiani scored it through a header as the team came from behind to win it 3–1 against Real Sociedad, at home. On 30 January 2011, during half-time of a 1–0 home win against Real Madrid, he was involved in a "verbal spat" with Cristiano Ronaldo, suggesting afterwards that "As a footballer he is a phenomenon but to do the things he does, maybe he has a screw loose."

Late career

The 35-year-old Pandiani returned to Espanyol for 2011–12, signing a one-year contract and acting mainly as backup to youth graduate Álvaro Vázquez. On 22 September he came from the bench to score the game's only goal at home against Getafe, in stoppage time. On 27 October he repeated the feat, albeit not so late in the game, with a powerful header at home to Real Betis.

In late August 2012, Pandiani signed a one-year contract with Segunda División club Villarreal, where his 18-year-old son Nico was a C-team player. On his debut, at home to Guadalajara on 2 September, he entered the game as a second-half substitute and scored the winning goal, and did the same the following week in another narrow win, at Ponferradina.

In late January 2013, Pandiani and Nico left Villarreal and joined Atlético Baleares of the Segunda División B. They both started in Nico's second senior match, and Pandiani scored in the 2–1 defeat away to Sant Andreu on 12 May.

In October 2013, the pair returned to Uruguay and signed for Primera División club Miramar Misiones. Pandiani scored three times in the six remaining matches of the 2013–14 Apertura, as his team finished next to bottom, and played regularly during the Clausura but scored only twice as they repeated their previous finish, which contributed to their relegation.

Pandiani returned to the Barcelona area where he spent the 2014–15 season coaching junior teams at CD Masnou, where two of his sons played. He said that although he had always wanted to coach, he still thought of himself as a player and was open to offers; in June 2015, he signed for Lausanne-Sport of the Swiss Challenge League, with the remit of supervising and teaching the tricks of the trade to the 15-year-old striker Andi Zeqiri, who had already made his first-team debut.

Pandiani announced his retirement on 16 June 2016 after a 23-year professional career, at the age of 40.

Despite his relatively successful career in Spain, Pandiani only received four caps for Uruguay, the first coming on 28 March 2001 in a 1–0 home defeat against Paraguay in the 2002 World Cup qualifiers.

International

Peñarol

• Uruguayan Primera División: 1999

Deportivo

• Copa del Rey: 2001–02
• Supercopa de España: 2002

Mallorca

• Copa del Rey: 2002–03

Espanyol

• Copa del Rey: 2005–06
• UEFA Cup: runner-up 2006–07

• "Eto'o pone Mallorca a brindar" [Eto'o has Mallorca toasting]. El País (in Spanish). 29 June 2003. Retrieved 5 April 2016.