| Facundo Sava | ||
| ||
| Fulham info | ||
|---|---|---|
| Full name | Facundo Sava | |
| Date of birth | 7 Mar 1974 | |
| Place of birth | Ituzaingó, Buenos Aires, Argentina | |
| Height | 6ft 2 1/2in (1.89m) | |
| Playing position | Striker | |
| Current player? | 
| |
| Number(s) worn | 9 (2002-2004) 26 (2004-2005) | |
| Debut | FC Haka (h) (6 Jul 2002) | |
| Last Appearance | Everton (h) (4 Feb 2004) | |
| First goal | Middlesbrough (a) (24 Aug 2002) | |
| Last goal | Bolton (h) (6 Dec 2003) | |
| Joined from | Gimnasia LP, £2 million - 25 May 2002 | |
| Left for | Racing Club, free - 1 Jul 2006 | |
| League apps (gls) | 26 (6) | |
| All apps (gls) | 42 (7) | |
| Other clubs | Ferro Carril Oeste (1993-1996 & 2010) Boca Juniors (1996-1997) Gimnasia LP (1997-2002) → Celta Vigo (loan) (2004-2005) (from Fulham) → Lorca Deportiva (loan) (2005-2006) (from Fulham) Racing Club (2006-2008) Arsenal de Sarandí (2008-2009) Quilmes (2009-2010) | |
Facundo Sava played for Fulham from 2002 until 2006 as a striker. He was the first Argentinian to play for the club, and one of only two signings in former Franco Baresi's short spell as Director of Football. Known for his Zorro-style celebrations, he would pull a domino mask from his sock and wear it after scoring. Unfortunately for Facundo, he did not do this enough and was sent on two season-long loan spells before he was released.
Career[]
Before Fulham[]
Facundo was born in Ituzaingó, a city in the Buenos Aires area of Argentina. He started his professional career at Ferro Carril Oeste at the age of 19 in 1993 and was initially deployed as a midfielder. After three years, he caught the eye of one of Argentina's biggest clubs, Boca Juniors, and signed for them in 1996. However, this short spell which lasted less than one season ended as soon as it started, with no goals to his name in seven league appearances.
In 1997, he joined Gimnasia LP, which is where he was converted to a striker. He enjoyed six and a half years with the club, scoring 67 times in 182 league appearances.
Fulham (2002-2006)[]
Facundo signed for Fulham on 25 May 2002 for a fee of around £2 million under Director of Football Franco Baresi. This would be one of only two signings (the other being Martín Herrera) he made for the club. Facundo became the first ever Argentinian to play for the club and made his debut on 6 July 2002 in a 0-0 draw in the opening round of the Intertoto Cup against FC Haka.
He would struggle to become a first choice forward in the side under Jean Tigana, with players such as Louis Saha, Barry Hayles Steve Marlet and Luís Boa Morte all at the club and would largely be used as a substitute in his time at Fulham. His first goal came in a memorable 2-2 draw away at Middlesbrough on 24 August 2002, where Fulham came from two goals behind to earn a point with both their goals coming in the last two minutes of the match.
His second goal came a little over one month later, when he bagged the only goal of the match in a 1-0 win over Charlton Athletic at Loftus Road. This was the goal in which he first used his Zorro-style mask when celebrating. He later explained that this started when he was at Gimnasia LP; fans would often throw masks onto the pitch when the team scored and he began wearing them after scoring a last minute goal during a local derby against Estudiantes.
His most notable match in a Fulham shirt came on 23 November 2002, in which he scored two goals during a 3-2 victory over Liverpool. However, just days later, he was responsible for gifting a goal to Hertha Berlin during Fulham's 2-1 loss in the first leg of a third round UEFA Cup tie, as well as scoring a decisive own goal. He was publicly criticised by Jean Tigana after the match for his errors.
He scored a further two goals in the 2002-03 season, but would not score a league goal for the entirety of the second half of the campaign. Under the new manager Chris Coleman, he saw a lack of minutes in the 2003-04 season, and would only make nine appearances (eight from the substitutes' bench), scoring just one goal.
For the following two seasons, he was deemed surplus to requirements, and was loaned out to Celta Vigo in 2004-05, and Lorca Deportiva in 2005-06. At Celta Vigo, he helped them gain promotion back to the top flight as they finished runners-up. He was released from the club in the summer of 2006.
After Fulham[]
Facundo returned to his homeland, signing for Racing Club ahead of the 2006-07 season. After two seasons there and boasting a strong goalscoring record, he spent one season at Arsenal de Sarandí before a move to Quilmes whom he helped achieve promotion to the first tier. In 2010, he returned to the club where it all started, Ferro Carril Oeste and made a handful of appearances before hanging up his boots at the age of 36.
He moved into management after his playing days were over, and since 2012 has managed a variety of clubs almost exclusively in Argentina, including his former clubs Quilmes, Gimnasia LP & Racing Club.
Fulham Statistics[]
Appearances[]
| Season | League | League | FA Cup | League Cup | Intertoto Cup | UEFA Cup | Total | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| 2002-03 | Premier League | 20 | 5 | 4 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 39 | 6 |
| 2003-04 | Premier League | 6 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | - | - | - | - | 9 | 1 |
| 2004-05 | On season-long loan at Celta Vigo | ||||||||||||
| 2005-06 | On season-long loan at Lorca Deportiva | ||||||||||||
| Total | 26 | 6 | 6 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 42 | 7 | |
Disciplinary[]
| Season | 
|
|
|
|---|---|---|---|
| 2002-03 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 2003-04 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Total | 1 | 0 | 0 |
Fulham Matches[]
| # | Season | Date | Comp | Opposition | Venue | Result | Score | Match Info |
To be completed
Career honours[]
As player[]
|
Fulham
Arsenal de Sarandí
|
Celta Vigo
Quilmes
|
As manager[]
Patronato
• Copa Argentina
Winner (1): 2021-22
Fulham squads[]
| 2002-03 squad | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1. van der Sar
2. Finnan
3. Brevett
4. Melville
5. Coleman
6. Inamoto
7. Marlet
8. Clark
9. Sava
10. Collins
11. Boa Morte
12. Taylor
13. Flitney
14. Malbranque
15. Hayles
16. Knight
17. Djetou
18. Legwinski
19. Goldbæk
20. Saha
21. Herrera
23. Davis
24. Goma
25. Ouaddou
26. Harley
27. Womé
30. Thompson
31. Lewis
33. Willock
34. Hammond
35. McAnespie
36. Hudson
38. Cornwall
39. Leacock
40. Štolcers
| |||||||||||||
| 2003-04 squad | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1. van der Sar
2. Volz
3. Harley
4. Melville
5. Legwinski
6. Inamoto
7. Marlet / Pembridge
8. Saha / McBride
9. Sava
10. Clark
11. Boa Morte
12. Crossley
13. Flitney
14. Malbranque
15. Hayles
16. Knight
17. Djetou
18. Bonnissel
19. Hammond
20. Hudson
21. Beasant
22. Leacock
23. S Davis
24. Goma
25. Buari
26. Willock / Petta
27. Štolcers
28. Rehman
29. Doherty
30. Green
31. Pratley
32. T Davis
33. Noble
34. Bocanegra
35. Pearce
36. John
37. Rosenior
| |||||||||||||
| 2004-05 squad | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1. van der Sar
2. Volz
3. Bocanegra
4. Malbranque
5. Legwinski
6. Knight
7. Pembridge
8. McBride
9. Cole
10. Clark
11. Boa Morte
12. Crossley
13. Flitney
14. Diop
15. John
16. Batista
17. Radzinski
18. Bonnissel
19. Hammond
20. Jensen
21. Rehman
22. Leacock
23. Timlin
24. Goma
25. Buari
26. Sava
28. Fontaine
29. Doherty
30. Green
31. Pratley
33. Noble
34. McDermott
35. Pearce
36. McKinlay
37. Rosenior
38. Watkins
39. Ehui
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