Mauricio Ricardo Pinilla Ferrera (born 4 February 1984) is a Chilean former professional

footballer A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby le ...

who played as a

striker Striker or The Strikers may refer to: People *A participant in a strike action *A participant in a hunger strike *Blacksmith's striker, a type of blacksmith's assistant *Striker's Independent Society, the oldest mystic krewe in America People wi ...

. After beginning his career at Universidad de Chile, he signed for

Inter Milan Football Club Internazionale Milano, commonly referred to as Internazionale () or simply Inter, and colloquially known as Inter Milan in English-speaking countries, is an Football in Italy, Italian professional Association football, football ...

at the age of 19, but never appeared for the club in four years. He went on to play in five countries, mainly Italy. A

Chile international The Chile International is an open international badminton tournament in Chile. The tournament has been an International Series level. In 2014, the tournament used a new experimental scoring system, best of five games to 11 without setting. In 2015 ...

since 2003, Pinilla represented the country at the

2014 World Cup The 2014 FIFA World Cup was the 20th FIFA World Cup, the quadrennial world championship for men's national football teams organised by FIFA. It took place in Brazil from 12 June to 13 July 2014, after the country was awarded the hosting righ ...

and two

Copa América The Copa América ( en, America Cup) or CONMEBOL Copa América, known until 1975 as the South American Football Championship (''Campeonato Sudamericano de Fútbol'' in Spanish and ''Campeonato Sul-Americano de Futebol'' in Portuguese), is the t ...

, winning the

2015 File:2015 Events Collage new.png, From top left, clockwise: Civil service in remembrance of November 2015 Paris attacks; Germanwings Flight 9525 was purposely crashed into the French Alps; the rubble of residences in Kathmandu following the Apri ...

and 2016 editions of the latter tournament.

Club career

Early career

Born in

Santiago Santiago (, ; ), also known as Santiago de Chile, is the capital and largest city of Chile as well as one of the largest cities in the Americas. It is the center of Chile's most densely populated region, the Santiago Metropolitan Region, whose ...

, Pinilla started his career with

Club Universidad de Chile Club Universidad de Chile () is a professional football club based in Santiago, Chile, that plays in the Primera División. Founded on 24 May 1927, Universidad de Chile is one of the most successful and popular football clubs in Chile, havin ...

, leaving for European football and Italian giants

in 2003 after signing a five-year contract. However, he was immediately sold to fellow

Serie A The Serie A (), also called Serie A TIM for national sponsorship with TIM, is a professional league competition for football clubs located at the top of the Italian football league system and the winner is awarded the Scudetto and the Coppa ...

club A.C. ChievoVerona (which acquired 50% of the player's rights), and finished the 2003–04 season on loan again, to

La Liga The Campeonato Nacional de Liga de Primera División, commonly known simply as Primera División in Spain, and as La Liga in English-speaking countries and officially as LaLiga Santander for sponsorship reasons, stylized as LaLiga, is the men's ...

side

RC Celta de Vigo Real Club Celta de Vigo (; ), commonly known as Celta de Vigo or simply Celta, is a Spanish professional football club based in Vigo, Galicia, that competes in La Liga, the top tier of Spanish football. Nicknamed ''Os Celestes'' (The Sky Blues), ...

, not managing to score in a total of 12 league appearances.

Journeyman

In July 2004, Sporting CP bought 50% of his playing rights and Pinilla, having spent much of the season on a low note, finished it with five goals, notably a

hat-trick A hat-trick or hat trick is the achievement of a generally positive feat three times in a match, or another achievement based on the number three. Origin The term first appeared in 1858 in cricket, to describe H. H. Stephenson taking three wic ...

in a 3–0 away win against S.C. Braga on 1 May 2005. However, he was also unable to settle at Sporting and, in January 2006, would move on loan, finishing the campaign at

Racing de Santander Real Racing Club de Santander, S.A.D. (), also known as Racing de Santander () or simply Racing, is a football club based in Santander, Cantabria, Spain, that currently competes in Segunda División, the second tier of the Spanish league system ...

. On 26 February 2006 he netted his only goal for the Cantabria team, a

penalty kick A penalty shot or penalty kick is a play used in several sports whereby a goal is attempted during untimed play. Depending on the sport, when a player commits certain types of penalties, the opposition is awarded a penalty shot or kick attempt. ...

in a 2–2 draw at

Deportivo Alavés Deportivo Alavés, S.A.D. (; ''Sporting Alavés''), usually abbreviated to Alavés, is a List of football clubs in Spain, Spanish football club based in Vitoria-Gasteiz, Álava, in the Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of the ...

. In 2006–07, Pinilla was once again loaned, now to Heart of Midlothian. His time with the

Edinburgh Edinburgh ( ; gd, Dùn Èideann ) is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 Council areas of Scotland, council areas. Historically part of the county of Midlothian (interchangeably Edinburghshire before 1921), it is located in Lothian ...

club was beset by injuries, resulting in him only playing a handful of times for the first team; in February 2007, he returned to Universidad de Chile. Pinilla returned to Hearts for pre-season training ahead of the 2007–08 season, with Hearts buying out Sporting's half of his rights. However, his return to playing football with Hearts had a major setback when it was revealed the player had a fractured scaphoid wrist bone, a hidden injury sustained while still in Chile; this put him out of action for a six further weeks. On 9 January 2008, it was reported that Pinilla had sustained another injury in training that sidelined him for the rest of the campaign. On 6 May, his agent stated that he had signed a deal which would keep him at

Tynecastle Park Tynecastle Park is a football stadium in the Gorgie area of Edinburgh, which is the home ground of Scottish Professional Football League club Heart of Midlothian (Hearts). It has also hosted Scotland international matches, and been used as a ...

until 2011, after his contract with Inter expired the following month. However, on 1 July, Hearts announced that they had released the forward. Pinilla joined Brazil's

CR Vasco da Gama Club de Regatas Vasco da Gama (), commonly referred as Vasco da Gama or simply Vasco, is a professional sports club based in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Originally a rowing club, Vasco is mostly known for its football team, who it currently compet ...

in early September 2008, signing a contract until the end of the season. He played his first match with his new club in a 0–1 home defeat to CR Flamengo, in a

derby Derby ( ) is a city and unitary authority area in Derbyshire, England. It lies on the banks of the River Derwent in the south of Derbyshire, which is in the East Midlands Region. It was traditionally the county town of Derbyshire. Derby gai ...

. After Vasco was relegated to the Série B, Pinilla left and moved to

Cyprus Cyprus ; tr, Kıbrıs (), officially the Republic of Cyprus,, , lit: Republic of Cyprus is an island country located south of the Anatolian Peninsula in the eastern Mediterranean Sea. Its continental position is disputed; while it is geo ...

' Apollon Limassol FC as a

free agent In professional sports, a free agent is a player who is eligible to sign with other clubs or franchises; i.e., not under contract to any specific team. The term is also used in reference to a player who is under contract at present but who is a ...

Back to Italy and Serie A

Pinilla returned to Italy in August 2009, joining

Serie B The Serie B (), currently named Serie Balkrishna Industries, BKT for sponsorship reasons, is the second-highest division in the Italian football league system after the Serie A. It has been operating for over ninety years since the 1929–30 ...

's F.C. Grosseto S.S.D. on a free transfer. At the Tuscan club, his once promising career got back on track, as he scored 24 goals in 24 games – including a series of 12 consecutive matches netting, a competition record– and finished the campaign as the second best scorer despite missing more than a third of the fixtures through different injuries. In June 2010, U.S. Città di Palermo announced the signing of Pinilla. He scored five league goals in his first 12 appearances, being an important attacking unit in a side that also included

Abel Hernández Abel Mathías Hernández Platero (born 8 August 1990) is a Uruguayan professional footballer who plays as a striker for Liga MX club Atlético San Luis. Hernández began his career with Central Español and Peñarol, and spent five-and-a-hal ...

, Massimo Maccarone and Fabrizio Miccoli. On 11 September 2011, in the season's opener, Pinilla was brought from the bench to score the 4–2 for Palermo against his former team Inter, in an eventual 4–3 home win. On 25 January of the following year he was loaned to

Cagliari Calcio Cagliari Calcio, commonly referred to as Cagliari (), is an Italian football club based in Cagliari, Sardinia. In the 2022-23 season, they compete in Serie B. As of 2021–22, the team is temporarily playing their home games at the 16,416-seat ...

in the same league, with the

Sardinia Sardinia ( ; it, Sardegna, label=Italian, Corsican and Tabarchino ; sc, Sardigna , sdc, Sardhigna; french: Sardaigne; sdn, Saldigna; ca, Sardenya, label=Algherese and Catalan) is the second-largest island in the Mediterranean Sea, after ...

ns having the option of making the move permanent in June. Pinilla joined Cagliari on a permanent basis on 2 July 2012. Two years later, after an average of seven league goals per season, he moved to

Genoa C.F.C. Genoa Cricket and Football Club, commonly referred to as Genoa (), is a professional football club based in Genoa, Liguria, Italy, that competes in , the second division of the Italian football league system. Established in 1893, Genoa is ...

on a 2+1 years deal. Whilst at the service of

Atalanta BC Atalanta Bergamasca Calcio, commonly referred to as Atalanta, is a professional football club based in Bergamo, Lombardy, Italy. The club plays in Serie A, having gained promotion from Serie B in 2010–11. Atalanta was founded in 1907 by Lice ...

, on loan, Pinilla scored arguably one of the best goals of the season in Italy on 4 April 2015, after netting through a bicycle kick in a 1–2 home loss to

Torino FC Turin ( , Piedmontese: ; it, Torino ) is a city and an important business and cultural centre in Northern Italy. It is the capital city of Piedmont and of the Metropolitan City of Turin, and was the first Italian capital from 1861 to 1865. T ...

. He added a further five during his five-month tenure, being crucial as his team narrowly avoided relegation as 17th. On 5 January 2017, Pinilla returned to Genoa on a loan with an obligation to buy, replacing

Leonardo Pavoletti Leonardo Pavoletti (; born 26 November 1988) is an Italian professional footballer who captains club Cagliari and plays for the Italy national team as a forward. Early and personal life Known to friends as 'Pavoloso', Pavoletti played tenni ...

who left for

S.S.C. Napoli Società Sportiva Calcio Napoli, commonly referred to as Napoli (), is an Italian professional football club based in the city of Naples ( it, Napoli, nap, Napule), Campania that plays in Serie A, the top flight of Italian football. Napoli ha ...

Return to Universidad

On 21 July 2017, aged 33 and ten years after last leaving the club, Pinilla terminated his contract with Genoa and returned to Universidad de Chile. He retired in February 2021, following a two-year spell at Coquimbo Unido who were relegated from the

Chilean Primera División The Chilean Primera División (English: First Division) is the top-tier league of the Chilean football league system. It is organized by the ''Asociación Nacional de Fútbol Profesional, ANFP''. The league is known as the Campeonato AFP PlanVital ...

at the end of the 2020 season.

International career

Pinilla earned the first of his 45 caps for

Chile Chile, officially the Republic of Chile, is a country in the western part of South America. It is the southernmost country in the world, and the closest to Antarctica, occupying a long and narrow strip of land between the Andes to the east a ...

on 30 March 2003 in a

friendly Friendly may refer to: Places * Friendly, West Yorkshire, a settlement in Calderdale, West Yorkshire, England * Friendly, Maryland, an unincorporated community in the United States * Friendly, Eugene, Oregon, a neighborhood in the United States * ...

against

Peru , image_flag = Flag of Peru.svg , image_coat = Escudo nacional del Perú.svg , other_symbol = Great Seal of the State , other_symbol_type = Seal (emblem), National seal , national_motto = "Fi ...

, closing a 2–0 win through a header, and later led his country's scoring in the

2006 FIFA World Cup The 2006 FIFA World Cup, also branded as Germany 2006, was the 18th FIFA World Cup, the quadrennial international football world championship tournament. It was held from 9 June to 9 July 2006 in Germany, which had won the right to host the ...

qualifiers with three goals. However, on 27 February 2007, whilst on loan to Universidad de Chile, he was caught in a hotel with María José López, the model wife of national team

captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police department, election precinct, e ...

Luis Antonio Jiménez Luis Antonio Jiménez Garcés (born 17 June 1984) is a Chilean professional Association football, footballer who plays as an Midfielder#Attacking midfielder, attacking midfielder for Primera B de Chile, Primera B club Deportes Magallanes, Magal ...

. Subsequently, Pinilla announced his decision to retire from the international scene. In August 2010 he returned to the team, being recalled by manager Marcelo Bielsa for an exhibition game with

Ukraine Ukraine ( uk, Україна, Ukraïna, ) is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the second-largest European country after Russia, which it borders to the east and northeast. Ukraine covers approximately . Prior to the ongoing Russian inv ...

. He was also picked for a match against

Uruguay Uruguay (; ), officially the Oriental Republic of Uruguay ( es, República Oriental del Uruguay), is a country in South America. It shares borders with Argentina to its west and southwest and Brazil to its north and northeast; while bordering ...

later in November of the following year, only to be called off due to injury. Pinilla was selected for the

in Brazil. He made his debut in the tournament on 14 June, playing two minutes in a 3–1 group stage victory over

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

and being involved in

Jean Beausejour Jean André Emanuel Beausejour Coliqueo (; born 1 June 1984) is a Chilean former professional footballer who played as a left-sided wing-back. He played in Chile, Switzerland, Brazil, Belgium, Mexico and England, where he won the League Cup wi ...

's goal. Again from the bench, he appeared in the round-of-16 against the hosts: his 119th minute shot hit the bar with the score at 1–1, and he later missed his penalty shootout attempt in an eventual elimination. Pinilla was a member of the squad which won the

2015 Copa América The 2015 Copa América was the 44th edition of the Copa América, the main international football tournament for national teams in South America, and took place in Chile between 11 June and 4 July 2015. The competition was organized by CONMEBOL, ...

on home soil for their first continental honour, contributing two late substitute appearances. On 29 March 2016, he and Arturo Vidal scored twice each in a 4–1 away defeat of

Venezuela Venezuela (; ), officially the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela ( es, link=no, República Bolivariana de Venezuela), is a country on the northern coast of South America, consisting of a continental landmass and many islands and islets in th ...

in qualification for the 2018 World Cup.

Post-retirement

In March 2021, Pinilla joined ESPN Chile as a commentator and analyst along with fellow former footballer

Marcelo Espina Marcelo Fabián Espina Barrano (born April 28, 1967 in Buenos Aires) is a retired Argentine football midfielder. He played for a number of clubs in Argentina and Chile and represented the Argentina national football team. In the present, he i ...

. That same year, he moved to Televisión Nacional de Chile as host of non-football shows.

Personal life

Pinilla's nephew, Felipe Miranda, played youth football with Colo-Colo, being at that point followed by Palermo.

Career statistics

Club

International

International goals

Honours

Chile *

2016 File:2016 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Bombed-out buildings in Ankara following the 2016 Turkish coup d'état attempt; the impeachment trial of Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff; Damaged houses during the 2016 Nagorno-Karabakh ...

References

External links

* * * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Pinilla, Mauricio 1984 births Living people Chilean people of Italian descent Chilean footballers Footballers from Santiago Association football forwards Chilean Primera División players Universidad de Chile footballers Coquimbo Unido footballers Serie A players Serie B players Inter Milan players A.C. ChievoVerona players F.C. Grosseto S.S.D. players Palermo F.C. players Cagliari Calcio players Genoa C.F.C. players Atalanta B.C. players La Liga players RC Celta de Vigo players Racing de Santander players Primeira Liga players Sporting CP footballers Scottish Premier League players Heart of Midlothian F.C. players Campeonato Brasileiro Série A players CR Vasco da Gama players Cypriot First Division players Apollon Limassol FC players Chile under-20 international footballers Chile international footballers 2014 FIFA World Cup players 2015 Copa América players Copa América Centenario players Copa América-winning players Chilean expatriate footballers Expatriate footballers in Italy Expatriate footballers in Spain Expatriate footballers in Portugal Expatriate footballers in Scotland Expatriate footballers in Brazil Expatriate footballers in Cyprus Chilean expatriate sportspeople in Italy Chilean expatriate sportspeople in Spain Chilean expatriate sportspeople in Portugal Chilean expatriate sportspeople in Scotland Chilean expatriate sportspeople in Brazil Chilean expatriate sportspeople in Cyprus Chilean association football commentators Chilean television personalities