Leandro Desábato (born 24 January 1979), nicknamed ''Chavo'', is an Argentine football manager and former player. He is the manager of Almagro.

Club career

Desábato began his professional career in 1997 playing for Estudiantes de La Plata. In 2001, he joined Olimpo and after one season with the club he moved on to play for

Quilmes Quilmes () is a city on the coast of the Rio de la Plata, in the , on the south east of the Greater Buenos Aires. The city was founded in 1666 and it is the seat of the eponymous county. With a population of 230,810, it is located south of the ...

. With both teams he won promotion from the

Primera B Nacional Primera Nacional (usually called simply Nacional B, in English "National B Division", and known as Primera B Nacional until the 2019–20 season) is the second division of the Argentine football league system. The competition is made up of 37 team ...

(Argentine second division) to the Primera División (first). In a

2005 Copa Libertadores The 2005 Copa Libertadores was the 46th edition of the Copa Libertadores. The champion also qualified for the 2005 FIFA Club World Championship. It was the first time ever that two teams from the same country reached the final. This year's tour ...

match, Desábato allegedly racially insulted

São Paulo São Paulo (, ; Portuguese for ' Saint Paul') is the most populous city in Brazil, and is the capital of the state of São Paulo, the most populous and wealthiest Brazilian state, located in the country's Southeast Region. Listed by the Ga ...

's player

Grafite Edinaldo Batista Libânio (born 2 April 1979), commonly known as Grafite (pronounced ), is a Brazilian former professional footballer who played as a striker. He currently works as a pundit for TV Globo and SporTV. In 2005, Grafite won the C ...

. Desábato was arrested after the match. Following his night in jail, Desábato was defended by columnist and former Brazilian international footballer

Tostão Eduardo Gonçalves de Andrade (born 25 January 1947), generally known as Tostão, is a Brazilian former professional footballer who played as a forward or attacking midfielder. Tostão was an intelligent, hardworking and prolific left-footed f ...

who stated that the insults were not racist, simply the kind of provocation that has always existed in football.Terra deportes article
/ref> Desábato left Quilmes in 2006 to join

Argentinos Juniors Asociación Atlética Argentinos Juniors is an Argentine sports club based in La Paternal, Buenos Aires. The club is mostly known for its football team, which currently plays in the Argentine Primera División, and was recognized as one of the ...

and after a successful season with the club he returned to Estudiantes de La Plata. During the second half of 2008, he was a regular first team player for Estudiantes in their Copa Sudamericana campaign, where they reached the final. Desábato was a key figure in Estudiantes'

2009 Copa Libertadores The 2009 Copa Libertadores de América (officially the 2009 Copa Santander Libertadores de América for sponsorship reasons) was the 50th edition of the Copa Libertadores de América, CONMEBOL's premier annual international club tournament. The ...

championship. He was the only outfield player on the team to play in every minute of every game during the team's run through the tournament, even as his center-back partners changed around him (from

Agustín Alayes Agustín Alayes (born 22 July 1978 in La Plata) is a retired Argentine footballer who played as defender. Career Alayes started his career at Estudiantes in 1997 but in 2000 he left his home town club to play for Quilmes Atlético Club in 20 ...

Cristian Cellay Christian Ariel Cellay (born September 5, 1981) is an Argentine football defender who plays for UE Sant Julià in Andorra, as centre back or right back too. Career Cellay started his professional career with Huracán where he made 147 league ...

Rolando Schiavi Rolando Carlos Schiavi (; born 18 January 1973) is a retired Argentine football defender, most recognized for his time spent playing for Boca Juniors. Club career Schiavi started his career in the lower leagues with Argentino de Rosario, bef ...

). In 2009 Desábato was chosen in a traditional journalist poll conducted by '' El País'' in the South American Team of the Year.

Personal life

Desábato's cousins, Andrés and Leandro Luis, are fellow footballers.

Honours

;Olimpo *

: 2001–02 ;Estudiantes * Copa Libertadores: 2009 * Argentine Primera División: 2010 Apertura

References

External links

Argentine Primera statistics
at Fútbol XXI * {{DEFAULTSORT:Desabato, Leandro 1979 births Living people Argentine footballers Association football defenders Estudiantes de La Plata footballers Quilmes Atlético Club footballers Club Olimpo footballers Argentinos Juniors footballers Argentine Primera División players Primera Nacional players J1 League players Cerezo Osaka players Copa Libertadores-winning players Argentina international footballers People from General López Department Sportspeople from Santa Fe Province Argentine football managers Estudiantes de La Plata managers