10 Argentines Who Have Left Their Mark on Barcelona

Although Gerardo Martino is stepping into the unknown as he prepares for the challenge of coaching Barcelona, at the very least he will know that he is in the best of company. El Tata is the latest of a score of Argentines who have made an impact at Camp Nou, whether for the right reasons or not. 

From pioneers of the Catalan club at the turn of the 20th century to present-day stars Lionel Messi and Javier Mascherano, there is a long history of players and coaches from the South American nation making their name with Barcelona. 

Here are 10 of the most memorable Argentine personalities who have passed through the Blaugrana's hallowed halls. 

Lionel Messi

Who else but La Pulga himself to head up this list? Messi is still only 26, but he has already done more than enough in his career to mark him down as one of the all-time greatest players ever to pull on a Barcelona shirt. 

With 313 goals in 379 games, six Liga titles, three Champions Leagues and a total of 20 major trophies with the Blaugrana, there is no doubt that the arrival of the diminutive Argentine has coincided with Barcelona's most successful era in their history. 

Now that Messi will be teamed up with fellow Rosario native and Newell's old boy Martino at Camp Nou, Barcelona are dreaming of even bigger things to come for their brightest star. 

Diego Maradona

Argentine bars and cafes constantly ring with the same argument: Who was better, Messi or Diego Maradona? Messi has certainly achieved more during his time with the Blaugrana than his predecessor at No. 10 could, but in his own way the little genius also left an indelible mark. 

Maradona arrived in Catalunya already an idol on the world stage thanks to his brilliance with Boca Juniors. Barca beat the transfer-fee record by paying out a then-staggering $7.6 million for the Argentine international, who began his career at Camp Nou in impressive fashion. 

A horror tackle by Andoni Goikoetxea while playing against Athletic Bilbao, however, broke Diego's left ankle and led him to lose focus on football. After just two years and with no little acrimony, Maradona was off for another transfer record to make history with Napoli. But 38 goals in 58 games, a Copa del Rey and Super Cup medal prove his brief spell was by no means a failure. 

Alfredo Di Stefano

The grandfather of Real Madrid came close to playing at Camp Nou, and history could have unfolded very differently if not for a few twists of fate. In 1953, Barcelona came to an agreement to sign the Argentine star from River Plate, who allegedly held his contract rights. 

Madrid, on the other hand, went to Colombian side Millonarios, for whom Di Stefano was playing as part of a massive influx of stars. Di Stefano had moved to Colombia during its football golden era. Deadlocked, the Spanish football authorities decreed rather strangely that Di Stefano would play a season for Madrid, then Barca, alternating between the two sides. 

Barca dismissed this out of hand and watched as an Alfredo-inspired Madrid went on to win the first five European Cups and become the greatest team in the world. The signing of Di Stefano, who scored 216 goals for the Merengue, with plenty of those coming against Barca, further stoked the rivalry between Spain's biggest clubs and led to years of resentment from those in Catalunya. 

Helenio Herrera

During those dark days of the 1950s, when Madrid won everything that was going with Di Stefano calling the shots, Barcelona decided to follow their lead. Not on the pitch, but on the bench, as Helenio Herrera was drafted in to coach after a previously successful spell with Atletico Madrid. 

Although he could not match Madrid's dominance in Europe, Herrera did redress the domestic balance with two Liga titles.

The first, in 1959, ended a painful drought of six years in Camp Nou without a national title. A win in the 1958 Inter-Cities Fairs Cup, the precursor to the UEFA Cup, also provided Barcelona with their first taste of silverware. 

Herrera's time in Catalunya ended on a sour note, when he left after just two years following a dispute with star Hungarian Ladislao Kubala. He moved on to win two European Cups with Inter and reinvent football with his catenaccio style, while Barcelona would go another 14 years before winning another Liga trophy. 

Cesar Luis Menotti

Menotti was the last Argentine before Martino to sit on the Barcelona bench. And this flamboyant, chain-smoking playboy was about as far removed from the current occupant as humanly possible. 

The 1978 World Cup winner came to Camp Nou at the same time as Diego Maradona, following an unsuccessful attempt at a repeat performance in Spain 1982. El Flaco's laid-back approach to training— discarding morning sessions, as he believed players trained more effectively after lunch—played directly into his star and compatriot's increasingly hard-partying lifestyle. 

There were still highlights, lifting the Copa del Rey in his first season, but a sharp downturn in form during his second year meant that Menotti's spell at Camp Nou lasted less than 18 months. 

Juan Roman Riquelme

Plagued throughout his career with comparisons to the great Diego Maradona, the football life of Juan Roman Riquelme parallels uncannily with that of the stocky idol from Villa Fiorito. Youth football in Argentinos Juniors, the move to Boca, and then, at the pinnacle of their talents, trying for fame in Barcelona with mixed results. 

Riquelme's time at Camp Nou was at times brilliant but mostly frustrating for the famously sullen No. 10.

Accustomed to directing traffic in the middle of the pitch, he did not take well to being shunted out onto the wing by coach Louis van Gaal, and this poor relationship ensured he would not prosper further in Catalunya. 

Roman left Barca with just six goals in 42 games after one season but went on to rebuild his career with excellent spells at Villarreal and back at Boca. Now 35, he continues to be one of the most talented and most enigmatic players in Argentina. 

Roque Olsen

While the whole world knows of Di Stefano's exploits, the former River Plate maestro was not the only Argentine who set the world on fire for Madrid. Roque Olsen played alongside Alfredo in that wonderful team of the 1950s, but as a coach crossed the divide to try to pull Barcelona out of the doldrums. 

Recalled more for his fierce discipline than for his success on the field with Barca (a 1966 Fairs Cup the only triumph), Olsen lasted just two years. 

An anecdote that circled later tells that during his time in charge, Olsen wished to cut loose a youngster who he was convinced would not make the grade. His name? Carles Rexach, who went on to represent Barca for the next 14 years, and who spent a total of 44 years with the club before finally resigning from the youth system in 2003. 

Javier Saviola

When Javier Saviola arrived at Camp Nou aged just 19, he had already shown enough promise to prompt Barcelona into paying an estimated £15 million transfer fee for the River Plate starlet. Unfortunately for El Conejito, he never truly found his place with the club in six years as a Blaugrana player. 

A total of 70 goals in 168 appearances was respectable enough, but Saviola could never hold down a regular place in the first team and spent several seasons on loan. He ended up crossing the divide for an equally undistinguished spell with Real Madrid and will play the next year with Olympiacos. 

Emilio Sagi Barba

The first Argentine to pull on the Barcelona shirt was not even known by his real name during the early years of the 20th century. Emilio Sagi Linan, the son of legendary Catalan baritone Emilio Sagi Barba (listen to him above) from whom the nickname arrived, was indeed only born in South America by accident as his parents carried out work duties away from Spain. 

Nevertheless, Sagi Barba (as he was known universally) became one of the early stars for the Blaugrana. The forward who as a youth enjoyed kick-arounds with abstract artist Salvador Dali played over 400 games for Barca, scoring 134 goals; they say that in his entire career he never missed a penalty. 

Rafael Zuviria

As well as his strength, Roberto Torito (little bull) Zuviria was renowned for possessing a versatility that marked him out as special. Across a 14-year career—five of which were spent at Barcelona—Zuviria appeared in every position apart from in goal but was happiest as a midfielder sitting just behind the front line. 

With Barcelona, the Santa Fe native lifted two Copas del Rey, in the process making over 100 appearances for the club. He was best remembered for a crucial strike in 1979 against Anderlecht, helping his team stay on track for a European Cup Winners Cup victory.

Ironically, it was the entry of Diego Maradona in 1982 that forced him out. Given the option of leaving or staying for a season on the bench, Zuviria opted to move to Mallorca before returning to Argentina in the twilight of his career.