Villarreal send Riquelme to Boca
Friday, February 9, 2007
Article summary
Villarreal CF have allowed their Argentina playmaker Juan Román Riquelme to join former club CA Boca Juniors on loan for the remainder of the campaign.
Article body
Back to Boca
The 28-year-old won six titles with Boca between 1996/97 and 2001/02 before moving to Spain and FC Barcelona, where he scored three goals in 30 league games. He arrived at Villarreal in advance of the 2003/04 campaign and went on to register 36 strikes in 106 Primera División matches for the Yellow Submarine. He was also a key figure in Villarreal's run to last season's UEFA Champions League semi-finals, where he missed a vital penalty in the aggregate defeat by Arsenal FC.
In the stands
The Argentinian international's contract with Villarreal is due to expire in 2009, but he has watched his team's last eight matches from the stands after a dispute with coach Manuel Pellegrini. This term, Riquelme has made 13 league appearances, scoring once. Villarreal are tenth in the Primera División with 29 points.