Franco Armani

Franco Armani (Spanish pronunciation: [ˈfɾaŋko aɾˈmani]; born 16 October 1986) is an Argentine professional footballer who plays as a goalkeeper for Liga DIMAYOR club Atlético Nacional. Club career Early career and Atletico Nacional Armani left Deportivo Merlo in 2010 for Medellin's Atlético Nacional. He stayed for 8 seasons and became their first choice goalkeeper. He was described as a hero...

Franco Armani (Spanish pronunciation: [ˈfɾaŋko aɾˈmani]; born 16 October 1986) is an Argentine professional footballer who plays as a goalkeeper for Liga DIMAYOR club Atlético Nacional. Club career Early career and Atletico Nacional Armani left Deportivo Merlo in 2010 for Medellin's Atlético Nacional. He stayed for 8 seasons and became their first choice goalkeeper. He was described as a hero to the Nacional fans, particularly being praised as an effective and reliable shot-stopper. Armani would go on to win thirteen trophies, including the Copa Libertadores – South America's Champions League – against Independiente del Valle in 2016. River Plate In January 2018, River Plate paid Armani's buyout clause to Nacional, a reported $3 million. On 11 January 2018, he signed a three-year contract with Los Millonarios, which was renewed for an additional year in May 2018. On 14 March 2018, he was named man of the match in River's 2–0 triumph over arch rivals Boca Juniors for the 2017 Supercopa Argentina. International career Armani married a Colombian and applied for citizenship. Colombia were reportedly interested in naturalising Armani so that he could play for their national team; however, he wished to return to Argentina to press his case for a World Cup berth with the nation of his birth. Armani has impressed for River, being described by Olé as "a goalkeeper who wins matches". In June 2018, Armani was named in Argentina's 23-man squad for the 2018 FIFA World Cup in Russia by manager Jorge Sampaoli. On 26 June, he made his international debut starting in place of Willy Caballero for Argentina's final group match against Nigeria; Argentina advanced to the second round as group runners-up following a 2–1 victory. On 30 June, Armani started in the Round of 16 match against France, which saw Argentina eliminated from the tournament following a 4–3 defeat. He was named in Argentina's final 23-man squad for the 2019 Copa América by manager Lionel Scaloni. He played every minute of the tournament as Argentina claimed the bronze medal by finishing third after defeating Chile 2–1 in the third place play-off match. He was named in Argentina's 28-man squad for the 2021 Copa América. He made his only appearance in Argentina's final group match, where they defeated Bolivia 4–1 to progress to the next round. He remained understudy to Emiliano Martínez in the remaining matches as Argentina won the tournament by defeating Brazil 1–0 in the final. On 1 June 2022, Armani remained as an unused substitute as Argentina won 3–0 against reigning European Champions Italy at Wembley Stadium in the 2022 Finalissima. He was named in Argentina's final 26-man squad for the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar by Scaloni. He did not play a single minute in the tournament, with Martínez as first-choice, as Argentina won the World Cup by defeating France 4–2 in a penalty shoot-out to win the final. In June 2024, Armani was included in Lionel Scaloni's final 26-man Argentina squad for the 2024 Copa América. Again, he didn't play a single minute, since Emiliano Martínez was Argentina's first-choice keeper. Before the tournament he announced he would retire from the national team after the tournament. Career statistics Club As of match played 20 May 2026 1 Includes Copa Libertadores and Copa Sudamericana 2 Includes Superliga Colombiana, Recopa Sudamericana, FIFA Club World Cup, Supercopa Argentina, Copa de la Superliga and Trofeo de Campeones de la Liga Profesional International Honours Atlético Nacional Categoría Primera A: 2011-I, 2013-I, 2013-II, 2014-I, 2015-II, 2017-I Copa Colombia: 2012, 2013, 2016 Superliga Colombiana: 2012, 2016 Copa Libertadores: 2016 Recopa Sudamericana: 2017 River Plate Argentine Primera División: 2021, 2023 Supercopa Argentina: 2017, 2019, 2023 Trofeo de Campeones: 2021, 2023 Copa Libertadores: 2018; runner-up: 2019 Recopa Sudamericana: 2019 Copa Argentina: 2019 Argentina FIFA World Cup: 2022 Copa América: 2021, 2024 CONMEBOL–UEFA Cup of Champions: 2022 References External links Franco Armani at BDFA (in Spanish) Franco Armani at Soccerway