Enzo Alan Tomás Barrenechea (born 22 May 2001) is an Argentine professional footballer who plays as a central or defensive midfielder for Premier League club Aston Villa.
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Enzo Alan Tomás Barrenechea | ||
| Date of birth | 22 May 2001 | ||
| Place of birth | Villa María, Argentina | ||
| Height | 1.86 m (6 ft 1 in) | ||
| Position(s) | Defensive midfielder | ||
| Team information | |||
Current team | Aston Villa | ||
| Number | 21 | ||
| Youth career | |||
| –2019 | Newell's Old Boys | ||
| 2019–2020 | Sion | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2019–2020 | Sion B | 7 | (0) |
| 2020–2023 | Juventus Next Gen[α] | 37 | (5) |
| 2022–2024 | Juventus | 3 | (0) |
| 2023–2024 | → Frosinone (loan) | 36 | (0) |
| 2024– | Aston Villa | 0 | (0) |
| *Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 18:00, 26 May 2024 (UTC) | |||
Career
Early career
In his early years, Barrenechea played for Newell's Old Boys.[2] In the summer of 2019, he moved to Sion for €3.1 million.[3]
Juventus
In the winter of 2020, Barranechea moved to Juventus U23 – the reserve team of Juventus.[3] He made his debut with Juventus U23 on 25 October 2020, in an away win against Lucchese.[4] On 22 May 2021, Barrenechea injured his ACL.[5] On 20 February 2022, Barrenechea returned from his injury coming on as a substitute in the 59th minute against Seregno[6] in a 2–2 draw.[7] On 2 April, Barrenechea scored the first goal in his career in a 1–1 draw against Virtus Verona.[8] On 21 May, Barrenechea scored a 12th-minute decider in the second leg of the second round of the play-offs - a 1–0 win against Padova, which did not prevent Juventus from being eliminated from the play-offs.[9]
Barrenechea started to get first-team call-ups in the 2022–23 season. He made his debut for Juventus on 2 November 2022 as an 88th-minute substitute for Juan Cuadrado in a 2–1 UEFA Champions League loss against Paris Saint-Germain.[10] By mid-February 2023, he was moved to the senior squad on a permanent basis. He made his Serie A debut for Juventus on 28 February 2023 against Torino.[11] On 1 April, Juventus announced his definitive promotion to the first team.[12]
Loan to Frosinone
On 15 August 2023, Barrenechea was sent on loan to newly-promoted Serie A club Frosinone for the 2023–24 season.[13] He made his debut for the club four days later, coming on as a late substitute for Abdou Harroui in a 3–1 league defeat to Napoli.[14] On 19 December, he scored his first goal for Frosinone in a 4–0 Coppa Italia win over Napoli.[15][16]
Aston Villa
On 1 July 2024, Barrenechea signed for Premier League club Aston Villa on a permanent deal, as part of a double-transfer from Juventus, alongside Samuel Iling-Junior.[17][18][19] The deal commanded an €8 million fee, plus €3 million in add-ons,[17][19] and was related to the transfer of Douglas Luiz to Juventus, despite being a separate transaction.[17][20]
Style of play
Barrenechea is a defensive midfielder, who has drawn comparisons to Paul Pogba and Steven Nzonzi due to his playing style.[2]
International career
Barrenechea was called up to the Argentina U20 side by Lionel Scaloni for the 2018 COTIF Tournament in Spain.[21]
Career statistics
Club
- As of match played 23 June 2024[22]
| Club | Season | League | National Cup | League Cup | Other | Total | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Juventus Next Gen[α] | 2020–21 | Serie C | 3 | 0 | — | — | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | ||
| 2021–22 | Serie C | 8 | 1 | — | — | 5[a] | 1 | 13 | 2 | |||
| 2022–23 | Serie C | 26 | 4 | — | — | 5[b] | 0 | 31 | 4 | |||
| Total | 37 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 10 | 1 | 47 | 6 | ||
| Juventus | 2022–23 | Serie A | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 2[c] | 0 | 5 | 0 | |
| Frosinone (loan) | 2023–24 | Serie A | 36 | 0 | 2 | 1 | — | — | 38 | 1 | ||
| Aston Villa | 2024–25 | Premier League | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Career total | 76 | 5 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 12 | 1 | 90 | 7 | ||
Notes
References
External links
- Enzo Barrenechea at Soccerway