On 24 December 2014, Rosario Central announced the return of Marco Gastón Ruben Rodríguez, on loan from Dynamo Kyiv after seven years in Europe and a spell in Mexico. That return changed his career. Born on 26 October 1986 in Capitán Bermúdez, in Santa Fe province, the Argentine centre-forward, who also holds Spanish citizenship, became Rosario Central’s top scorer of the professional era. He had five separate spells at the club. He also played for River Plate, Recreativo de Huelva, Villarreal, Dynamo Kyiv, Évian, Tigres, Athletico Paranaense and Deportivo Maldonado.
Youth and debut in Arroyito
Ruben came through Rosario Central’s youth system. He made his first-team debut on 25 August 2004, in a goalless draw with Quilmes. In the 2006 Apertura he scored seven goals in 17 matches and finished as the team’s top scorer. That season earned him a move to one of Argentina’s biggest clubs: River Plate signed him in 2007, and he stayed there until January 2008.
Spain: Recreativo and Villarreal
In January 2008, Villarreal bought him from River and loaned him straight out to Recreativo de Huelva. He played for the Andalusian club until 2009, a season that ended in relegation. Back at Villarreal, he spent 2009-10 with the reserve side in the Spanish second division and was among its goalscorers. He made his La Liga debut for the first team on 7 February 2010, away at Mallorca. His first goal for Villarreal came on 9 January 2011, in a 4-2 defeat to Real Madrid. He stayed at the club until the summer of 2012.
Ukraine, France and Mexico
On 13 July 2012 he signed a five-year contract with Dynamo Kyiv. He scored his first goal for the Ukrainian club on 3 November 2012, in a 2-0 win over Tavriya Simferopol, but rarely got into the team. In 2013-14 he was loaned to Évian in France’s Ligue 1, where he scored just once in the league. In June 2014 he joined Tigres on a one-year loan. He made his debut for the Mexican club on 9 July 2014, in a 4-1 Supercopa MX defeat to Monarcas Morelia. Six months later he was back in Rosario.
Top scorer in Argentina
In 2015, under coach Eduardo Coudet, Ruben had the best year of his career: 21 league goals and the Argentine Primera División scoring title. He was also named captain. That year he scored the only goal in a 1-0 Rosario derby win over Newell’s, and in 2017 he scored against them again in a 3-1 victory. In early 2016 Central completed his permanent transfer from Dynamo. Wearing the number 9 shirt, he won the 2018 Copa Argentina, the club’s first trophy in decades.
The Brazilian chapter
On 11 January 2019 he joined Athletico Paranaense on a year-long loan. In Curitiba he won the Campeonato Paranaense, the 2019 Copa do Brasil and that year’s J.League Cup / Copa Sudamericana Championship. On 2 April 2019 he scored a hat-trick in a 3-0 win over Boca Juniors in the Copa Libertadores group stage. He went back to Rosario Central at the end of 2019. On 1 March 2020 he scored another hat-trick, against Arsenal de Sarandí.
Argentina national team
For the under-23 side he played a friendly against Guatemala in Los Angeles on 5 February 2008 and scored in a 5-0 win. He did not make the final squad for the Beijing Olympics. He won one senior cap, on 5 June 2011 against Poland in Warsaw, and scored in the 47th minute of a 2-1 defeat.
Record, retirements and returns
In late 2021 Ruben overtook Waldino Aguirre to become Rosario Central’s top scorer of the professional era. He retired on 7 May 2022 after scoring in a 3-1 win over Estudiantes de La Plata, with 105 goals for the club. In November 2023 he came back to play for Deportivo Maldonado in the Uruguayan Primera División. Central announced his return on 26 May 2024. In his comeback match against Lanús he scored a 94th-minute equaliser in a 1-1 draw. He retired for a second time on 14 December 2024, after a 2-1 win over Belgrano at the Gigante de Arroyito. In February 2026 he came out of retirement again and signed for his fifth spell at Rosario Central.
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