Martín Palermo · Biography

On 5 July 1992, in a goalless draw with San Lorenzo in the Torneo Clausura, Martín Palermo made his debut in the Argentine Primera División for Estudiantes de La Plata. Born in La Plata on 7 November 1973, the centre-forward went on to build a career of almost two decades centred on Boca Juniors, where he is the all-time top scorer with 236 goals in 404 matches. After retiring in 2011 he moved into coaching, a path that took him through Argentina, Chile, Mexico, Paraguay and Brazil.

Early years at Estudiantes de La Plata

Palermo came through the youth ranks at Estudiantes, his hometown club. After that 1992 debut he struggled to secure a regular place in a first team that was relegated soon afterwards. In 1994-95 he was part of the squad that won the Primera B Nacional and brought Estudiantes straight back to the top flight. Between 1992 and 1997 he played 102 official matches and scored 36 goals for the club, numbers that earned him a move to one of the country’s big sides.

Boca Juniors: the first spell

He joined Boca Juniors in 1997. In his first spell at La Bombonera he scored 92 goals in 121 matches and won the 1998 Apertura, the 1999 Clausura and the 2000 Apertura. On 13 November 1999, in a match against Colón, he tore the anterior cruciate and medial collateral ligaments in his right knee, an injury that kept him out for around six months. Boca won the 2000 Copa Libertadores and, on 28 November that year in Tokyo, Palermo scored both goals in a 2-1 win over Real Madrid in the Intercontinental Cup.

Villarreal, Betis and Alavés

In 2001 he left for Spain to join Villarreal, where he played 81 matches and scored 21 goals until 2003. In 2002, during his time with the club, he broke his tibia and fibula when a wall collapsed while he was celebrating a goal with the supporters. In 2003 he moved to Real Betis, making 11 appearances and scoring twice, and in 2004 he was loaned to Deportivo Alavés in the Spanish second division, where he added 14 matches and 3 goals.

Back at Boca (2004-2011)

Palermo returned to Boca Juniors in 2004 for the longest spell of his career. With the club he won the Copa Sudamericana in 2004 and 2005, the Recopa Sudamericana in 2005 and 2006, the 2005 Apertura, the 2006 Clausura, the 2007 Copa Libertadores and the 2008 Apertura. On 24 August 2008, against Lanús, he again ruptured the ligaments in his right knee and spent another six months on the sidelines. He said goodbye to La Bombonera on 12 June 2011 in a 1-1 draw, and played his final professional match on 18 June 2011 against Gimnasia y Esgrima La Plata, a 2-2 draw in which he set up Cristian Cellay’s stoppage-time goal.

Argentina national team

Palermo won 15 caps for Argentina and scored 9 goals. He made his debut on 3 February 1999 in a 2-0 win over Venezuela. At the Copa América that year, in Paraguay, he missed three penalties in a single match against Colombia, who won 3-0. Ten years later he returned to the national side: on 10 October 2009, in the rain at the Monumental, he scored a stoppage-time winner against Peru in World Cup qualifying. He went to the 2010 World Cup in South Africa, where on 22 June he scored the second goal of a 2-0 win over Greece in the 89th minute. Argentina were knocked out in the quarter-finals.

Coaching career

He began his coaching career at Godoy Cruz on 1 December 2012 with a 0-0 draw against Quilmes, and left the Mendoza club in December 2013. He then managed Arsenal de Sarandí between 2014 and 2015, recording 11 wins, 10 draws and 15 defeats in 37 matches. In Chile he took charge of Unión Española from 2016 to 2018 and finished runner-up in the 2017 Torneo de Transición. On 22 January 2019 he was appointed at Mexican side Pachuca, staying until November that year; from November 2020 to July 2021 he coached Curicó Unido, and at the end of 2021 he joined Aldosivi. In November 2022 he took over at Platense, leading them to the final of the 2023 Copa de la Liga. On 13 February 2024 he was confirmed as Olimpia coach and guided the Paraguayan club to the 2024 Clausura title on 17 November 2024; he left on 9 April 2025. On 3 September 2025 he took charge of Fortaleza, who were relegated at the end of the 2025 Brasileirão, and on 5 August 2026 he began a second spell at Platense, replacing Walter Zunino.