Diego Pablo Simeone (born April 28, 1970 in Buenos Aires) is an Argentine football manager and former footballer. A midfielder, he is the third most capped player ever for Argentina.When Simeone was 14, his youth coach Victorio Spinetto nicknamed him Cholo as his energetic play reminded him of after former Boca Juniors player and Argentine international Carmelo Simeone (no relation).
In his club career that started in 1987, Simeone played for Vélez Sarsfield, Pisa, Sevilla FC, Atlético Madrid, Inter Milan, and Lazio.
For the Argentine team, Simeone amassed 106 caps[1], the first coming in 1988. He played in the 1994, 1998 and 2002 World Cups. As a midfielder, Simeone scored 11 goals for his country. He was considered a leader on the pitch. He was a member of the team that won the silver medal at the 1996 Summer Olympics in Atlanta, Georgia.
During the 1998 World Cup, David Beckham was sent off for kicking Simeone in retaliation for a foul. (see also Argentina and England football rivalry). Simeone later admitted to exaggerating injury from the kick, in order to get Beckham expelled. In the following match, against the Netherlands, Simeone was injured by a tackle during his team's defeat. In the 2002 World Cup, his last, Argentina was eliminated in the group stage.
A sometimes intimidating figure on the pitch (the Argentine press used to describe Simeone as carrying "a knife between his teeth"), Simeone is humble off it, admitting to being "embarrassed" at having surpassed Diego Maradona as Argentina's most capped player (he has since been surpassed by Roberto Ayala and Javier Zanetti).
Simeone ended his playing career for Racing Club, playing his last match on 17 February 2006, and then became manager for the same team. After a rough start, the team made an impressive finish in the 2006 Clausura. When ownership of the club changed hands Simeone left Racing in May 2006 and was replaced with Reinaldo Merlo.
On May 18, he became head coach of Estudiantes de La Plata and soon led them to their first League title in 23 years after defeating Boca Juniors 2-1 in a final match played December 13, 2006.
In an October 2006 poll in the sports daily Ole, Simeone was voted as the best manager in the Argentine league. He was also praised as a "born manager" by former Argentine international Roberto Perfumo.
