I believe that for most older fans, the name Ayala will not be unfamiliar, and may even be memorable. When mentioning this legendary Argentine star, the first image that comes to mind is the 2006 World Cup in Germany. When Ayala faced the host in the quarterfinals, he received a corner kick from Riquelme and gave Argentina the lead.

Ayala's nickname is "Mouse", which has something to do with his size and playing style. Roberto Ayala, who was born in 1973, is less than 1.80 meters tall, but he is born with extraordinary jumping ability. At the same time, he also has excellent defensive skills, so he is awarded as a central defender. Received the nickname "Rat".

Ayala had a smooth start to his career. In 1992, Ayala started his legendary career with a club called Ferro Carril. Not long after, he went to play for Argentina's traditional giants River Plate and officially entered the public eye.

1993-1994 was considered the first good period of Ayala's career. In that season, he went to play for River Plate and put on the Pampas Eagles jersey in 1993. On November 16 of the same year, he made his first appearance on behalf of the national team in an international competition in a match against Chile.

In the 1990s, the focus of Argentine fans was undoubtedly superstars such as Maradona, Caniggia and Batistuta. In contrast, players like Ayala The player style is inferior. However, his playing style was loved by many coaches, especially Basile, the then national team coach, who first recruited Ayala into the national team.

The ultimate goal of all players is to play in the five major European leagues and achieve impressive results. Ayala is no exception. He only played for River Plate for two seasons before receiving an olive branch from Serie A team Naples. The transfer fee of 3.2 million euros made him a member of the "Lightning Army".

When Ayala joined Naples, this team was no longer the strong team led by "Ball King" Maradona. Ayala lived there for 3 years and the ball The team's league rankings were 10th, 12th, and 18th respectively, and they were unfortunately relegated in the 1997-98 season. But Ayala did not decline with the team. For 7.5 million euros, the "rat" rushed to San Siro.

After the "Rosone Rossoneri" legend Baresi announced his retirement, Ayala became the most suitable successor in their minds. The transfer fee of 7.5 million euros is enough to show Milan's sincerity. But no one expected that Ayala's biggest career setback would occur here.

From 1998 to 2000, the Argentine defender only played in Milan for two seasons before choosing to leave. The reason was that the then head coach Zaccheroni did not like to use Ayala. The 3-4-3 system did not prepare a main position for "Rat". Although Ayala won a centenary championship in Milan, the ending of his Apennines journey was not so perfect.

After leaving the city of Milan, which made him sad, Ayala came to Iberia and joined the "Bat Legion" Valencia. There, he ushered in the most glorious period of his career.

Since joining Valencia, Ayala has become the team's main central defender. Cooper and Benitez took charge successively but did not remove this defensive core. "Rat" can be said to be a soul-like existence in this team.

At that time, although Real Madrid and Barcelona were powerful, they were not invincible. The "Bat Legion" led by Ayala was also considered a hard nut to crack in the eyes of the two traditional giants at the time.

In the first five seasons of joining the team, Ayala and his team won many honors, including two La Liga championships, a Europa League championship, and a European Super Cup. Championship, one Champions League runner-up. Ayala himself has won the honor of La Liga's best player many times, where he spent the best period of his career.

Although Ayala put on the jersey of the Argentina national team as early as 1994 at the age of 21, the memories Ayala left in the national team were not so good.

In the Argentine national team, Ayala's greatest honor was helping the team win the runner-up at the 1996 Atlanta Olympics, and finally won the gold medal at the 2004 Athens Olympics. Other than that, there are no better memories.

Ayala has become an indispensable member of the team in the 1998 World Cup in France. As a central defender, he has repeatedly helped the team successfully block opponents. But unfortunately, in the quarter-finals, they lost to Bergkamp's lob, and Ayala unfortunately became the "background" for the "Ice Prince"'s goal.

The World Cup in Korea and Japan four years later will be a dark memory for Ayala and the entire Argentine national team. Ayala left the field due to a strain just a few minutes into the first game. He never played in that tournament again, and the "Pampas Eagles" were eliminated after the group stage.

After winning the 2004 Olympic gold medal, it seems that Argentine fans are full of confidence in the 2006 World Cup. They did not disappoint the fans at first, and they advanced all the way to the top 16. Ayala also helped the team take the lead in the quarterfinals, but unfortunately lost to the host country in the final penalty shootout, and Ayala also missed a penalty kick.

In the 2007 America's Cup, the 34-year-old Ayala was still the main player in the team's defense, but he still had regrets in this game. Losing to arch-rival Brazil in the final, Ayala scored an own goal in the game. After the game, Ayala announced his retirement from the national team. At this point, his national team career officially came to an end, leaving the fourth record in team history with 115 appearances.

As he grew older, Ayala's level continued to decline. After the America's Cup, he left the "Bat Legion". After that, he moved to many teams for a long time. It can no longer have the same style as before. It wasn't until 2010 that he finally chose to retire.

Super forwards such as Ronaldo, Morientes, and Vieri have publicly expressed many times that the defender they least want to face is Ayala, and the "rat" has brought them a lot of trouble. Although I hate it, I believe this is the best compliment. His playing style is tough and he dares to fight hard, and the fans like him for this.

In January 2019, the 45-year-old Ayala returned to Argentina! This time, he is an assistant coach. He will assist young coach Scaloni with former teammates such as Aimar and Samuel, and lead three generations of old, middle and young players such as Messi, Dybala, and Lautaro. Fighting for the World Cup again for the Argentina national team.