Question: What is the birthday of the Argentine defender Associazione Sportiva Roma signed before the 2001 season?

Context paragraphs:
1989–90 A.S. Roma season: Associazione Sportiva Roma had a rather average season, but finished solidly inside the top half of Serie A with a sixth place.  German striker Rudi Völler had his best season at Roma, scoring 14 league goals, whilst Stefano Desideri hit 10 goals.  The greatest success of Roma's season was the Primavera team winning the national championship.

2002–03 A.S. Roma season: Associazione Sportiva Roma crashed down to earth following its previous two remarkable seasons, where it had won Serie A in 2000–01 and finished a close second in 2001–02.  Despite the acquisition of Pep Guardiola as central midfielder, he did not apparently fit into Fabio Capello's first-team plans.  The squad was essentially the same as the year before, and Guardiola's absence from the starting XI spoke volumes about the reputation of the Roma players at the time.  However, things began to go against Roma following its tense competition in Serie A with Juventus.  Suspecting things were amiss, both chairman Franco Sensi and manager Capello publicly condemned the judgements, and given the Calciopoli scandal in 2006, chances are they had a point.

2013–14 A.S. Roma season: The 2013–14 season was Associazione Sportiva Roma's 86th in existence and 85th season in the top flight of Italian football.  The pre-season started with the June hiring of Lille OSC manager Rudi García.  García replaced caretaker manager Aurelio Andreazzoli who took charge after the sacking of Zdeněk Zeman in February 2013.  Andreazzoli's reign had seen the continuation of a disappointing season, with the team ending up in 6th place in Serie A, whilst also losing 1–0 to regional rivals Lazio in the Coppa Italia final.  As a result, Roma missed out on European competition for the second season in a row.  The 2013–14 season, in contrast, saw one of Roma's best ever in Serie A, the club tallying an impressive 85 points and finishing second to Juventus, who won the league with a record-breaking 102 points.  Roma's defense was significantly better than in previous seasons, with only 25 goals conceded and a total of 21 clean sheets, including nine in their first ten matches.

1998–99 A.S. Roma season: Associazione Sportiva Roma was left trailing in the wake of city rivals Lazio's resurgence to fight for domestic and international glory.  In coach Zdeněk Zeman's second season at the reins, Roma finished fifth in the table, and just missed out on qualification for the final Champions League spot.  Roma reached the quarter-finals of the UEFA Cup, but lost to Atlético Madrid.

2014–15 A.S. Roma season: The 2014–15 season was Associazione Sportiva Roma's 87th in existence and 86th season in the top flight of Italian football.  The team competed in Serie A, the Coppa Italia, the Champions League, and the Europa League.  Roma finished second behind Juventus for the second consecutive season after a poor run of form in 2015.  The club finished third in their Champions League group and thus dropped down to the Europa League, where they were knocked out by Fiorentina in the Round of 16.  Incidentally, Roma were also knocked out of the Coppa Italia by Fiorentina at the quarter-final stage, losing 2–0 at the Stadio Olimpico.

Walter Samuel: Walter Adrián Luján Samuel (] ; born Walter Adrián Luján; 23 March 1978) is a retired Argentine professional footballer.  Gifted with natural power and good defensive skills, Samuel has been regarded as one of the best centre-backs of his generation, and as one of football's toughest defenders, with former international teammate and Inter captain Javier Zanetti referring to him as the "hardest player" he has played with.

2000–01 A.S. Roma season: In 2001, Associazione Sportiva Roma took its third league title (after 1942 and 1983), winning Serie A only a year after rivals Lazio.  Important signings were the Argentines Walter Samuel, a defender, and Gabriel Batistuta, a top striker.  Fabio Capello's line-up also included Cafu, Vincent Candela, Emerson, Vincenzo Montella and captain Francesco Totti.

1997–98 A.S. Roma season: Associazione Sportiva Roma was reinvigorated under new coach Zdeněk Zeman, who recently had been coaching arch rivals Lazio.  Zeman brought his attacking 4–3–3 with him, resulting in Roma scoring 67 goals, but also conceding 42, an extreme rarity in defensive-minded Italian football.  Roma finished fourth, three places above Lazio in the table.  That was the first time it had happened in five years, which delighted the Roma board, and Zeman stayed on for a further season.  The season also saw the international breakthrough of former youth-team product Francesco Totti, who at 21 was ready for increased responsibility and captaincy, responding with 13 league goals from a position on the left-wing of the attack.  Also noticeable was new signing Cafu's offensive skills as a right-wing back, granting him a reputation among the world's top wing backs.

1985–86 A.S. Roma season: Associazione Sportiva Roma had a successful season, in which Sven-Göran Eriksson's typical Scandinavian tactical approach was able to improve Roma's fortunes to a level where they once again fought for the league title.  They also won the Coppa Italia, but the chance of a double disappeared in a 3–2 loss at home to bottom side Lecce, which all but secured Juventus's title.  The most important part in Roma's revival was an efficient midfield with several top-class players in addition to striker Roberto Pruzzo, with several playmakers providing multiple assists to league topscorer Pruzzo.

2008–09 A.S. Roma season: The 2008–09 season was Associazione Sportiva Roma's 76th season in Serie A.  The club competed in four competitions; domestically, Roma finished a disappointing 6th, after three consecutive second-place finishes.  They began the season by losing the Supercoppa Italiana to Inter, who also eliminated Roma in the quarter-finals of the Coppa Italia.

Supporting paragraphs: 2000–01 A.S. Roma season Walter Samuel
Answer: 23 March 1978