Leandro Paredes
Leandro Daniel Paredes (; born 29 June 1994) is an Argentine professional footballer who plays as a defensive midfielder for Ligue 1 club Paris Saint-Germain and the Argentina national team. Club career. Boca Juniors. Paredes made his league debut for Boca Juniors in a 2–0 away defeat to Argentinos Juniors on 6 November 2010. On 29 January 2014, he joined Italian Serie A outfit Chievo Verona for the rest of the 2013–14 season. Roma. It was revealed that Roma agreed to sign Paredes from Boca Juniors on loan with a reported €4.5 million pre-set price, however  Roma ran out of non-EU registration quota for international transfer. He was signed by Chievo instead. On 19 July 2014, Paredes joined Roma in a temporary deal, with an option to buy outright from Boca Juniors. On 27 September 2014, Paredes made his Roma debut, as a second-half substitute in the 2–0 win against Hellas Verona. On 8 February 2015, Paredes scored his first Roma goal in the club's 2–1 victory against Cagliari. In June 2015, Roma signed Paredes for €6.067 million. Zenit Saint Petersburg. On 1 July 2017, Zenit announced the signing of Paredes on  a four-year contract. The fee was €23 million with a possible €4 million in add-ons. Paris Saint-Germain. On 29 January 2019, Paris Saint-Germain announced the signing of Paredes on a four and-a-half year contract, for an initial €40 million, potentially rising to €47 million. He scored his first goal for the club in a 2–0 victory against Pau in the Coupe de France on 29 January 2020, exactly a year after signing for PSG, while wearing the captain's armband. On 10 April 2021, Paredes scored his first Ligue 1  goal, a free-kick in a 4–1 win over Strasbourg. International career. On 19 May 2017, Paredes received his first senior call-up by newly appointed coach Jorge Sampaoli for Argentina's friendlies against Brazil and Singapore in June. He made his senior international debut in the match against Singapore on 13 June, helping Argentina to a 6–0 away win, and also marked his debut by scoring his first international goal. In May 2018, he was named in Argentina’s preliminary 35-man squad for the 2018 World Cup in Russia but did not make the final 23. On 21  May 2019, Paredes was included in Lionel Scaloni's final 23-man Argentina squad for the 2019 Copa América. Following Argentina's third-place achievement, Paredes was listed among the "Best XI" team of the tournament. In June 2021, he was included in Lionel Scaloni's final Argentina 28-man squad for the 2021 Copa América. In the semi-finals of the competition, Argentina played against Colombia and the match eventually went into a penalty-shootout during which Paredes successfully converted his spot-kick to help Argentina progress to the final. Personal life. On 2 September 2020, it was reported  that Paredes, along with PSG teammates Neymar and Ángel Di María, tested positive for COVID-19. The French sports newspaper "L'Équipe" said that the three players reportedly went on vacation in Ibiza. As a result, they quarantined for one week, and the rest of the players and working staff took coronavirus tests within the same week. Honours. Zenit Saint Petersburg Paris Saint-Germain Argentina Individual