Christian Abbiati

Christian Abbiati (born 8 July 1977 in Abbiategrasso, Milan) is an Italian footballer who plays as a goalkeeper for Serie A club Milan.

Club career

Milan

Having begun his footballing career at the age of 13, for Trezzano and Assago, he moved to Corsico and in 1996 secured a move to Monza. He transferred to A.C. Milan in summer 1998. His debut in Serie A came on January 17, 1999 as a 92nd-minute substitute for Sebastiano Rossi. He then became Milan's first choice goalkeeper, for four years, until he lost his starting spot to backup Dida early in the 2002–2003 season after picking up an injury during a Champions League qualifying match in August 2002. Dida's top form effectively ground Abbiati's playing time to a halt.

On 25 August 2004, a brief controversy surfaced when an editorial criticizing Dida and Milan coach Carlo Ancelotti appeared on Abbiati's official website, stating that Dida had made mistakes in a friendly against U.C. Sampdoria and that Ancelotti was blocking a move that would have sent Abbiati to Palermo. Abbiati denied that he'd written the piece and said that it had been posted by his webmaster. "I never speak to the person who looks after my site. I would never judge one of my teammates." Though his webmaster claimed responsibility for the article, speculation nonetheless arose...
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