Ignacio Saavedra

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Ignacio Saavedra
Ignacio Saavedra Universidad Catolica v Coquimbo Unido 20230723 01.jpg
Saavedra with Universidad Católica in 2023
Personal information
Full name Ignacio Antonio Saavedra Pinto
Date of birth (1999-01-12) 12 January 1999 (age 26)
Place of birth Santiago, Chile
Height 1.72 m (5 ft 8 in)
Position(s) Central midfielder
Team information
Current team
Sochi
Number 6
Youth career
2006–2012 Colo-Colo
2012–2018 Universidad Católica
Senior career*
YearsTeamApps(Gls)
2018–2023 Universidad Católica 135 (0)
2024– Sochi 52 (2)
International career
2015 Chile U17 4 (0)
2018 Chile U20 5 (0)
2021– Chile 3 (0)
Medal record
Men's football
Representing Flag of Chile.svg  Chile
South American Games
Gold medal icon (G initial).svg 2018 Cochabamba
* Club domestic league appearances and goals as of 30 August 2025
‡ National team caps and goals as of 27 March 2021

Ignacio Antonio Saavedra Pino (born 12 January 1999) is a Chilean professional footballer who plays as a midfielder for Russian club Sochi.

Contents

Club career

Beginnings

Ignacio was born into a family linked to sports. At six years old, he started participating in the Colo-Colo Academy, and at 13 he moved to the youth ranks of rivals Universidad Católica. His talents quickly caught the attention of both club and nation, getting called up to the Chile U20 squad. [1]

Universidad Católica

After the arrival of the Spanish coach Beñat San José, Saavedra made his professional debut on August 4, 2018, in a match against Everton. He played 88 minutes in a 2–1 win. From there on, he has maintained a steady flux of starts in the defensive midfield position, amassing 131 official career appearances with the club.

Sochi

On 24 January 2024, Saavedra signed a contract with Russian Premier League club Sochi. [2]

International career

He represented Chile U17 at the 2015 FIFA U-17 World Cup, reaching the second stage and proving his reliability by playing all the matches. [3] At under-20 level, Saavedra represented Chile in the 2018 South American Games, winning the gold medal. [4]

At senior level, after being called up to some training microcycles by both Reinaldo Rueda [5] and Martín Lasarte, [6] making his international debut in the friendly match against Bolivia on March 26, 2021, at the 87th minute. [7]

Career statistics

Club

As of match played 30 August 2025 [8]
ClubSeasonLeagueNational CupContinentalOtherTotal
DivisionAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoals
Universidad Católica 2018 Primera División 130000000130
2019 Primera División90402 [a] 000150
2020 Primera División32011 [b] 01 [c] 0440
2021 Primera División280208 [d] 01 [c] 0390
2022 Primera División250606 [e] 000370
2023 Primera División280501 [f] 000340
Total1350170280201820
Sochi 2023–24 Russian Premier League 12110131
2024–25 Russian First League 331302 [g] 0381
2025–26 Russian Premier League702191
Total5226120603
Career total1872231280402423
  1. 1 appearances in the Copa Libertadores, 1 in the Copa Sudamericana
  2. 5 appearances in the Copa Libertadores, 6 in the Copa Sudamericana
  3. 1 2 Appearance(s) in the Supercopa de Chile
  4. Appearance(s) in the Copa Libertadores
  5. 4 appearances in Copa Libertadores, 2 in Copa Sudamericana
  6. Appearances in Copa Sudamericana
  7. Appearances in promotion play-offs

International

As of 12 December 2021. [8]
Appearances and goals by national team and year
National teamYearAppsGoals
Chile 202130
Total30

Honours

Universidad Católica
Chile U20

References

  1. Serey, Pablo (6 August 2018). "Ignacio Saavedra, la joya que vivió el desencanto en Colo Colo y que hoy llena de ilusión a la UC" (in Spanish). Publimetro . Retrieved 27 March 2021.
  2. "Игнасио Сааведра подписал контракт с «Сочи»!" (in Russian). PFC Sochi. 24 January 2024.
  3. Ortega, Pablo (18 October 2020). "La joya de la Sub 17 del 2015" (in Spanish). AS Chile . Retrieved 27 March 2021.
  4. Bravo, Nicolás (28 September 2022). "El presente de los jugadores de La Roja que lograron la medalla de oro en los Juegos Suramericanos 2018". www.encancha.cl (in Spanish). Retrieved 12 October 2022.
  5. "Las sorpresas en la nómina de Rueda para el nuevo microciclo" (in Spanish). AS Chile. 12 April 2019. Retrieved 27 March 2021.
  6. "Martín Lasarte inicia su primer microciclo con la Selección Chilena Local". LaRoja.cl. 3 March 2021. Retrieved 27 March 2021.
  7. @LaRoja (26 March 2021). "87. Doble cambio cruzado en Rancagua" (Tweet) (in Spanish). Retrieved 27 March 2021 via Twitter.
  8. 1 2 Ignacio Saavedra at Soccerway