Born on this day is Argentine goalkeeper Oscar Ustari. The keeper was brought in as backup to Vito Mannone by Gus Poyet, but didn’t play a single minute in the Premier League.
With Mannone such a key figure in our ‘Great Escape’ and the amazing cup run that went with it, Ustari was limited to the bench, other than a few token cup games. He made his debut for the lads in a 1-0 FA Cup win over Kidderminster Harriers just four days after signing for the club. The following cup game was another success for Ustari, keeping his second clean sheet in a 1-0 win against Southampton. With Ustari in goal, we had a 67% win rate during his entire spell here.
It would’ve been a 100% record were it not for Hull City. His only other appearance for Sunderland was in the FA Cup quarter-final against the Tigers, where Poyet famously played a weakened team and the lads were comfortably beaten 3-0. However, Ustari was certainly not to blame that day and actually managed to save a Sone Aluko penalty! The Argentine shot-stopper was an unused substitute in the League Cup final, where the lads put up a valiant effort.
Oscar, Oscar Ustari, sits in the stands for me. The Argentinean was an unused sub 18 times and promptly moved on from SAFC. After leaving Wearside, Oscar returned to Argentina with Newell’s Old Boys, where he played until signing for Mexican side Atlas Guadalajara. In Mexico, Ustari suffered a horror knee injury which kept him out of action for several months. The keeper now plays in Mexico for CF Pachuca.
Ustari played three times for the Lads and got a runners up medal for the League Cup final to add to his trophy cabinet which includes a World Cup medal (albeit the 2005 World Youth Champions) and an Olympic gold medal earned in the Beijing games. He played alongside legends of South American football Aguero, Riquelme, Lionel Messi and... Santiago Vergini.
