Julio Arca Bio Send To Friend  

After six seasons with Sunderland Arca crossed the Wearside-Teeside divide in July 2006 for a fee of £1.75m after agreeing a five-year deal.

As Gareth Southgate's first signing he went straight into the Boro first team and showed himself to be a competent top-flight midfielder.

He signed for Sunderland from Argentinos Juniors in 2000 for £3.5million and soon became a fans' favourite thanks to his skilful and tricky displays as both a left wing-back and in a pure midfield role.

He helped the club back into the top-flight in 2004/05 with a series of impressive displays and was arguably their best player throughout the season.

But with the Black Cats' relegation in 2005/06, Arca chose to stay in the Premier League and moved to Boro.

He soon established himself with Boro and following the emergence of Andrew Taylor at left-back has proved to be something of a revelation as an attacking central midfielder where his performances have earned strong reviews.

In January 2008 he was named captain, only to be replaced by Pogatetz a few games later. However, his experience is still an important factor for the club.