Name: Sergio Bernabé Vargas Buscalia

Nickname: "Súperman"



Country: Argentina / Chile
Club: Universidad de Chile
Shirt Number: 1
Position: ★GK
Side: RF/BS
Age: 31-36 years (17/05/1965)

Height: 184 cm
Weight: 78 kg

Attack: 35
Defence: 85
Balance: 84
Stamina: 62
Top Speed: 73
Acceleration: 71
Response: 86
Agility: 76
Dribble Accuracy: 64
Dribble Speed: 57
Short Pass Accuracy: 68
Short Pass Speed: 62
Long Pass Accuracy: 70
Long Pass Speed: 68
Shot Accuracy: 44
Shot Power: 81
Shot Technique: 44
Free Kick Accuracy: 44
Swerve: 52
Heading: 45
Jump: 84
Technique: 63
Aggression: 68
Mentality: 83
Goalkeeper Skills: 84
Team work: 75

Injury Tolerance: B
Condition/Fitness: 7
Weak Foot Accuracy: 4
Weak Foot Frequency: 4
Consistency: 6
Growth type: Early/Lasting

CARDS:
S11 - Penalty Saver

SPECIAL ABILITIES: Penalty Stopper

Attack/Defence Awareness Card: Defence-Minded

INFO:
Sergio Bernabé Vargas is a former Argentine footballer naturalized Chilean who played as a goalkeeper. Born in Chacabuco, Buenos Aires (17/05/1965), he started in the youth divisions of Independiente de Avellaneda in Argentina at the age of 13, being coached by the great goalkeeper Miguel Ángel Santoro. He made his professional debut in 1984 against Estudiantes de La Plata. He was coached by José Pastoriza, having historical teammates such as Hugo Villaverde, Enzo Trossero, Claudio Marangoni, Ricardo Giusti, Jorge Burruchaga, and Ricardo Bochini, among others. He was part of the squad that won the Copa Libertadores de América and the Intercontinental Cup. He grew under the guidance of the experienced Uruguayan goalkeeper Carlos Goyén. Later on, he had to compete with goalkeepers of the caliber of Luis Islas, who won the 1986 FIFA World Cup with Argentina, and Eduardo Pereira, who won the 1987 Copa América with Uruguay. Benefiting from a serious injury to the starting goalkeeper Luis Islas, he earned the starting position and became the captain, but when Islas returned from injury, he was relegated to the bench again. He began as the starting goalkeeper in the 1988/1989 season but lost his spot to Eduardo Pereira. Independiente won the First Division tournament 1988-89. That season had the particularity that tied matches were decided by penalties. Vargas was one of the goalkeepers who saved the most penalties. In mid-1991, he was bought by Emelec from Ecuador, where he had an acceptable campaign, which earned him a contract with Universidad de Chile, the club where he had his greatest success. It was at this institution where he earned the nickname "Superman" for his constant aerial saves, specifically on penalties. When he arrived at Universidad de Chile, the club had not won a title since 1969, but along with other players like Rogelio Delgado, Luis Musrri, Patricio Mardones, Esteban Valencia, and Marcelo Salas, they broke that curse after 25 years without being champions and won the First Division tournament in 1994, a first-place finish that they repeated the following year. Vargas set a record for the "U" by not conceding goals for 626 minutes in 1995. Vargas brought security to the goal since his arrival, year after year being one of the least scored against and being chosen as the best goalkeeper of the championship for a record 7 times. In 1996, he was chosen as the tenth-best goalkeeper in the world by the IFFHS. Later, he achieved a series of titles with the blue team, winning the Copa Chile 1998, the First Division Tournament 1999, and the double the following year with the Copa Chile 2000 and the First Division National Championship 2000. He was also chosen as the best Chilean football player in 2000 by Revista Triunfo. In 2002, the president of Universidad de Chile, Dr. René Orozco, did not renew his contract. His departure from Universidad de Chile marked the end of a historic era for the club, as Vargas was the starting goalkeeper for a full decade, also being one of the main references. In February 2003, after failed negotiations with Necaxa, Union San Felipe, Everton, and Universidad de Concepción, he signed for Unión Española, where he played for one season. The following year, he played for PSM Makassar in Indonesia, where he retired from professional football.

Vargas was called up to the U-17 and U-21 Argentine national teams, but after receiving Chilean nationality at the age of 36, he played for the Chilean national team in the qualifiers for the 2002 FIFA World Cup in Japan-Korea. In these qualifiers, Vargas made his debut on April 24, 2001, against Uruguay, losing 0-1 with an own goal from Ítalo Díaz. Vargas stood out in the following match, playing away in Asunción against Paraguay, where he saved a penalty from José Luis Chilavert, in a match that ended with a Chilean defeat by 1-0, leaving La Roja eliminated and without chances to go to the World Cup. In the 2001 Copa América, Sergio Vargas played all 4 matches against Ecuador, Venezuela, and Colombia in the group stage, and in the quarter-finals, where they were defeated and eliminated by Mexico. "Superman" was also the starter and standout player in Iván Zamorano's last match for the Chilean national team on September 1, 2001, against the then-world champion France, which ended favorably for Chile with a 2-1 result. On November 14, 2001, he made his debut as captain of Chile, in what would be his last match for the national team (a 0-0 draw against Ecuador). Sergio Bernabé Vargas is considered, alongside Johnny Herrera, the best goalkeeper in Universidad de Chile's history, with over 420 matches played and 6 titles in 10 seasons. Moreover, many experts classify him as the "second-best" goalkeeper in the history of Chilean football, behind Roberto "Cóndor" Rojas. Individually, Vargas was awarded as the best goalkeeper in Argentina in the 1988-89 season playing for Independiente (saving 11 penalties in one year), and the second-best in the 1989-90 season. Additionally, in Chile, he broke all possible individual records for a goalkeeper, being awarded the Best Chilean Goalkeeper prize in the years 1992, 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 1999, and 2000, the Best Chilean Footballer award in 2000, the 2nd Best Goalkeeper in the History of Chilean Football by the Chilean Sports Journalists' Circle, and nominated as the 10th Best Goalkeeper in the World by the IFFHS in 1996.