Pablo Cesar Aimar (born November 3, 1979 in Rio Cuarto, Argentina) is an Argentinian football player, who currently plays attacking midfielder for Valencia of the Spanish Liga.
Aimar began his ascent to stardom with River Plate, whose first team he joined for the 1997/8 season after rejecting a place at medical school, and with whom he quickly established himself as one of the best young players in Argentina.
Valencia signed Aimar in 2001, at a price of 24 million Euros. The purchase proved justified, however, as Aimar helped lead the team to a first-place finish in the 2001/2 Spanish season, as well as to a 2001 UEFA Champions League final, in which they were defeated by Bayern Munich. Aimar also has won the UEFA Cup with Valencia, defeating Olympique Marseille in 2004. Aimar has been injured in and out recently.
Aimar played for Argentina in the 2002 World Cup. He is nicknamed "El Payaso", the Clown. Other nicknames include "El Cai", "El Pibe" and "El Mago". Diego Maradona later said that Aimar was "his legitimate successor as the world's best player" and that he would pay to watch Aimar play.
