Diego Sebastián Laxalt Suárez is a Uruguayan professional footballer who currently plays as a left back or attacking midfielder for Milan, and the Uruguay national team. He is a youth exponent from Defensor Sporting, having passed through the youth ranks in July 2012.
Club career
Defensor Sporting
Born in Montevideo, Laxalt made his professional debut on 1 September 2012 with Defensor Sporting in a 4–0 win against Montevideo Wanderers. On 24 February 2013, after the excellent performance in the South American Championship football Under-20 in 2013, he returned to the field with the jersey of Violeta in the away game against Nacional. Laxalt's goal helped Defensor win 1–0. He concluded his first season with 15 appearances and 1 goal.
Inter Milan
bought Laxalt in January 2013, with the deal completed in July 2013. The then new coach of Inter Milan, Walter Mazzarri, however, did not include him in the pre-season squad. He spent the season on loan at Bologna. After returning from loan, he was included in the pre-season squad by Walter Mazzarri. On 13 August 2014, Empoli announced the loan signing of Laxalt with Inter Milan entitled to the right of a counter-purchase.
Genoa
On 30 January 2015, Genoa signed Laxalt on loan for 18 months with an optional purchase clause. He scored his first 2 goals for Genoa on 28 October 2015, in an away match against Torino, the second one being a 94th-minute equalizer to earn Genoa a 3–3 draw. On 30 July 2016, Laxalt joined Genoa on a permanent deal, with Cristian Ansaldimoving in the opposite direction.
Milan
On 16 August 2018, Laxalt joined fellow Serie A club Milan in a deal worth a reported €14 million plus a further €4 million in potential bonuses. He made his competitive debut for the club on 25 August 2018, coming on as a 71st minute substitute for Fabio Borini in a 3-2 league defeat to Napoli.
Torino
On 31 August 2019, Laxalt transferred to Torino, on a season-long loan deal with an option to buy.
He made his debut with Uruguay in the 2013 South American Youth Championship in Argentina, on 10 January 2013 in the 3–3 draw against Peru. Two days later, he scored his first goal in the 6th minute in an eventual 3–2 win over Brazil. On 18 January, his team finished 2nd in Group B, behind Peru. On 3 February, he completed all games played, and Uruguay qualified for the 2013 FIFA U-20 World Cup in Turkey and was included in the best XI of the event.
After contributing to qualification for the 2013 FIFA U–20 World Cup, he was included in the squad for the event. He made his debut on 2 June 2013, in the 1–0 defeat against Croatia, where he played the full 90 minutes. The first victory in the group stage came in the next game, as Uruguay beat New Zealand 2–0. Laxalt was substituted in the 82nd minute for Gonzalo Bueno. Uruguay also won the last game of the group stage against Uzbekistan, 4–0, the game that allowed Uruguay to qualify for the next round in 2nd place with 6 points, only behind Croatia. In the second round, Uruguay defeated Nigeria, with a 2-1 result, where he was substituted for Gonzalo Bueno in the 77th minute. On 6 July, at the quarter-final against Spain, the game went to extra time, which Uruguay won 1–0, Felipe Avenatti scoring the only goal of the game. Laxalt played all 120 minutes. Uruguay drew Iraq for the semi-finals of the competition.
Senior
Laxalt was called up to Uruguay's Copa America Centenario squad to replace the injured Cristian Rodríguez. He made his full debut against Ireland on 4 June 2017. He was called up to the full Uruguay squad for the China Cup in March 2018. In May 2018, he was named in Uruguay's provisional 26-man squad for the 2018 World Cup in Russia.
Style of play
Laxalt is left-footed, physically strong and very versatile. He has described himself by saying that: "My strengths are speed and endurance. I'm a left-footed midfielder who can fit in other positions." He has compared himself to the Inter Milan legend, Álvaro Recoba, who is also a former Uruguayan midfielder.
