Juan Arango

Juan Arango

Arango with Borussia in 2012.
Personal information
Full name Juan Fernando Arango Sáenz
Date of birth (1980-05-17) 17 May 1980
Place of birth Maracay, Venezuela
Height 1.80 m (5 ft 11 in)
Playing position Attacking midfielder
Club information
Current team
 New York Cosmos
Number 18
Youth career
1986–1996 UCV
Senior career*
Years Team Apps† (Gls)†
1996–1999 Nueva Cádiz
1999 Zulianos 12 (0)
2000 Caracas 19 (5)
2000–2001 Monterrey 45 (6)
2002–2003 Pachuca 52 (16)
2003–2004 Puebla 36 (8)
2004–2009 Mallorca 183 (45)
2009–2014 Borussia M'gladbach 154 (25)
2014–2016 Tijuana 45 (11)
2016– New York Cosmos 5 (2)
National team
1999–2015 Venezuela 127 (23)

* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 24 April 2016.

† Appearances (goals)
This name uses Spanish naming customs: the first or paternal family name is Arango and the second or maternal family name is Sáenz.

Juan Fernando Arango Sáenz (born 17 May 1980) is a Venezuelan professional footballer who plays for American club New York Cosmos as an attacking midfielder.

He is one of the few Venezuelan players ever to play for a first division team in any of the major European leagues – he spent the better part of his career in La Liga with Mallorca, appearing in 196 official games, and also played several years with Borussia Mönchengladbach for which he signed at the age of 29.[1]

Arango is Venezuela's record holder in international caps and goals, scoring 23 times in 127 matches between 1997 and 2015.[2][3] He represented the nation in six Copa América tournaments.

Club career

Early years / Mallorca

Arango's parents hailed from Colombia, having immigrated to Venezuela before he was born, in the city of Maracay. He started playing as a professional at the age of sixteen with Nueva Cádiz FC, which ascended to the Venezuelan first division the following season under the name Zulianos FC.

The following year Arango joined Caracas FC but, after six months playing with the team, was bought by Mexico's C.F. Monterrey. He represented two other clubs in the latter country, C.F. Pachuca and Puebla FC, until 2004, when he joined La Liga side RCD Mallorca in Spain (coached by Benito Floro, also his boss at Monterrey) on a one-year link, with an option for a further three.[4]

On 20 March 2005, Arango suffered a serious injury after a brutal collision with Sevilla FC's Javi Navarro. He fell unconscious, broke his cheekbone, swallowed his tongue and got serious cuts in his face;[5][6] he returned to play a month later and, in the following season, was the team's top scorer with 11 league goals.[7]

In 2006, EFE chose Arango as the third best Latin American player in the Spanish league, with the first place taken by Pablo Aimar. The following year, he also obtained a Spanish passport, in March. On 9 March 2008 he scored his first hat-trick for Mallorca, in a 7–1 home thrashing of Recreativo de Huelva, with teammate Daniel Güiza – who finished as the campaign's Pichichi – adding two;[8] he only missed one league game from 2005 to 2008 combined.

Borussia Mönchengladbach

Arango in action in November 2010

On 26 June 2009, as his contract was due to expire at the end of 2009–10, Arango was sold to Borussia Mönchengladbach for €3.6 million, penning a three-year contract.[9] In his third season in the Bundesliga he netted six goals in 34 games and also provided 12 assists, as his team finished fourth and qualified for the UEFA Champions League.[10][11]

On 10 December 2012, Gladbach manager Lucien Favre hailed Arango as one of the best left-footed players in the world, after the Venezuelan scored a 48-yard stunner in a 2–0 defeat of 1. FSV Mainz 05 the previous day.[12][13] In the following year, he was ranked as the most popular footballer in the world by the International Federation of Football History & Statistics.[14]

Arango scored his first goal of the 2013–14 campaign on 24 August 2013, but in a 2–4 away defeat to Bayer 04 Leverkusen.[15] He also found the net in his team's next league fixture, opening the scoring in a 4–1 home success over SV Werder Bremen.[16]

Tijuana

Arango returned to Mexico at the age of 34, signing with Club Tijuana on 22 May 2014.[17] In April of the following year he was handed a two-match ban by the Mexican Football Federation, after footage showed him biting Monterrey player Jesús Zavala in an action that eluded the referee.[18]

New York Cosmos

On 28 January 2016, Arango joined the New York Cosmos of the North American Soccer League.[19]

International career

At the 2004 Copa América, Arango appeared in all three group stage matches for Venezuela. In the 2007 edition, held in his country, he helped the national team finish first in the group stage, and scored in the quarterfinals against Uruguay, but in a 1–4 defeat.[20]

Also in that year, Arango was chosen national team captain by newly appointed coach César Farías. In the 2011 Copa América in Argentina, he helped the Vinotinto finish a best-ever fourth in the continental competition, scoring in the last match, a 1–4 loss against Peru for what was his 100th cap.[21]

In his 116th international appearance, Arango levelled the record for the most goals scored for Venezuela with 22 goals, scoring in the 56th minute against Bolivia in a 1–1 draw for the 2014 FIFA World Cup qualifiers on 7 June 2013.[22]

International goals

Statistics

Club

As of 1 March 2015[23][24]
Club Season League Cup Continental Total
AppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoals
Zulianos 1999–2000 120——120
Total 120——120
Caracas 1999–2000 195——195
Total 195——195
Monterrey 2000–01 305——305
2001–02 131——131
Total 436——436
Pachuca 2001–02 155—64219
2002–03 3711——3711
2003–04 368——368
Total 8824—649428
Mallorca 2004–05 346——346
2005–06 3711——3711
2006–07 37930—409
2007–08 381253—4315
2008–09 37841—419
Total 18345124—19549
Borussia Mönchengladbach 2009–10 34210—353
2010–11 25420—274
2011–12 34631—377
2012–13 3152183419
2013–14 30800—308
Total 15425938317131
Tijuana 2014–15 24731—278
Total 2473100278
Career totals 523112248147561127

Honours

Pachuca

References

  1. ↑ "Gladbach's midfield maestro". Bundesliga. Retrieved 15 July 2013.
  2. ↑ Passo Alpuin, Luis Fernando (30 January 2014). "Juan Arango Saez – Century of International Appearances". RSSSF. Retrieved 4 May 2014.
  3. ↑ "Venezuela – Record International Players". RSSSF. Retrieved 22 January 2010.
  4. ↑ "Arango wings his way to Mallorca". UEFA.com. 21 July 2004. Retrieved 22 January 2010.
  5. ↑ "Un codazo de Javi Navarro mandó a Arango a la UCI" [An elbow by Javi Navarro sends Arango to Intensive Care] (in Spanish). Diario AS. 21 March 2005. Retrieved 22 January 2010.
  6. ↑ "Navarro assault on Arango". YouTube. Retrieved 22 January 2010.
  7. ↑ "Arango fulmina a la Real con un 'hat trick'" [Arango obliterates Real with a hat-trick] (in Spanish). El Mundo. 18 September 2005. Retrieved 2 February 2016.
  8. ↑ "Barça lose ground with Villarreal loss". UEFA.com. 9 March 2008. Retrieved 22 January 2010.
  9. ↑ "Arango ya es jugador del Borussia M’Gladbach" [Arango a Borussia M'Gladbach player] (in Spanish). Marca. 27 June 2009. Retrieved 22 January 2010.
  10. ↑ "Hoilett blow for Blackburn with winger poised for cut-price switch to Germany". Daily Mail. 5 June 2012. Retrieved 15 July 2013.
  11. ↑ "Ten things about Juan Arango". Bundesliga. 10 July 2013. Retrieved 15 July 2013.
  12. ↑ "Gladbach down Mainz". Sky Sports. 9 December 2012. Retrieved 15 July 2013.
  13. ↑ "Arango "one of the best left-footed players in the world"". Bundesliga. 10 December 2012. Retrieved 15 July 2013.
  14. ↑ "The world's most popular footballer amongst currently active players in 2012". IFFHS. Retrieved 15 July 2013.
  15. ↑ "Goals galore on drama-filled Bundesliga Saturday". Bundesliga. 24 August 2013. Retrieved 24 August 2013.
  16. ↑ "Borussia Monchengladbach 4–1 Werder Bremen". ESPN FC. 31 August 2013. Retrieved 31 August 2013.
  17. ↑ "Arango jugará en los Xolos de Tijuana" [Arango to play for the Xolos of Tijuana] (in Spanish). Marca. 22 May 2014. Retrieved 21 May 2015.
  18. ↑ "Venezuela star Juan Arango caught biting an opponent in Mexican League match". Daily Mail. 5 April 2015. Retrieved 24 April 2015.
  19. ↑ "Attacking midfielder Juan Arango joins Cosmos". New York Cosmos. 28 January 2016. Retrieved 28 January 2016.
  20. ↑ "Sonó el despertador para la Celeste" [Alarm-clock time for the Celeste] (in Spanish). ESPN FC. 7 July 2007. Retrieved 15 July 2013.
  21. ↑ "Peru 4 Venezuela 1: Three and easy for Guerrero as Peru win third-place play-off". Daily Mail. 24 July 2011. Retrieved 15 July 2013.
  22. ↑ "Venezuela denied as Bolivia snatch draw". Bangkok Post. 7 June 2013. Retrieved 15 July 2013.
  23. ↑ "Player statistics". UEFA.com. Retrieved 2 August 2013.
  24. ↑ "J. Arango". Soccerway. Retrieved 19 February 2014.

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