Eriq Zavaleta

Eriq Anthony Zavaleta (born August 2, 1992) is an American soccer player who plays as a center back for Toronto FC of Major League Soccer.

Eriq Zavaleta
Zavaleta playing for Indiana in 2011
Personal information
Full name Eriq Anthony Zavaleta
Date of birth (1992-08-02) August 2, 1992
Place of birth Westfield, Indiana, United States
Height 1.85 m (6 ft 1 in)
Playing position(s) Defender
Club information
Current team
 Toronto FC
Number 3
Youth career
2008–2009 IMG Soccer Academy
2009–2010 FC Pride
2010–2011 Real Salt Lake
2011 Chivas USA
2011 Columbus Crew
College career
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2011–2012 Indiana Hoosiers 46 (28)
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2013–2014 Seattle Sounders FC 5 (0)
2013 → San Antonio Scorpions (loan) 4 (1)
2014 → Chivas USA (loan) 17 (0)
2015– Toronto FC 100 (2)
2016–2019 Toronto FC II 3 (0)
National team‡
2008–2009 United States U17 23 (0)
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of July 13, 2020
‡ National team caps and goals correct as of June 23, 2013

Youth and College

Zavaleta played his freshman and senior seasons of high school soccer at Westfield High School in Westfield, Indiana. He scored 25 goals and nine assists as a freshman and 20 goals and 10 assists as a senior. He also spent his youth career with FC Pride, Real Salt Lake, and Chivas USA, and was also part of Columbus Crew's USL Super-20 championship team in 2011.

On February 7, 2011, Zavaleta signed a letter of intent to play college soccer at Indiana University.[1] In his freshman year with the Hoosiers in 2011, Zavaleta started 22 games and led the team with 10 goals and 5 assists and was also the team leader in points with 25. He went on to be named College Soccer News All-Freshman first team, NSCAA All-Great Lakes Region first team selection, Soccer America All-Freshman first team and Chicagoland Soccer News Player of the Year.

In his sophomore year, Zavaleta started all 24 matches and again was the team leader with 40 points, with 18 goals and four assists. He led the team to their eighth national title. One of the four assists came in the 2012 College Cup final against no. 3 Georgetown, when he set up teammate Nikita Kotlov for what turned out to be the title-clinching goal.[2] He went on to be named Big Ten All-Tournament team, NSCAA third-team All-American, College Soccer News first-team All-American and the College Cup All-Tournament team. At Indiana University he was a member of the Kappa Sigma fraternity.

Club career

Seattle Sounders

On January 5, 2013, it was announced by agent Ron Waxman that Zavaleta had signed a Generation Adidas contract with Major League Soccer, making him eligible for the 2013 MLS SuperDraft.[3][4] On January 17, Zavaleta was selected 10th overall by Seattle Sounders FC and immediately added to the roster.[5][6] He made his professional debut on March 23, 2013, in a 1–0 loss to the San Jose Earthquakes.[7]

Chivas USA

On February 28, 2014, Chivas USA announced that they had added Zavaleta to their roster on loan from Seattle Sounders FC for one year.[8] In 2014, he replaced Bobby Burling as the center back was out of play after he underwent a knee surgery.[9]

Toronto FC

On January 26, 2015, Toronto FC announced that they had traded their 2016 MLS SuperDraft second-round pick to Seattle for Zavaleta.[10]

On September 5, 2015, Zavaleta scored his first goal for Toronto in a 2–1 loss against his former club, the Seattle Sounders.[11]

International career

Zavaleta was part of the U.S. Soccer Residency program in 2008–09 and made 23 appearances for the United States U-17 national team during that stretch, including three appearances in the 2009 FIFA U-17 World Cup. Zavaleta mostly played as a defender with the under-17s.

He is eligible to play for both the United States national team and El Salvador.[4]

Personal life

Zavaleta is the son of Carlos and Kristi Zavaleta. He has one sister, Alexa; and one brother, Casey. His father played professionally in the United States and El Salvador and was also a member of the El Salvador national team. He is also the nephew of former MLS and U.S. national team defender, and his current coach at Toronto FC, Greg Vanney.[4][6]

Career statistics

Club
As of match played July 13, 2020
Appearances and goals by club, season and competition
Club Season League Playoffs[lower-alpha 1] National Cup[lower-alpha 2] Continental[lower-alpha 3] Total
DivisionAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoals
Seattle Sounders 2013[12] MLS 500000—50
2014[12] MLS 000000—00
Total 5000000050
San Antonio Scorpions (loan) 2013[12] NASL 41———41
Chivas USA (loan) 2014[12] MLS 170—10—180
Toronto FC 2015[12] MLS 1811020—211
2016[12] MLS 1506040—250
2017[12] MLS 2914030—361
2018[12] MLS 210—3070310
2019[12] MLS 160002000180
2020[12] MLS 1[lower-alpha 4]00000—10
Total 1002110140701322
Toronto FC II (loan) 2016[12] USL 20———20
2019[12] USL 10———10
Total 30———30
Career total 1293110150701623
  1. Includes MLS Cup Playoff matches.
  2. Includes U.S. Open Cup & Canadian Championship matches.
  3. Includes CONCACAF Champions League & Campeones Cup matches.
  4. Includes one appearance in the MLS is Back Tournament group stage.

Honors

Club
Toronto FC
Indiana University
  • NCAA College Cup: 2012

Individual
  • College Soccer News All-Freshman first team: 2011
  • NSCAA All-Great Lakes Region first team: 2011
  • Soccer America All-Freshman first team: 2011
  • Chicagoland Soccer News Player of the Year (2): 2011, 2012
  • Big Ten All-Tournament team: 2012
  • NSCAA third-team All-American: 2012
  • College Soccer News first-team All-American: 2012
  • College Cup All-Tournament team: 2012
  • Soccer America MVP first team: 2012
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References
  1. "Hoosier Men's Soccer Inks Eight In 2011 Recruiting Class". IU Hoosiers. Indiana University. February 7, 2011. Archived from the original on July 31, 2012. Retrieved March 24, 2013.
  2. "Indiana Wins Eighth National Title with 1-0 Win Over Georgetown". IU Athletics. Indiana University. December 9, 2012. Archived from the original on March 28, 2013. Retrieved March 24, 2013.
  3. Borg, Simon (January 5, 2013). "Agent: Indiana star Zavaleta signs Generation adidas deal". MLSsoccer.com. Major League Soccer. Retrieved March 24, 2013.
  4. "MLS signs Indiana star Eriq Zavaleta, five NCAA senior standouts". Soccer Wire. January 7, 2013. Retrieved March 24, 2013.
  5. "Sounders FC Makes Forward Eriq Zavaleta Top Pick". Seattle Sounders FC. Sounders FC Public Relations. January 17, 2013. Retrieved March 24, 2013.
  6. Gaschk, Matt (January 17, 2013). "Interview: SuperDraft pick Eriq Zavaleta". Seattle Sounders FC. Retrieved March 24, 2013.
  7. Gaschk, Matt (March 25, 2013). "Zavaleta proud to make MLS debut with the Sounders". Seattle Sounders FC. Retrieved March 30, 2013.
  8. "Sounders loan forward Eriq Zavaleta to Chivas USA for the 2014 season". seattletimes.com. The Seattle Times Company. February 28, 2014. Archived from the original on March 7, 2014. Retrieved May 4, 2020.
  9. "Chivas USA defender Bobby Burling out 3-4 weeks after knee surgery". angelsonparade.com. Vox Media. July 15, 2014. Retrieved May 4, 2020.
  10. "Reds Acquire Eriq Zavaleta". torontofc.ca. Toronto FC. January 26, 2015. Retrieved September 15, 2016.
  11. "Seattle Sounders 2, Toronto FC 1". mlssoccer.com. Major League Soccer. September 6, 2015. Retrieved September 15, 2016.
  12. "E. Zavaleta Summary". Soccerway. Retrieved September 14, 2016.
  13. "Recap: Toronto FC vs Seattle Sounders". mlssoccer.com. December 9, 2017. Retrieved December 9, 2017.
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