Héctor Villalba
Héctor Daniel "Tito" Villalba (born 26 July 1994) is an Paraguayan footballer who plays as a winger for Club Libertad in the Primera División of Paraguay. Villalba's change of national affiliation has been accepted by FIFA so he has made an appearance for the Paraguay national football team.
 Tito Villalba after signing the Golden Spike for Atlanta United on 10 September 2017 | |||
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Héctor Daniel Villalba | ||
| Date of birth | 26 July 1994 | ||
| Place of birth | Buenos Aires, Argentina | ||
| Height | 1.73 m (5 ft 8 in)[1] | ||
| Playing position(s) | Winger, Forward | ||
| Club information | |||
Current team | Libertad | ||
| Number | 23 | ||
| Youth career | |||
| 2004–2012 | San Lorenzo | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2012–2016 | San Lorenzo | 89 | (15) |
| 2016–2020 | Atlanta United | 82 | (21) |
| 2016 | → Tijuana (loan) | 1 | (0) |
| 2020– | Libertad | 9 | (2) |
| National team‡ | |||
| 2018– | Paraguay | 2 | (0) |
|
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 13 August 2020 ‡ National team caps and goals correct as of 31 May 2019 | |||
Club career
Villalba was born on 26 July 1994 and lived almost to maturity in the Villa 1–11–14. He arrived in San Lorenzo when he was 10, and was chosen after a test in which 500 boys were selected to start a path to professionalism. He confessed to being a fan of San Lorenzo, and went through all the lower levels at the club.
On 18 August 2012, he made his debut in the Primera Division Argentina, against Estudiantes de La Plata, when he entered in the 37th minute of the second half replacing Luis Aguiar, with Ricardo Caruso Lombardi as team manager.
On 22 July 2016, Villaba signed as a young Designated Player with Major League Soccer side Atlanta United.[2] He joined Liga MX side Tijuana on loan on 28 July 2016, but struggled to make many appearances for the club due to injury.[3]
On 31 January 2020, Villaba was transferred to Paraguayan Primera División side Club Libertad for an undisclosed fee.[4]
International career
Despite being born in Argentina, Héctor is also eligible to represent Paraguay because his father was born there. On 5 September 2018 Villalba made the one-time switch to Paraguay in hopes of making the squad for the 2019 Copa América and the 2022 FIFA World Cup.[5]
On 25 September 2018 Villalba was called up to Paraguay along with fellow club teammate Miguel Almirón for a national team camp despite not scheduling any friendlies.[6] He made his competitive debut with Paraguay on 20 November as a substitute in the second half of the friendly match against South Africa.[7]
Career statistics
Club
- As of match played on 18 March 2019[8]
| Club | Season | League | Cup[lower-alpha 1] | League Cup[lower-alpha 2] | Continental[lower-alpha 3] | Other[lower-alpha 4] | Total | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| San Lorenzo | 2012–13 | Argentine Primera División | 9 | 2 | 3 | 0 | — | 12 | 2 | |||||
| 2013–14 | 34 | 4 | 1 | 0 | — | 2 | 0 | — | 37 | 4 | ||||
| 2014 | 15 | 3 | 0 | 0 | — | 13 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 29 | 4 | |||
| 2015 | 27 | 6 | 2 | 0 | — | 5 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 35 | 6 | |||
| 2016 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | — | 8 | 0 | |||
| Total | 89 | 15 | 6 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 22 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 121 | 16 | ||
| Tijuana (loan) | 2016–17 | Liga MX | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | — | 3 | 0 | |||||
| Total | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | ||
| Atlanta United | 2017 | Major League Soccer | 34 | 13 | 0 | 0 | — | 1 | 0 | 35 | 13 | |||
| 2018 | 28 | 7 | 1 | 0 | — | 5 | 1 | 34 | 8 | |||||
| 2019 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 | |||
| Total | 64 | 20 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 6 | 1 | 73 | 21 | ||
| Career totals | 154 | 35 | 9 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 24 | 1 | 8 | 1 | 197 | 37 | ||
- Includes Copa Argentina, Copa MX, and U.S. Open Cup.
- Includes Torneos de Verano.
- Includes Copa Libertadores, Copa Sudamericana, and CONCACAF Champions League.
- Includes FIFA Club World Cup, Supercopa Argentina, Recopa Sudamericana, MLS Cup Playoffs, and Trofeo Luigi Berlusconi.
Personal life
He can speak Guarani, an indigenous language spoken in Paraguay.[9]
In January 2018, Villalba earned a U.S. green card which qualifies him as a domestic player for MLS roster purposes.[10]
References
- "Hector Villalba | Atlanta United FC". Atlanta United. Retrieved 14 June 2018.
- "Atlanta United sign Argentine winger Hector Villalba as Young DP | MLSsoccer.com".
- Usry, Rob (4 August 2016). "Hector Villalba joins Club Tijuana on loan deal".
- "Atlanta United transfers Tito Villalba to Club Libertad | Atlanta United FC".
- "Héctor Villalba es paraguayo". ABC Color (in Spanish). 4 September 2018. Retrieved 17 September 2018.
- "Tito Villalba called up to Paraguay". DirtySouthSoccer. 25 September 2018. Retrieved 26 September 2018.
- "South Africa v Paraguay game report". ESPN. 20 November 2018.
- Héctor Villalba at Soccerway. Retrieved 18 March 2019.
- King, Andrew (14 June 2018). "Atlanta's Hector Villalba confirms effort to switch eligibility to Paraguay". Major League Soccer. Retrieved 14 June 2018.
- Roberson, Doug (22 January 2018). "Atlanta United secures green card for Villalba". The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Retrieved 28 January 2018.
- "Atlanta's Hector Villalba wins 2017 AT&T Goal of the Year". Major League Soccer. 15 November 2017. Retrieved 15 November 2017.