Sebastián Velásquez

Sebastián Velásquez (born 11 February 1991) is a Colombian professional footballer who currently plays as a midfielder for Miami FC in the USL Championship.

Sebastián Velásquez
Personal information
Full name Sebastián Velásquez
Date of birth (1991-02-11) February 11, 1991
Place of birth Medellín, Colombia
Height 5 ft 7 in (1.70 m)
Playing position(s) Midfielder
Club information
Current team
 Miami FC
Number 10
Youth career
2010–2011 SMC Pioneers
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2012–2014 Real Salt Lake Reserves 19 (6)
2012–2014 Real Salt Lake 38 (1)
2015 New York City FC 12 (0)
2016 Rayo OKC 16 (2)
2017–2018 Real Monarchs 47 (16)
2019 Suwon FC 8 (0)
2019 El Paso Locomotive 13 (3)
2020– Miami FC 4 (2)
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 16 August 2020

Early life

Velásquez was born in the Colombian city of Medellín and moved to the United States at a young age, with his family settling in South Carolina. As a freshman in high school, he was instrumental in winning a state championship with Greenville High School (Greenville, SC), where they also finished the year ranked No. 1 in the nation by NSCAA. At the club level, he played alongside future Real Salt Lake teammate Enzo Martinez and they won a national championship in 2009.[1] He then played at the junior college level for the Spartanburg Methodist Pioneers in Spartanburg, South Carolina.[2]

Career

Velásquez was selected 36th overall in the 2012 MLS SuperDraft by Real Salt Lake.[3] On March 10, 2012, Velásquez made his professional debut in a start for Real Salt Lake against LA Galaxy.[4] In the 73rd minute, he provided a cross that was turned into the net by Galaxy defender Sean Franklin and Real went on to win the game 3–1.[5] On November 8, 2013, Velásquez scored his first MLS goal with a header during the second leg of the 2013 Western Conference semifinals against LA Galaxy.[6]

In December 2014, he was traded to New York City FC in exchange for allocation money.[7][8] Velásquez was named NYCFC soccer player of the month by the Third Rail Supporters Club in March 2015.

On January 15, 2016, Velásquez became the first player to be signed by NASL expansion side Rayo OKC.[9]

He's also the first player to make an appearance on the NYCFC Fan Podcast, on April 1, 2016. A milestone for the podcast.[10]

On the January 16th 2019, Velásquez was announced as new player for K League 2 team Suwon FC. This was Velásquez's first football experience outside of the United States.[11] After six months at Suwon, he announced in June 2019, that he had left the club and would return to the United States.[12]

Personal life

Velásquez was raised Catholic by his mother but left the Church in 2013 and joined another Christian denomination. His teammates nicknamed him the Colombian Lionel Messi.[13] After a shooting at a Walmart in El Paso in 2019, he helped raise funds for a girls' youth soccer team that was outside the store at the time of the shooting and took time to meet the players afterwards.[14]

References
  1. "Discoveries SC - powered by Oasys Sports". discoveriessoccerclub.org. Archived from the original on August 22, 2013. Retrieved November 24, 2015.
  2. James Edward (March 10, 2012). "Real Salt Lake notebook: Sebastian Velásquez goes from Junior College to MLS in one year". DeseretNews.com. Retrieved November 24, 2015.
  3. "2012 MLS SuperDraft, presented by adidas". MLSsoccer.com. Retrieved November 24, 2015.
  4. "2012-03-10 La vs RSL/stats". Archived from the original on March 14, 2012. Retrieved March 11, 2012.
  5. Beacham, Greg. "Los Angeles 1 - 3 Real Salt Lake: Real Salt Lake ruins Galaxy's title celebration". Archived from the original on July 16, 2012. Retrieved March 21, 2012.
  6. "Golazo! Real Salt Lake vs LA Galaxy - recap". Archived from the original on November 9, 2013. Retrieved November 8, 2013.
  7. "Real Salt Lake continue their rebuild, trade Sebastian Velasquez to New York City FC for allocation money". MLS. December 19, 2014. Retrieved November 30, 2017.
  8. The Salt Lake Tribune (December 18, 2014). "RSL trades midfielder Sebastian Velásquez to NYCFC". The Salt Lake Tribune. Retrieved November 24, 2015.
  9. "RAYO OKC SIGNS THREE PLAYERS". www.rayookc.com. Rayo OKC. January 15, 2016. Archived from the original on February 1, 2016. Retrieved January 27, 2016.
  10. http://nycfcpodcast.com/nycfc-s2e12-interview-with-sebastian-velasquez/
  11. https://blog.naver.com/suwonfc2003/221443569109
  12. ‘Tian’ Velásquez no jugará más en el fútbol surcoreano, golombianos.com, 14 June 2019
  13. Flint, Liam (October 11, 2016). "The 'Colombian Messi', Sebastian Velasquez: "He taught me that Soccer is temporary but He is eternal"". Cross The Line. Retrieved December 15, 2016.
  14. https://www.espn.com/espn/story/_/id/29558547/el-paso-strong-how-soccer-friendship-helped-girls-team-heal-mass-shooting



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