Alejandro Romero Gamarra

Alejandro Sebastián Romero Gamarra (born 11 January 1995), nicknamed Kaku, is a professional footballer who plays as a winger for New York Red Bulls in MLS. Born and raised in Argentina, he is the son of Paraguayan parents and represents Paraguay at the international level.

This article uses Spanish naming customs: the first or paternal family name is Romero and the second or maternal family name is Gamarra.
Alejandro Gamarra
Romero with Paraguay in 2018.
Personal information
Full name Alejandro Sebastián Romero Gamarra
Date of birth (1995-01-11) 11 January 1995
Place of birth Ciudadela, Argentina
Height 1.71 m (5 ft 7 in)
Playing position(s) Attacking midfielder, Winger
Club information
Current team
 New York Red Bulls
Number 10
Youth career
Huracán
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2013–2017 Huracán 94 (9)
2018– New York Red Bulls 58 (12)
National team‡
2015 Argentina U20 5 (0)
2018– Paraguay 5 (2)
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 7 March 2020
‡ National team caps and goals correct as of 13 October 2019

Club career

Huracán

Born in Ciudadela, Romero Gamarra began his career in the youth ranks of Huracán. In 2013, Romero Gamarra made his professional debut for Huracán in the Primera B Nacional. He scored his first goal for the club on 12 October 2013 in a 4–1 victory over Aldosivi.[1] On 14 December 2014, Romero Gamarra helped Huracán return to the top flight after three seasons in the Primera B Nacional, scoring the decisive second goal in a 4–1 victory over Atlético Tucumán.[2] With the promotion to the top flight, Huracán concluded a very successful season, having won the 2013–14 Copa Argentina a few weeks prior in a penalty shoot-out over Rosario Central with Romero Gamarra appearing as a second-half substitute.[3] This was the club's first official title in 41 years.

On 3 February 2015, he scored his first goal in the Copa Libertadores against Peruvian club Alianza Lima in a 4–0 victory.[4][5] On 1 March 2016, Romero Gamarra led Huracán to a historic victory in the Copa Libertadores over Peñarol at the Estadio Centenario, scoring the lone goal in the 1–0 triumph.[6] A few weeks later, on 24 March Romero Gamarra scored his first goal in the Argentine Primera División in a 2–0 victory over Aldosivi.[7] On 18 July 2016 he helped Huracán advance in the Copa Argentina scoring the opening goal in a 2–1 victory over Central Córdoba.[8]

On 27 May 2017, he scored an injury time equalizer from the penalty spot in a 1–1 draw with Boca Juniors.[9] On 1 June 2017, Romero Gamarra scored another important goal for his club, this time an injury time goal in a 4–0 victory over Deportivo Anzoátegui in the 2017 Copa Sudamericana. The goal helped Huracán advance to the next round by a 4–3 aggregate score after having lost the first leg by three goals.[10] On 16 June 2017, he scored the lone goal in a 1–0 victory over Unión de Santa Fe, helping his club to a crucial three points which helped Huracán avoid relegation.[11] On 28 October 2017, Romero Gamarra scored his club's second goal in a 4–0 victory over Lanús and celebrated the goal dedicating it to his recently deceased mother.[12]

New York Red Bulls

On 23 December 2017, it was announced by Huracán that they had agreed a deal to transfer Romero Gamarra to New York Red Bulls of Major League Soccer for a fee of $6.25 million.[13] After resolving various issues that held up the transfer, on 16 February 2018, it was announced that he had signed with New York.[14] Red Bulls also sent $50,000 of General Allocation Money to Atlanta United, who owned his discovery rights.[15] On 1 March 2018, Romero Gamarra made his debut for New York in a 2–0 victory over Olimpia in the CONCACAF Champions League.[16] On 10 March 2018, he assisted Ben Mines on the opening goal of the match on his Red Bulls league debut in a 4–0 victory over Portland Timbers.[17] On 13 March 2018, Romero Gamarra scored his first goal for New York in a 3–1 victory over Club Tijuana in the CONCACAF Champions League, helping the club advance to semifinals of the Champions League for the first time.[18] On 14 April 2018, Romero Gamarra scored his first league goal for New York in a 3–1 victory over the Montreal Impact.[19] On 28 April 2018, Romero Gamarra helped New York to a 3–2 victory over LA Galaxy, assisting on two goals and scoring the game winner with an 84th-minute penalty-kick goal.[20] The following week, 5 May 2018, Romero Gamarra opened the scoring for New York in a 4–0 derby victory over New York City FC, he also assisted on two other goals.[21] On December 6, 2018, Romero Gamarra was named the New York Red Bulls Newcomer of the Year for 2018 after leading the team in assists throughout the season.[22]

International career

Romero Gamarra was born in Argentina to Paraguayan parents. Romero Gamarra was selected by Argentina's U-20 manager, Humberto Grondona to participate in the 2015 FIFA U-20 World Cup in New Zealand.[23] On 16 May 2018, Romero Gamarra announced his desire to file a one-time switch request with FIFA to play for Paraguay.[24] The move was approved by FIFA on 23 May 2018, and he was immediately called up to the Paraguay national team for a friendly against Japan.[25] He made his competitive debut with Paraguay on 12 June as a substitute in the second half of the friendly match against Japan.

Career statistics

Club
As of 7 March 2020
Club Season League Domestic Cup [26] League Cup International [27] Total
DivisionAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoals
Huracán 2013–14 Primera B Nacional 162300000192
2014 6300000063
2015 Primera División 1700000111281
2016 161210092274
2016–17 272200021313
2017–18 121200010151
Total 949910023412614
New York Red Bulls 2018 MLS 306104031387
2019 265101040325
2020 2100000021
Total 58122050717213
Career total 152211115030519827

International
As of 13 October 2019
National teamYearAppsGoals
Paraguay 201820
201932
Total52

International goals
Scores and results list Paraguay's goal tally first.
NoDateVenueOpponentScoreResultCompetition
1.10 September 2019Amman International Stadium, Amman, Jordan Jordan4–24–2Friendly
2.13 October 2019Tehelné pole, Bratislava, Slovakia Slovakia1–11–1

Honors

Club

Huracán

New York Red Bulls

  • MLS Supporters' Shield (1): 2018

References
  1. "B Nacional: Huracán goleó al Aldosivi de Darío Franco". mundod.lavoz.com.ar (in Spanish). 12 October 2013. Retrieved 12 October 2013.
  2. "Huracán es pura fiesta: goleó a Atlético Tucumán y vuelve a Primera División". lanacion.com.ar (in Spanish). 14 December 2014. Retrieved 14 December 2014.
  3. "Huracán es campeón de la Copa Argentina, tras vencer a Rosario Central en una emotiva definición por penales". lanacion.com.ar (in Spanish). 26 November 2014. Retrieved 26 November 2014.
  4. "Huracán goleó a Alianza Lima 4-0". diariojornada.com.ar (in Spanish). 3 February 2015. Retrieved 3 February 2015.
  5. "Primera Fade Repechaje 1 Finalizado". Conmebol.com.
  6. "Huracán festejó en el Centenario una valiosa victoria frente a Peñarol". lanacion.com.ar (in Spanish). 1 March 2016. Retrieved 1 March 2016.
  7. "Vuela hacia la punta". ole.com (in Spanish). 24 March 2016. Retrieved 24 March 2016.
  8. "Huracán-Central Córdoba, Copa Argentina: el Globo ganó 2-1 y sigue adelante". lanacion.com.ar (in Spanish). 18 July 2016. Retrieved 18 July 2016.
  9. "Huracán Amarga a Boca en el último aliento con un penal polémico (1 a 1)". elpais.com (in Spanish). 27 May 2017. Retrieved 27 May 2017.
  10. "4-0. Romero Gamarra consuma milagro para Huracán en el último minuto". efe.com (in Spanish). 1 June 2017. Retrieved 1 June 2017.
  11. "Que Alívio, Globo!". ole.com (in Spanish). 16 June 2017. Retrieved 16 June 2017.
  12. ""Sólo pensé en llorar y mirar al cielo"". codigoquemero.com.ar (in Spanish). 29 October 2017. Retrieved 29 October 2017.
  13. "Huracán acordó la venta de Romero Gamarra". cahuracan.com (in Spanish). 23 December 2017. Retrieved 23 December 2017.
  14. "New York Red Bulls Sign Alejandro 'Kaku' Romero Gamarra as Young Designated Player". newyorkredbulls.com. 16 February 2018. Retrieved 16 February 2018.
  15. "Atlanta United acquires $50K in GAM from New York Red Bulls". atlutd.com. 16 February 2018. Retrieved 16 February 2018.
  16. "Post-Match Notes: Red Bulls Defeat CD Olimpia, 2-0; Face Tijuana in CCL Quarterfinals". NewYorkRedBulls.com. 1 March 2018. Retrieved 1 March 2018.
  17. "New York Red Bulls 4, Portland Timbers 0 - 2018 MLS Match Recap". mlssoccer.com. 10 March 2018. Retrieved 10 March 2018.
  18. "Red Bulls Moving On to SCCL Semis, Defeat Tijuana, 3-1". newyorkredbulls.com. 13 March 2018. Retrieved 13 March 2018.
  19. "New York Red Bulls Bounce Montreal Impact, 3-1". newyorkredbulls.com. 14 April 2018. Retrieved 14 April 2018.
  20. "Red Bulls Win A 3-2 Thriller Over Galaxy". newyorkredbulls.com. 29 April 2018. Retrieved 29 April 2018.
  21. "Red Bulls Roll Past Rival NYCFC, 4-0". newyorkredbulls.com. 5 May 2018. Retrieved 5 May 2018.
  22. "New York Red Bulls Announce End of the Year Team Awards". 6 December 2018. Retrieved 5 June 2020.
  23. "Grondona ya definió a los 21 mundialistas". afa.org.ar (in Spanish). 13 May 2015. Retrieved 13 May 2015.
  24. "Kaku Considering One time Switch to play for Paraguay National Team". mlssoccer.com. 17 May 2018. Retrieved 17 May 2018.
  25. "New York Red Bulls Midfielder Kaku Makes One-Time Switch to Paraguay National Team".
  26. Includes: Copa Argentina, Supercopa Argentina, U.S. Open Cup
  27. Includes: Copa Libertadores, Copa Sudamericana, CONCACAF Champions League
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