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Rodolfo Zelaya

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Rodolfo Zelaya
Zelaya training with Alianza in 2014
Personal information
Full name Rodolfo Antonio Zelaya García
Date of birth (1988-07-03) 3 July 1988 (age 36)
Place of birth Usulután, El Salvador
Height 1.74 m (5 ft 9 in)
Position(s) Second striker
Team information
Current team
 Alianza
Number 22
Youth career
2001 CD Alacrán
2004 San Rafael
2004–2005 Atlético La Merced
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2005–2007 Intipucá 31 (19)
2008 CD Chalatenango 17 (8)
2008–2009 Alianza 29 (18)
2009–2010 León 10 (1)
2010–2018 Alianza 227 (112)
2011 → Alania Vladikavkaz (loan) 13 (3)
2013 → Alania Vladikavkaz (loan) 3 (0)
2019 Los Angeles FC 4 (1)
2019 → Las Vegas Lights (loan) 2 (0)
2020 Celaya 6 (2)
2020– Alianza 87 (41)
International career
2008–2019 El Salvador 52 (23)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 20:27, 8 October 2023 (UTC)
In this Spanish name, the first or paternal surname is Zelaya and the second or maternal family name is García.

Rodolfo Antonio Zelaya García (born 3 July 1988) is a Salvadoran professional footballer who plays as a second striker for Primera División club Alianza. In October 2013, Zelaya was banned from football for one year for his involvement in a match-fixing scandal with the El Salvador national team.[1]

Club career

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San Rafael

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Zelaya started his career playing for San Rafael in 2004, where he played for one year. The following season, he moved to Atlético La Merced.

In July 2006, both Zelaya and Rúsvel Saravia were offered contracts to play for one of El Salvadors biggest clubs, Águila. Unfortunately for both Zelaya and Saravia, they could not come to terms with the club over their proposed salaries, and as a result, the transfer fell through.

Intipucá

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Zelaya then moved on to play in Segunda División with Intipucá. After 2 years with the club, Zelaya caught the attention of Chalatenango coach Vladan Vićević.

Chalatenango

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After meeting with Vićević, Zelaya was offered, and accepted a contract to play with his first Primera División club Chalatenango. Zelaya went on to impress in his first season with the club and grew a fan base with both spectators and reporters for being one of El Salvador's most promising young strikers.

Chalatenango finished in fifth place in the league table with 25 points. Zelaya scored 8 goals at the end of the Clausura 2008.

Alianza

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In 2008, Zelaya moved to Alianza after former Chalatenango president Lisandro Pohl switched clubs. This switch lead to Pohl taking various players with him to Alianza whose rights he supposedly owned due to them being bought when he was president at Chalatenango.

Mexico

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On 15 June 2009, Zelaya was one of the three Salvadoran footballers signed to Mexican club León on a loan deal, the other two were Cristian Castillo and Julio Enrique Martínez.[2] On 3 December 2009, it was announced that Club León had permanently signed Zelaya along with the other two Salvadorans with a three-year contract.

On 12 December 2009, it was confirmed by Alianza's own president, Lisandro Pohl, that Zelaya would return to Alianza on a loan deal.[3] Zelaya later played without a loan deal and participated at the Clausura 2011, where he was top goalscorer with 13 goals to his part.

He also had the opportunity to reign champion and score 2 goals at the final to give his team the tournament.

Russia

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Zelaya in Alania Vladikavkaz in 2011

On 19 July 2011, Zelaya signed with Russian First Division club Alania Vladikavkaz on a loan transfer for six months. Alania may be able to redeem his transfer by January 2012.[4]

On 9 August 2011, Zelaya debuted at the Russian league championship in a match against Torpedo Vladimir as a starter. On 4 November, he scored two goals against Mordovia Saransk, but also received a knee injury that would rule him out for 7 months. [5] During the summer of 2012, Alania decided not to keep him and sent him back to Alianza.

On 26 January 2013, he once again signed a six-month loan to rejoin Alania Vladikavkaz, who had been promoted to the Russian Premiere League.

He was sent back to Alianza in June after his contract expired.[6][7]

Return to Alianza

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In June 2014, Zelaya signed again with Alianza.

Zelaya scored four goals in a 7–0 victory against Chalatenango in the second leg of the quarterfinals of the Apertura 2018, at the Estadio Cuscatlán, in December 2018. Alianza reached the semi-finals.

Los Angeles FC

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On 30 January 2019, it was announced that Zelaya would join Major League Soccer club Los Angeles FC. In January 2020, the club announced that it and Zelaya had mutually agreed to part ways.[8]

Las Vegas Lights (loan)

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On 15 August 2019, Zelaya was loaned to USL Championship side Las Vegas Lights FC.[9]

International career

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Zelaya officially received his first cap on 23 April 2008, in a friendly match against China.[10]

He scored his first goal with the national team on 6 September 2008, in a 2010 FIFA World Cup qualification match against Haiti. This game also saw him score his first hat-trick which lead El Salvador to a 5–0 win against the then Caribbean Nations Cup champions.

At the 2011 CONCACAF Gold Cup, Zelaya received two trophies for the best player in the matches against Cuba and Panama.[11] Overall, Zelaya scored 4 goals being the second top goalscorer of the tournament.

Zelaya was noted by Goal.com as being one of the Best XI of the 2011 CONCACAF Gold Cup — alongside Javier Hernández as forwards.[12] CONCACAF also noted "Fito" scoring the fifth best goal of the tournament, a decent feat considering 80 goals scored in the tournament.[13]

According to IFFHS (International Federation of Football History & Statistics) Rodolfo Zelaya was one of the most skilled and popular Central American players of 2012. After being out of action for almost a year due to injury Zelaya, was selected to represent El Salvador for the 2013 CONCACAF Gold Cup scoring all four goals for the team leading them to the Quarter-finals, as well as being named one of the best players of the tournament.[14]

Scoring two goals versus Trinidad & Tobago, one goal versus Haiti, and versus United States, several critics said that Zelaya was the only player that makes a big difference in the field, due to his dribbling skills and ability to score.[15]

In September 2013, Zelaya was handed a one-year ban from international football for his involvement in a match-fixing scandal with the El Salvador national football team. This ban was extended to worldwide in October of the same year.[1]

Career statistics

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Club

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As of match played 4 September 2016[16][17]
Appearances and goals by club, season and competition
Club Season League National cup Continental Total
Division Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals
Alianza 2009–2010 Salvadoran Primera División 14 5 0 0 – 14 5
2010–2011 26 0 0 – 26
2011–2012 0 0 0 0 – 0 0
2012–2013 10 4 0 0 – 10 4
2013–2014 3 0 0 0 – 3 0
Total 35 0 0 0 0 35
Alania Vladikavkaz (loan) 2011–12 Russian National League 13 3 0 0 2 0 15 3
Alania Vladikavkaz (loan) 2012–13 Russian Premier League 1 0 0 0 – 1 0
Alianza 2014–2015 Salvadoran Primera División 25 4 0 0 – 25 4
2015–16 40 15 0 0 – 40 15
2016–17 6 1 0 0 2 0 8 1
Total 71 20 0 0 2 0 73 20
Career total 85 23 0 0 4 0 89 23

International

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As of match played 12 October 2019[17]
Appearances and goals by national team and year
National team Year Apps Goals
El Salvador 2008 10 4
2009 12 0
2010 2 2
2011 7 7
2012 1 0
2013 5 4
2014 0 0
2015 0 0
2016 0 0
2017 11 4
2018 0 0
2019 4 2
Total 52 23
Scores and results list El Salvador's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Zelaya goal.
List of international goals scored by Rodolfo Zelaya[17]
No. Date Venue Opponent Score Result Competition
1 6 September 2008 Estadio Cuscatlán, San Salvador, El Salvador  Haiti 1–0 5–0 2010 FIFA World Cup qualification
2 2–0 2010 FIFA World Cup qualification
3 3–0 2010 FIFA World Cup qualification
4 15 October 2008 Estadio Cuscatlán, San Salvador, El Salvador  Suriname 1–0 3–0 2010 FIFA World Cup qualification
5 4 September 2010 Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, Los Angeles, United States  Honduras 1–0 2–2 Friendly
6 2–0
7 29 May 2011 Robertson Stadium, Houston, United States  Honduras 1–2 2–2 Friendly
8 9 June 2011 Bank of America Stadium, Charlotte, United States  Costa Rica 1–0 1–1 2011 CONCACAF Gold Cup
9 12 June 2011 Soldier Field, Chicago, United States  Cuba 1–0 6–1 2011 CONCACAF Gold Cup
10 4–0
11 19 June 2011 Robert F. Kennedy Memorial Stadium, Washington, D.C., United States  Panama 1–0 1–1 2011 CONCACAF Gold Cup
12 2 September 2011 Estadio Cuscatlán, San Salvador, El Salvador  Dominican Republic 1–0 3–2 2014 FIFA World Cup qualification
13 3–1
14 8 July 2013 Red Bull Arena, Harrison, United States  Trinidad and Tobago 1–1 2–2 2013 CONCACAF Gold Cup
15 2–1
16 15 July 2013 BBVA Compass Stadium, Houston, United States  Haiti 1–0 1–0 2013 CONCACAF Gold Cup
17 21 July 2013 M&T Bank Stadium, Baltimore, United States  United States 1–2 1–5 2013 CONCACAF Gold Cup
18 15 January 2017 Estadio Rommel Fernández, Panama City, Panama  Honduras 1–0 1–2 2017 Copa Centroamericana
19 22 March 2017 Stadion dr. Antoine Maduro, Willemstad, Curaçao  Curaçao 1–1 1–1 Friendly
20 27 May 2017 Robert F. Kennedy Memorial Stadium, Washington, D.C., United States  Honduras 2–2 2–2 Friendly
21 13 July 2017 Sports Authority Field at Mile High, Denver, United States  Curaçao 2–0 2–0 2017 CONCACAF Gold Cup
22 12 October 2019 Blakes Estate Stadium, Lookout, Montserrat  Montserrat 2–0 2–0 2019–20 CONCACAF Nations League B
23 15 October 2019 Darren Sammy Cricket Ground, Gros Islet, Saint Lucia  Saint Lucia 1–0 2–0 2019–20 CONCACAF Nations League B

Honors

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Alianza

Individual

References

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  1. ^ a b "22 suspended during fixing probe". www.espnfc.com. ESPN FC. 22 September 2013. Retrieved 22 September 2013.
  2. ^ "Martínez, Zelaya y Castillo, hacia México". El Salvador.com. Retrieved 15 June 2009.
  3. ^ "Zelaya retorna al Alianza" (in Spanish). elgrafico.com. Retrieved 19 July 2011.
  4. ^ Родольфо Зелая стал игроком "Алании" (видео) (in Russian). fc-alania.ru. Archived from the original on 22 July 2011. Retrieved 19 July 2011.
  5. ^ Протокол матча "Алания" — "Торпедо" Владимир: Россия, Первенство России, ФНЛ 2011, Тур 20 — 1:0 (in Russian). Sportbox.ru. Retrieved 9 August 2011.
  6. ^ Gráfico, El. "Alianza rechaza una oferta de Catar por Rodolfo Zelaya".
  7. ^ Gráfico, El. "Alianza ya inscribió a Rodolfo Zelaya para el Apertura 2017".
  8. ^ "LAFC And Forward Rodolfo Zelaya Mutually Agree To Part Ways". LAFC.com. 7 January 2020. Retrieved 7 January 2020.
  9. ^ "LAFC Loans Peter-Lee Vassell To Phoenix Rising; Dejan Jaković And Fito Zelaya To Las Vegas Lights". Los Angeles FC. 15 August 2019. Retrieved 15 August 2019.
  10. ^ "International Friendly Matches 2008". RSSSF. Retrieved 20 October 2008.
  11. ^ Flores, Gustavo. ""Fito" Zelaya, el arma letal de la Azul" [Fito Zelaya, the lethal weapon of the Blue]. elsalvador.com. Retrieved 12 June 2011.
  12. ^ Gubala, David. "Gold Cup Best XI: Mexico reigns supreme". goal.com. Retrieved 18 July 2011.
  13. ^ "CONCACAF TV – On Demand – Catch Up Video – Asmir Begovic". www.concacaftv.premiumtv.co.uk.
  14. ^ "El delantero Rodolfo Zelaya es el hombre del momento". El Grafico. Archived from the original on 2 April 2015.
  15. ^ Reyes, Mario (16 July 2013). "¿Fitodependencia?" (in Spanish). Archived from the original on 24 August 2013. Retrieved 18 May 2020.
  16. ^ "R.Zelaya". Soccerway. Retrieved 6 September 2016.
  17. ^ a b c "Rodolfo Zelaya". National Football Teams. Benjamin Strack-Zimmermann. Retrieved 6 September 2016.
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