Erickson Gallardo

In this Spanish name, the first or paternal surname is Gallardoand the second or maternal family name is Toro.

Erickson Gallardo

Gallardo with Toronto FC in 2020
Personal information
Full name	Erickson Yirson Gallardo Toro
Date of birth	(1996-07-26) 26 July 1996 (age 27)
Place of birth	Barinas, Venezuela
Height	1.67 m (5 ft 6 in)
Position(s)	Winger
Team information
Current team	Phoenix Rising FC
Number	7
Youth career
	Fundarleo Raúl Leoni
	Santa Bárbara
	Potros de Barinas FC
2013–2015	Zamora
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps	(Gls)
2014–2019	Zamora	117	(11)
2019–2021	Toronto FC	11	(0)
2021	→ Toronto FC II (loan)	3	(0)
2022	Zamora	31	(10)
2023–	Phoenix Rising	17	(1)
International career‡
2019–	Venezuela	3	(0)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 24 October 2023 ‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 22 September 2022

Erickson Yirson Gallardo Toro (born 26 July 1996) is a Venezuelan professional footballer who plays as a winger for Phoenix Rising FC of the USL Championship.

Early life

He began playing football at the age of four at the Fundarleo Raúl Leoni, where he was coached by his father. ^[1] He later played youth football with Santa Bárbara and Potros de Barinas FC, before joining Zamora FC at age 17. ^[2]

Club career

He made his first team debut for Zamora on 16 February 2014 against Atlético El Vigía. ^[2] After limited appearances in his first couple of years, he became a regular player in the 2016 season as a nineteen year old. ^[3] In the second leg of the 2018 Apertura Final, Gallardo scored the winning goal in a 1–0 victory, giving Zamora the title winning 2–1 on aggregate. ^[4] Over his time with the club, he won four league titles in 2014, 2015, 2016 and 2018. ^{[5] [4] [6]}

In July 2019, he signed with Toronto FC in Major League Soccer, ^[7] after Toronto acquired his MLS rights from Orlando City SC, who had Gallardo on their Discovery List, in exchange for $50,000 of General Allocation Money. ^[8] After suffering a quad strain shortly after joining the club, he made his debut for Toronto on 7 August 2019 in a Canadian Championship match against Ottawa Fury FC. ^[9] He recorded his first MLS assist on 15 September against the Colorado Rapids. ^[10] In his debut season in which he arrived mid-season, he only made five appearances, which coach Greg Vanney attributed to his late arrival to the team, opting to go with the players who had played all season due to their familiarity with the system. ^[11] He did not make any appearances in the playoffs as Toronto advanced to the MLS Cup finals, where they finished as runner-ups. ^{[12] [13]} In a CONCACAF Champions League match on 7 April 2021 against Mexican side León, after coming on as a substitute, Gallardo created the tying goal in the first leg, intercepting the ball before making a pass which was deflected by a defender for an own goal, ^[14] but later had to leave the match due to suffering an injury, ^[15] requiring him to undergo right groin surgery. ^[16] In 2021, after recovering from his injury, he was loaned to Toronto FC II for some matches. ^[17] At the end of the 2021 season, Gallardo's contract expired and he departed the club. ^[18]

In 2022, he returned to Zamora, ^{[19] [20]} joining them in preseason, despite interest from several other clubs, including MLS club Inter Miami CF. ^{[20] [21]} In his debut, he scored a goal in a 2–0 victory over Estudiantes de Mérida. ^[22]

On November 9, 2022, Gallardo signed with Phoenix Rising FC of the USL Championship for the 2023 season. ^[23]

International career

In May 2019, he earned his first callup to the Venezuela national team. ^[24] He made his debut in a 1–1 friendly tie with Ecuador on 1 June 2019, playing seven minutes in a substitute appearance. ^{[25] [26]} In June 2022, he was called up to the national team again, after a three-year absence, for matches against Malta and Saudi Arabia, but was an unused substitute. ^[27]

Personal

Gallardo's nickname in Venezuelan football is Meteoro (Meteor) due to his speed. ^{[28] [29]} In 2019, Gallardo and his wife had a daughter, born in Canada. ^[30]

Career statistics

Club

As of match played 13 November 2023 ^[31]

Appearances and goals by club, season and competition

Club	Season	League			Playoffs		Cup		Continental		Total
		Division	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals
Zamora	2013–14	Venezuelan Primera División	1	0	—		0	0	0	0	1	0
	2014–15		3	0	—		0	0	0	0	3	0
	2015		5	0	—		1	0	0	0	6	0
	2016		23	3	—		4	0	3 [lower-alpha 1]	0	30	3
	2017		32	1	—		7	0	6 [lower-alpha 2]	1	45	2
	2018		38	6	—		6	4	2 [lower-alpha 1]	0	46	10
	2019		15	1	—		0	0	6 [lower-alpha 2]	1	21	2
	Total		117	11	—		18	4	17	2	152	17
Toronto FC	2019	Major League Soccer	5	0	0	0	3	0	0	0	8	0
	2020		6	0	1	0	0	0	—		7	0
	2021		0	0	—		0	0	1 [lower-alpha 3]	0	1	0
	Total		11	0	1	0	3	0	1	0	16	0
Toronto FC II (loan)	2021	USL League One	3	0	—		—		—		3	0
Zamora	2022	Venezuelan Primera División	31	10	—		0	0	—		31	10
Phoenix Rising	2023	USL Championship	17	1	4	0	2	0	—		23	1
Career total			179	32	3	0	23	4	18	2	226	28

1. Appearance(s) in Copa Sudamericana
2. Appearance(s) in Copa Libertadores
3. Appearance(s) in CONCACAF Champions League

International

As of match played 22 September 2022 ^[31]

Appearances and goals by national team and year

National team	Year	Apps	Goals
Venezuela	2019	1	0
	2020	0	0
	2021	0	0
	2022	2	0
Total		3	0

References

1. Chacon, Carlos Alberto. "Gallardo hace donativos a una escuela de fútbol en Barinas" [Gallardo makes donations to a soccer school in Barinas]. Meridiano Televisión (in Spanish).
2. Mistaje, Alejandro (13 September 2018). "Erickson Gallardo retumba en el balompié venezolano" [Erickson Gallardo resounds in Venezuelan football]. Solovenex (in Spanish).
3. "Erickson Gallardo lucha por un puesto en la titular del Zamora" [Erickson Gallardo fights for a position in the Zamora lineup]. Meridiano Televisión (in Spanish). 26 January 2016.
4. Zamora Calafat, Alejandro (9 July 2019). "Erickson Gallardo es nuevo jugador del Toronto F.C." [Erickson Gallardo is a new Toronto FC player]. Meridiano Televisión (in Spanish).
5. Davidson, Neil (9 July 2019). "Toronto FC optimistic about rest of season as Gallardo, Gonzalez join the fold". Toronto Star .
6. Chacon, Carlos Alberto (25 August 2018). "Erickson Gallardo deslumbra en el Clausura 2018" [Erickson Gallardo dazzles at the Clausura 2018]. Meridiano Televisión (in Spanish).
7. "Toronto FC signs Venezuelan winger Erickson Gallardo". torontofc.ca. Toronto FC. 9 July 2019. Retrieved 5 May 2020.
8. Torres, Guilherme (27 February 2020). "Orlando City Using Discovery List Creatively". The Mane Land.
9. Davidson, Neil (9 August 2019). "Recent additions give TFC depth, options for playoff run". Toronto Star .
10. Mosquera, Kerlin (15 September 2019). "Erickson Gallardo da asistencia en la MLS" [Erickson Gallardo provides assistance in the MLS]. Meridiano Televisión (in Spanish).
11. Buffery, Steve (27 February 2020). "TFC's Gallardo hits the reset button". Toronto Sun .
12. Buffery, Steve (11 November 2019). "TFC remains confident in Gallardo". Toronto Sun .
13. Chacon, Carlos Alberto (20 February 2020). "Erickson Gallardo: Vengo muy enfocado para un año de muchos éxitos" [Erickson Gallardo: I am very focused for a year of many successes]. Meridiano Televisión (in Spanish).
14. Buffery, Steve (7 April 2021). "Shorthanded Toronto FC holds on for a draw in hot and steamy Leon". Toronto Sun .
15. Rhodes, Benedict (7 April 2021). "Jozy Altidore and Erickson Gallardo leave Club Leon game with injuries". Waking the Red. Archived from the original on 25 April 2023. Retrieved 18 July 2021.
16. Singh, Michael (16 April 2021). "Injury Report: Erickson Gallardo undergoes surgery; Pozuelo, Mavinga ruled out vs. CF Montreal". Waking the Red.
17. "Toronto FC loan Erickson Gallardo to TFC II". Toronto FC . 18 July 2021.
18. "Toronto FC Announce Year-End Roster Decisions". Toronto FC . 1 December 2021.
19. Avancín, Avelino (29 January 2022). "Síntesis deportiva" [Sports Synthesis]. El Carabobeño (in Spanish).
20. Rojas, Jesus Elijah [@JesusConClase] (25 January 2022). "Confirmado: Erickson Gallardo será jugador de Zamora FC al menos una temporada" [Confirmed: Erickson Gallardo will be a Zamora FC player for at least one season] (Tweet) (in Spanish) – via Twitter.
21. Avancín, Avelino (31 December 2021). "El delantero Erickson Gallardo suena para el Inter de Miami" [Forward Erickson Gallardo sounds for Inter Miami]. Meridiano Televisión (in Spanish).
22. "Zamora marcó dos veces en la victoria ante Estudiantes Mérida en la Carolina" [Zamora scored twice in the victory against Estudiantes Mérida in the Carolina]. TYC Sports. 4 March 2022.
23. Minnick, Jason (9 November 2022). "Phoenix Rising Signs Venezuelan National Team Midfielder Erickson Gallardo". Phoenix Rising FC . Retrieved 9 November 2022.
24. Chacon, Carlos Alberto (21 May 2019). "Erickson Gallardo: Daré lo mejor para ganarme un puesto" [Erickson Gallardo: I will do my best to earn a position]. Meridiano Televisión (in Spanish).
25. Rhodes, Benedict (9 July 2019). "Toronto FC sign winger Erickson Gallardo". Waking the Red. Archived from the original on 26 April 2023. Retrieved 18 July 2021.
26. Perez Esis, Nelson (18 October 2019). "Erickson Gallardo a HSM: "No vamos a bajar la guardia"" [Erickson Gallardo to HSM: "We are not going to lower our guard"]. Hispanic Sports Media (in Spanish). Archived from the original on 5 February 2022. Retrieved 5 February 2022.
27. "Erickson Gallardo summoned to the Vinotinto". Press Compa. 31 May 2022. Archived from the original on 30 August 2022. Retrieved 30 August 2022.
28. Chacon, Carlos Alberto (14 February 2019). ""Meteoro" Gallardo quiere mostrar su calidad en circuitos internacionales" ["Meteoro" Gallardo wants to show his quality in international circuits]. Meridiano Televisión (in Spanish).
29. Chacon, Carlos Alberto (16 February 2018). "Erickson Gallardo, el veloz y desequilibrante del Zamora FC" [Erickson Gallardo, the fast and unbalanced player of Zamora FC]. Meridiano Televisión (in Spanish).
30. Singh, Michael (7 March 2020). "Toronto FC's Erickson Gallardo: 'This year is going to be different'". Waking the Red. Archived from the original on 21 April 2023. Retrieved 18 July 2021.
31. Erickson Gallardo at Soccerway

External links

• Erickson Gallardo at Soccerway
• Erickson Gallardo at National-Football-Teams.com
• Zamora FC Profile ^{[ permanent dead link ]}