Cristian Arrieta

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Cristian Arrieta
Cristian-Arrieta.jpg
Arrieta with the Puerto Rico Islanders in 2009
Personal information
Full name Cristian Arrieta
Date of birth (1979-09-18) September 18, 1979 (age 46)
Place of birth Orlando, Florida, United States
Height 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)
Position Defender
Senior career*
YearsTeamApps(Gls)
1997–1998 Gravellona 23 (1)
1998–2002 Mestre 79 (5)
2002–2003 Genoa 0 (0)
2003 Alessandria 9 (2)
2003–2004 Ivrea 25 (1)
2004–2005 Cervia 33 (3)
2005–2006 Lecco 26 (1)
2006–2007 Lecce 7 (0)
2008–2009 Puerto Rico Islanders 54 (17)
2010 Philadelphia Union 16 (0)
2011 Fort Lauderdale Strikers 14 (1)
2012–2014 Juventus Domo ? (?)
2014–2015 Briga ? (?)
2015–2016 F.A. Euro 5 (1)
International career
2010–2015 Puerto Rico 22 (5)
Managerial career
2014–2015 LIAC New York (U19)
2015 F.A. Euro (U14)
2016 Athletic Union (assistant)
* Club domestic league appearances and goals

Cristian Arrieta (born September 18, 1979) is a former professional footballer who played as a defender. Born in the United States, he spent much of his club career in Italy and Puerto Rico and represented the Puerto Rico national team at international level.

Contents

Born in Orlando, Florida, Arrieta has Spanish and Italian heritage. Arrieta initially began playing soccer in Italy with various clubs in the lower divisions. In 2008, he returned to North America to sign with the Puerto Rico Islanders of the USL First Division. Under the guidance of Colin Clarke, Arrieta became a regular starter for the club and was recognized with multiple league honors. He assisted the club by claiming their first regular-season championship, as well as reaching the playoff finals.

In February 2010 he was ranked 14th in the USL First Division Top 25 of the Decade, which announced a list of the best and most influential players of the previous decade. [1] That same year he gained his first cap for the Puerto Rico national team, and gained a total of 22 up to his retirement as a player in 2015.

Club career

Europe

Born in Florida to a Basque-Spanish father and an Portuguese mother from Salento, [2] Arrieta grew up in Bilbao, Spain and Borgomanero in Italy. He spent much of his early career playing in the Italian lower divisions, and has over 120 appearances for clubs such as Varese, Mestre, Ivrea and Alessandria in Serie C2, also taking part to the Italian reality show Campioni, il sogno (Champions, the dream), centered around the football club Cervia. [3]

In 2005, he signed with Lecco in Serie C1, and then with Lecce in Serie B in 2006, [4] the highest level of soccer he attained in his homeland. Then he made 7 appearances for Lecce.

North America

Arrieta went abroad to Puerto Rico in 2008 and signed with the Puerto Rico Islanders in the USL First Division. Arrieta would prove to become a valuable asset to the club by guiding the Islanders to a string of success. One notable match he appeared in was against the Rochester Rhinos, where the game concluded with a score of 4–0 in favor of the Islanders. The match was memorable because it was the first time the club was at the top of the standings. Arrieta managed to assist the club in remaining at the top of the standings and on September 19, won the club's first Commissioners Cup which clinched first place in the league's regular season standings. He contributed by establishing a solid back line that would post the best defensive performance in the league. Arrieta also managed an offensive record for a defender with seven goals and two assists, ranking him ninth in goals. During the 2008 season, Arrieta helped the Puerto Rico Islanders secure the regular-season title and reach the league final. He was named Defender of the Year and selected to the USL First Division All-League First Team. [5] In the club's playoff run, he led the Islanders to the USL 1 Division final only to be defeated by the Vancouver Whitecaps by a score of 2–1. He also led the Islanders to the knockout stages of the CONCACAF Champions League.

During the 2009 season, Arrieta enjoyed another career-high season. He concluded the season with 10 goals and five assists, which placed him fourth in goals. He helped lead the club back to the playoffs with a third-place finish, and for the second consecutive year he earned an All-League selection. [6] On October 15, 2009, Arrieta was awarded the Defender of the Year and Most Valuable award, making him the third player in USL history to win it twice in a row. On the same night he earned the Most Valuable Player award, thus becoming only the second defender to earn the honor, with Marcelo Balboa being the first in 1988. [7]

Arrieta signed with Major League Soccer club Philadelphia Union on April 5, 2010. [8] He was waived by Philadelphia on February 8, 2011. [9] He signed with Fort Lauderdale Strikers of the North American Soccer League on March 31, 2011. [10] Arrieta was let go by the club at the end of the season.

International career

Arrieta was called up to the Puerto Rico national team in September 2010. [11] As a United States citizen, Arrieta became eligible to represent Puerto Rico after meeting residency requirements while playing for the Puerto Rico Islanders. [12] He got his first cap in a 2010 Caribbean Cup qualification stage match against Anguilla on October 2, 2010, and scored his first goal in the same competition against Saint Martin two days later. [13] [14]

Coaching career

Between 2013 and 2015, Arrieta worked in youth coaching roles in New York, including positions with Massapequa Soccer Club, LIAC New York, and Oceanside United. [15] In April 2015, he joined the coaching staff of the Italian Soccer Training Exchange Program (ISTEP).

Personal life

Arrieta was the winner of the Italian football reality show Campioni, il Sogno, after which he was granted a trial with Serie A side Inter Milan. [16]

International goals

Scores and results list Puerto Rico's goal tally first.
#DateVenueOpponentScoreResultCompetition
1.October 4, 2010 Estadio Juan Ramón Loubriel, Bayamón, Puerto RicoFlag of France.svg  Saint Martin 2–02–0 2010 Caribbean Cup qualification
2.November 12, 2011 Beausejour Stadium, Gros Islet, Saint LuciaFlag of Saint Lucia.svg  Saint Lucia 1-04-0 2014 FIFA World Cup qualification
3.February 26, 2012 Estadio Nacional de Fútbol, Managua, NicaraguaFlag of Nicaragua.svg  Nicaragua 1-01-4 Friendly
4.June 2, 2012 Estadio Juan Ramón Loubriel, Bayamón, Puerto RicoFlag of Nicaragua.svg  Nicaragua 1-03-1Friendly
5.September 9, 2012 Stade Sylvio Cator, Port-au-Prince, HaitiFlag of France.svg  Saint Martin 4-09-0 2012 Caribbean Cup qualification

Honors

Club

Puerto Rico Islanders

Individual

References

  1. ↑ "USL-1 Top 25 of the Decade". USLsoccer.com. Retrieved April 22, 2010.
  2. ↑ Di Naso, Luca (May 28, 2015). "Dalla polvere di stelle di "Campioni – il Sogno" al sogno made " Stars and Stripes"". radiolab.it. Retrieved May 16, 2016.
  3. ↑ "Campioni - Archivio News - La Rosa" (in Italian). Mediaset.it. Archived from the original on July 22, 2011. Retrieved February 27, 2011.
  4. ↑ "Cristian Arrieta team profile". Puerto Rico Islanders. Archived from the original on July 16, 2008. Retrieved July 17, 2008.
  5. ↑ "USL-1 All-League Teams announced". USLsoccer.com. Archived from the original on June 10, 2011. Retrieved April 21, 2010.
  6. ↑ "USL-1 All-League Teams announced". USLsoccer.com. Archived from the original on June 10, 2011. Retrieved April 21, 2010.
  7. ↑ "Top USL-1 honors announced". USLsoccer.com. Archived from the original on June 10, 2011. Retrieved April 21, 2010.
  8. ↑ "Philadelphia Union Sign Cristian Arrieta | Philadelphia Union". Archived from the original on December 16, 2010.
  9. ↑ "Union Waive Defender Cristian Arrieta | Philadelphia Union". Archived from the original on February 10, 2011.
  10. ↑ "North American Soccer League". Archived from the original on April 23, 2011. Retrieved March 31, 2011.
  11. ↑ "Arrieta Called Up to Puerto Rican National Team". Philadelphia Union. September 23, 2010. Archived from the original on September 25, 2010. Retrieved October 5, 2010.
  12. ↑ "Llega ayuda en la defensa de la Selección Nacional". Primerahora.com. September 20, 2010. Archived from the original on September 24, 2010. Retrieved October 5, 2010.
  13. ↑ "Group A, Match 2: Puerto Rico 3 Anguilla 1". Digicel Football. October 3, 2010. Archived from the original on July 10, 2011. Retrieved October 5, 2010.
  14. ↑ "Digicel Caribbean Cup Game 4: Puerto Rico 2 – Saint Martin 0". Digicel Football. October 5, 2010. Archived from the original on July 10, 2011. Retrieved October 5, 2010.
  15. ↑ Cristian Arrieta at Linkedin, linkedin.com
  16. ↑ "Che fine ha fatto? 'Campioni, il sogno' - 1" (in Italian). www.calciomercato.com. October 22, 2015. Retrieved October 25, 2017.
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