Mauricio Alejandro Molina Uribe (Latin American Spanish: [mawˈɾisjo moˈlina]; born 30 April 1980) is a Colombian former professional footballer who played as a midfielder.
 Molina in 2008 | ||||||||||||||
| Personal information | ||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Mauricio Alejandro Molina Uribe | |||||||||||||
| Date of birth | 30 April 1980 | |||||||||||||
| Place of birth | Medellín, Colombia | |||||||||||||
| Height | 1.77 m (5 ft 10 in)[1] | |||||||||||||
| Position(s) | Playmaker, second striker | |||||||||||||
| Youth career | ||||||||||||||
| 1997–1998 | Envigado | |||||||||||||
| Senior career* | ||||||||||||||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) | |||||||||||
| 1998–2001 | Envigado | 83 | (25) | |||||||||||
| 2001–2002 | Santa Fé | 16 | (5) | |||||||||||
| 2002–2003 | Independiente Medellín | 43 | (14) | |||||||||||
| 2003–2004 | Morelia | 24 | (1) | |||||||||||
| 2004–2005 | Al Ain | 10 | (0) | |||||||||||
| 2005–2007 | Independiente Medellín | 16 | (5) | |||||||||||
| 2006 | → San Lorenzo (loan) | 24 | (0) | |||||||||||
| 2007 | → Olimpia (loan) | 17 | (5) | |||||||||||
| 2007–2008 | Red Star Belgrade | 11 | (2) | |||||||||||
| 2008–2009 | Santos | 20 | (8) | |||||||||||
| 2009–2010 | Seongnam Ilhwa Chunma | 46 | (21) | |||||||||||
| 2011–2015 | FC Seoul | 159 | (46) | |||||||||||
| 2016–2017 | Independiente Medellín | 60 | (11) | |||||||||||
| International career | ||||||||||||||
| 2001–2003 | Colombia | 12 | (1) | |||||||||||
Medal record
| ||||||||||||||
| *Club domestic league appearances and goals | ||||||||||||||
Club career
editMolina started his career in Colombian side Envigado at the age of 16. He soon made his way up to the first team and was transferred to Independiente Santa Fé. around his stint through Santa Fe, After a serious injury he returned to the pitch in 2002 playing for Independiente Medellín where he led the team to its first national championship in 45 years and the third overall. In 2003, he helped the team reach the semi-finals of the Copa Libertadores. After the successful campaign with Independiente Medellín he moved to CA Morelia of Mexico until 2004. After Morelia, Molina went to the United Arab Emirates to play for the Al Ain FC where he stayed for a semester, after which he returned to his best memories with Independiente Medellin for another semester. Molina then played for San Lorenzo de Almagro of Argentina from 2005 to 2006. In 2007, Molina signed with Paraguayan Club Olimpia de Asunción where he played the first semester of the year. After a very successful campaign with the team in which he was the co-scorer with 10 goals, Molina was transfer for the second semester of 2007 to the Serbian club FK Crvena Zvezda, also known as Red Star Belgrade, in which Molina makes his debut in the European football.
Molina prepared to include himself in the lines of a great club: Brazilian Santos. He made his debut as a Santos player on 13 February 2008, starting against Cúcuta Deportivo of Colombia in the 2008 Copa Libertadores.[2]
In July 2009, Molina moves to South Korean club Seongnam Ilhwa Chunma for $1,275,000.[3] In his first K-League match for Seongnam, he scored debut goal against Pohang Steelers. In all K-league competitions Molina scored 22 goals along with 11 assists in 50 appearances for Seongnam Ilhwa Chunma and in 2010 Molina and Seongnam Ilhwa Chunma won the AFC Champions League 2010.[4]
On 24 January 2011, Molina signed for K League Classic side FC Seoul on a three-year contract.[4][5]
On 31 December 2015, Molina returned to Independiente Medellín, where he played for two more seasons before finally retiring from professional football, tenure during which he acted as a co-captain for the team and helped them win the 2016 Torneo Apertura, his second with the club and their 6th league title overall.
International career
editAt international level, Molina was part of the Colombia national team that won the 2001 Copa América.
Career statistics
editClub
edit| Club | Season | K League Classic | KFA Cup | League Cup | Continental | Total | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Seongnam Ilhwa Chunma | 2009 | 17 | 10 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 19 | 11 | ||
| 2010 | 29 | 11 | 3 | 2 | 4 | 1 | 11 | 7 | 47 | 21 | |
| Total | 46 | 21 | !5 | 3 | 4 | 1 | 11 | 7 | 66 | 32 | |
| FC Seoul | 2011 | 29 | 10 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 8 | 2 | 39 | 13 |
| 2012 | 41 | 18 | 2 | 1 | – | – | 43 | 19 | |||
| 2013 | 35 | 9 | 1 | 1 | – | – | 13 | 1 | 49 | 11 | |
| 2014 | 19 | 5 | 4 | 0 | – | – | 4 | 0 | 27 | 5 | |
| 2015 | 35 | 4 | 5 | 1 | – | – | 7 | 1 | 47 | 6 | |
| Total | 159 | 46 | 14 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 32 | 4 | 205 | 54 | |
| Career total | 205 | 67 | 19 | 7 | 4 | 1 | 43 | 11 | 271 | 86 | |
International
edit- Scores and results list Colombia's goal tally first.
| # | Date | Venue | Opponent | Score | Final | Competition |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | 17 July 2003 | Miami Orange Bowl, Miami, United States |  Guatemala | 1–1 | 1–1 | 2003 CONCACAF Gold Cup |
Honours
editIndependiente Medellin
Seongnam Ilhwa Chunma
FC Seoul
Colombia
Individual
- FIFA Club World Cup top scorer: 2010 (three goals)
- K League Best XI: 2010, 2012
- K League Top Assists Award: 2012, 2013
References
edit- ^ "M. Molina". Soccerway. Retrieved 21 November 2015.
- ^ "Leão poupa estreantes estrangeiros de críticas" (in Portuguese). Terra Esportes. Retrieved 14 February 2008.
- ^ "Molina moves to Seongnam Ilhwa". SportsYa. Archived from the original on 20 July 2009. Retrieved 18 July 2009.
- ^ a b "FC Seoul brings Molina and Kim Dong-jin". fcseoul.com. Retrieved 27 January 2011.
- ^ "FC서울, '최고의 왼발' 몰리나 영입" (in Korean). fcseoul.com. Retrieved 24 January 2011.
External links
edit- Mao Molina Facebook
- Mao Molina Fansite
- Mauricio Molina – K League stats at kleague.com (in Korean)
- Mauricio Molina – FIFA competition record (archived)
- Mauricio Molina at National-Football-Teams.com
- Mauricio Molina at mediotiempo.com
- Mauricio Molina at santos.globo.com (in Portuguese)
