Isaac Zuleta

In this Spanish name, the first or paternal surname is Zuleta and the second or maternal family name is Rendón.
Isaac Zuleta
Personal information
Full name Isaac Zuleta Rendón
Date of birth (2003-08-10) 10 August 2003 (age 21)
Place of birth Los Angeles, California, U.S.
Height 1.81 m (5 ft 11 in)
Position(s) Forward
Team information
Current team
 Miami FC
Number 9
Youth career
Envigado
2017–2022 Getafe
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2022–2023 Getafe B 4 (0)
2023 New Mexico United 0 (0)
2024– Miami FC 0 (0)
International career‡
2021– Colombia U20 10 (1)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 18:50, 31 October 2024 (UTC)
‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 21:36, 5 July 2023 (UTC)

Isaac Zuleta Rendón (born 10 August 2003) is a professional footballer who currently plays as a forward for USL Championship side Miami FC. Born in the United States, he is a youth international for Colombia.

Early life

The son of a construction businessman, Zuleta was born in Los Angeles, California in the United States, but moved to Medellín, Colombia immediately after his birth.[1]

Club career

After his family moved to Envigado, Zuleta joined the academy of Envigado, where he spent "two or three years" before his family moved again, to Getafe in Spain when he was fourteen.[1] He went on trial with local professional side Getafe, who invited him to join after two months of trials.[1] He scored hat-tricks in his first three games, for a total of sixteen goals in his first eleven matches, at youth level.[1] After a while in the academy, he was offered a professional contract by Italian side Venezia, but decided to remain with Getafe, signing his first professional deal in December 2021.[1][2]

International career

In late 2021, Zuleta was called up to the Colombian under-20 side for the Revelations Cup, as Colombia lost 3–2 to Brazil in the final.[2][3] He featured for Colombia at the 2023 South American U-20 Championship, but did not impress with no goals in five games as Colombia third in the tournament.

Following manager Héctor Cárdenas' decision to call up Zuleta to his preliminary squad for the 2023 FIFA U-20 World Cup, ahead of both Tomás Ángel and Luis Quintero, who had both had better seasons than Zuleta, speculation in Colombia arose that vice president of the Colombian Football Federation, Álvaro González Alzate [es], had imposed his influence on the squad selection in order to ensure Zuleta was called up.[4][5] Both Cárdenas and González Alzate denied this, with the latter stating in an interview with Noticias RCN [es] in January 2023 that he "[doesn't] even know" Zuleta.[6]

Following the controversial call up, Zuleta announced via his Instagram account on 4 May 2023 that he would be withdrawing from the squad, citing his recovery from injury as the reason.[7]

Career statistics

Club

As of 5 July 2023.[8][9]
Appearances and goals by club, season and competition
Club Season League Cup Other Total
Division Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals
Getafe B 2022–23 Tercera Federación 4 0 0 0 0 0 4 0
Career total 4 0 0 0 0 0 4 0
Notes

References

  1. ^ a b c d e Domínguez, Guillermo (12 March 2023). "Isaac Zuleta, último 'talento' de Envigado: "Colombia mira a la cara a Brasil y Argentina, ya no es 'a ver qué pasa'"" [Isaac Zuleta, Envigado's latest 'talent': "Colombia looks Brazil and Argentina in the face, it is no longer 'let's see what happens'"]. libertaddigital.com (in Spanish). Retrieved 5 July 2023.
  2. ^ a b Mora Moreno, Julián David (3 December 2021). "El crack colombiano que juega en España y que sería llamado por Reinaldo Rueda" [The Colombian star who plays in Spain and who would be called by Reinaldo Rueda]. elfutbolero.com.co (in Spanish). Retrieved 5 July 2023.
  3. ^ Campos Mendoza, Carlos (15 November 2021). "Revelations Cup Celaya: Isaac Zuleta y Colombia quieren ganar el torneo" [Revelations Cup Celaya: Isaac Zuleta and Colombia want to win the tournament]. am.com.mx (in Spanish). Retrieved 5 July 2023.
  4. ^ Clavijo, Santiago (3 May 2023). "Polémica por jugador que habría sido convocado a Mundial Sub-20 por vínculo con directivo" [Controversy over player who would have been summoned to the U-20 World Cup due to a link with a manager]. noticiasrcn.com (in Spanish). Retrieved 5 July 2023.
  5. ^ Zabaleta, Camilo (3 May 2023). "Luis Quintero vs. Isaac Zuleta: las cifras con la que critican la convocatoria de Héctor Cárdenas al Mundial sub-20" [Luis Quintero vs. Isaac Zuleta: the figures with which they criticize the call of Héctor Cárdenas to the U-20 World Cup]. infobae.com (in Spanish). Retrieved 5 July 2023.
  6. ^ "¿Dirigente de la FCF detrás de la ausencia de Tomás Ángel en el Sudamericano Sub-20?" [FCF leader behind the absence of Tomás Ángel in the South American U-20?]. noticiasrcn.com (in Spanish). 6 January 2023. Retrieved 5 July 2023.
  7. ^ Arciniegas, Sara (4 May 2023). "Isaac Zuleta se baja del Mundial Sub-20 por "decisión propia"" [Isaac Zuleta drops out of the U-20 World Cup by "own decision"]. caracol.com.co (in Spanish). Retrieved 5 July 2023.
  8. ^ Isaac Zuleta at Soccerway
  9. ^ Isaac Zuleta at LaPreferente.com (in Spanish)