Wélton (footballer)

In this Portuguese name, the first or maternal family name is Araújo and the second or paternal family name is Melo.
Wélton
Personal information
Full name Wélton Araújo Melo
Date of birth (1975-04-17) 17 April 1975 (age 49)
Place of birth Cambuci, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
Height 1.82 m (6 ft 0 in)
Position(s) Striker / Midfielder
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
1994 Fluminense
1995 Flamengo
1995 América (RJ)
1996 New England Revolution[1] 29 (3)
1997–1998 Los Angeles Galaxy 69 (28)
1999–2000 Miami Fusion 46 (12)
2001 Pittsburgh Riverhounds 25 (6)
2002 Paraná
2003 Fredrikstad FK 24 (5)
2004–2005 Seattle Sounders 48 (14)
International career
1995 Brazil (youth) 1 (0)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals

Wélton Araújo Melo (born 17 April 1975 in Cambuci, Rio de Janeiro) is a former Brazilian footballer who played professionally as either a forward or midfielder in South America, Europe and the United States, including five season in Major League Soccer.

Club career

In 1994, Welton began his professional career with Fluminense. In 1996, Major League Soccer invited him to a tryout where he was offered an MLS contract.[citation needed]

New England Revolution

On March 4, 1996, the New England Revolution selected Welton with their second pick (16th overall) in the 1996 MLS supplemental draft.[1] Playing as both a forward and midfielder, Welton made a total of 29 appearances, starting 20 matches, scoring three goals and recording six assists in the Revolution's inaugural season.[2] He started the Revolution's first-ever match on April 13, 1996, their first-ever win on April 20, and their first-ever home match on April 27.[2] In conjunction with Alexi Lalas, Welton recorded the first assist in New England Revolution history, setting up Robert Ukrop's goal on April 13.[2] He scored his first-ever Revolution goal on May 11 vs. the Columbus Crew.[2] Alongside his teammate Alexi Lalas, Welton was named to the 1996 MLS All-Star Game, where he started in the East's 3-2 victory over the West.[2]

LA Galaxy

On 10 March 1997, New England traded Welton to the Los Angeles Galaxy for the Galaxy's first round pick in the 1998 MLS Supplemental Draft.[1][3] Welton became a prolific piece of the Galaxy's attack under head coach Octavio Zambrano, netting 11 goals and recording 3 assists in 29 appearances during the 1997 season.[4] In 1998, the Galaxy scored a league-record 85 goals in the regular season, and Welton finished the season with a career-high 17 goals and 11 assists, second in scoring only to Cobi Jones' 19.[5] For his prolific scoring, Welton was named to the MLS All-Star team for a second time, representing "MLS World" in the 1998 MLS All-Star Game.[6] Welton tallied an additional goal in the Galaxy's 1998 playoff campaign, netting in the MLS Conference Semifinals in the Galaxy's 6-1 win over the Dallas Burn.[5]

Later Career

After making 7 starts in the 1999, the Galaxy traded Welton to the MetroStars in exchange for Roy Myers on June 1. Later that day, the MetroStars sent Welton, Eric Wynalda and Arley Palacios to the Miami Fusion.[7] In April 2001, Welton moved to the Pittsburgh Riverhounds of the USL A-League.[8] In 2002, he played for Paraná and in 2003, he was with and Fredrikstad FK in Norway. On 4 April 2004, Welton moved to the Seattle Sounders of the USL First Division.[9]

Melo currently resides in the Seattle area and plays on a local team.[citation needed]

International career

Welton played once for the Brazil youth team at the 1995 Pan American Games, against Bermuda.[10]

Honors

Individual

References

  1. ^ a b c "ClubHistory_CoachandPlayerRegistry.pdf" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 12 June 2018. Retrieved 21 September 2024.
  2. ^ a b c d e 2024 Media Guide. New England Revolution. Archived from the original on 22 March 2024. Retrieved 21 September 2024.
  3. ^ "SoccerAmerica - MLS: New England trades Welton to Galaxy 03/10/1997". www.socceramerica.com.[dead link‍]
  4. ^ "Welton Melo". Retrieved 23 September 2024.
  5. ^ a b 2012 LA Galaxy Media Guide (PDF). Retrieved 21 September 2024.
  6. ^ "1998 MLS All-Star Game: MLS USA 6, MLS World 1". Sports Illustrated. 16 July 1999. Archived from the original on 6 December 2003. Retrieved 29 December 2010.
  7. ^ Yannis, Alex (2 June 1999). "PLUS: SOCCER -- METROSTARS; Trades Clear Path For Foreigners". The New York Times. Retrieved 21 September 2024 – via NYTimes.com.
  8. ^ "USL Fans". uslfans.com. Archived from the original on 5 February 2013.
  9. ^ "Sounders sign Welton".
  10. ^ "Seleção Brasileira Restritiva".
  11. ^ "2018 New England Revolution Media Guide – Stats and Records" (PDF). pp. 1–2. Retrieved 5 June 2018.
  12. ^ "1998 MLS All-Star Game". MLSsoccer.com. 2 August 1998. Retrieved 27 July 2023.