Marco Ureña facts for kids
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Ureña with the San Jose Earthquakes in 2017
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| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Marcos Danilo Ureña Porras | ||
| Date of birth | 5 March 1990 | ||
| Place of birth | San José, Costa Rica | ||
| Height | 1.81 m | ||
| Playing position | Striker | ||
| Club information | |||
| Current club | Cartaginés | ||
| Number | 21 | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps† | (Gls)† |
| 2008–2010 | Alajuelense | 59 | (10) |
| 2011–2014 | Kuban Krasnodar | 31 | (0) |
| 2014 | → FC Midtjylland (loan) | 10 | (2) |
| 2015–2016 | FC Midtjylland | 19 | (3) |
| 2016–2017 | Brøndby IF | 13 | (0) |
| 2017 | San Jose Earthquakes | 25 | (5) |
| 2018 | Los Angeles FC | 18 | (1) |
| 2019–2020 | Alajuelense | 40 | (12) |
| 2020 | Gwangju FC | 8 | (0) |
| 2020–2022 | Central Coast Mariners | 48 | (12) |
| 2022– | Cartaginés | 50 | (4) |
| National team‡ | |||
| 2009 | Costa Rica U20 | 7 | (3) |
| 2009–2018 | Costa Rica | 67 | (15) |
† Appearances (Goals). |
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Marcos Danilo Ureña Porras, better known as Marco Ureña (born March 5, 1990), is a professional football player from Costa Rica. He plays as a striker for the team C.S. Cartaginés. Marco has also played for the Costa Rican national team.
Contents
Marco Ureña's Club Career
Marco Ureña was born in San José, Costa Rica. He began his football journey with Alajuelense, a top team in Costa Rica. In March 2011, he moved to Russia to play for Kuban Krasnodar in their main league.
Playing in Denmark
In August 2014, Marco joined FC Midtjylland in Denmark. He first played for them on a four-month loan. Later, on December 10, 2014, he signed a permanent deal with the club.
On July 21, 2016, Marco moved to another Danish team, Brøndby IF. This was part of a player swap deal involving Jonas Borring.
Time in Major League Soccer (MLS)
On January 27, 2017, Marco Ureña joined the MLS team San Jose Earthquakes in the United States. He scored his first goal for them on April 1, 2017, against New York City FC.
He also made his first assist for the team on April 8, 2017, helping them get a draw against Seattle Sounders FC. Marco scored a very important goal on October 22 against Minnesota United FC. This goal helped San Jose reach the 2017 MLS Cup Playoffs, which was their first time since 2012.
On December 12, 2017, a new MLS team, Los Angeles FC, chose Ureña as one of their first players. After leaving Los Angeles, Marco was picked by Chicago Fire in a special draft. However, he decided to return to his former club, Alajuelense, in Costa Rica on January 21, 2019.
Playing in Asia and Australia
On March 24, 2020, Marco Ureña moved to South Korea. He joined Gwangju FC in the K League, which is South Korea's top football league.
Later that year, on December 22, 2020, Marco signed with the Central Coast Mariners in Australia. He played for them in the A-League, Australia's main football competition.
Marco Ureña's International Career
Marco Ureña has also played for his home country, Costa Rica, on the international stage.
Youth National Team
He played in the 2009 FIFA U-20 World Cup for the Costa Rica U20 team. His team finished in 4th place in that tournament. Marco scored three goals during the competition.
Senior National Team
In 2009, Marco Ureña made his first appearance for the senior Costa Rica national football team. This was in a match against Venezuela.
World Cup Appearances
In June 2014, Marco was chosen to be part of Costa Rica's team for the 2014 FIFA World Cup. In their very first game, he scored the third goal for Costa Rica in a big 3–1 win against Uruguay. This was a memorable moment for the team.
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At the 2017 CONCACAF Gold Cup, Marco scored the winning goal for Costa Rica in their first match. They won 1–0 against Honduras. This great performance earned him the "Man of the Match" award from CONCACAF.
On September 1, 2017, Marco Ureña scored two goals in a very important World Cup qualifying game against the United States. A few days later, on September 5, 2017, he scored another goal against Mexico. This was his first goal at the Estadio Nacional de Costa Rica.
In May 2018, he was again selected for Costa Rica's 23-player squad for the 2018 FIFA World Cup in Russia. This was his last time playing for the national team. Later, Marco explained that he stopped being called up due to disagreements he had with some players and staff from the Costa Rican Football Federation. He mentioned that only one coach, Rónald González, would call him to play.
Career Statistics
These tables show how many games Marco Ureña has played and how many goals he has scored for different clubs and for his national team.
Club Performance
| Club performance | League | Cup | Continental | Total | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | Club | Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals |
| 2011–12 | Kuban Krasnodar | Russian Premier League | 20 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | 21 | 0 | |
| 2012–13 | 6 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | 7 | 0 | |||
| 2013–14 | 5 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 7 | 0 | ||
| 2014–15 | FC Midtjylland | Danish Superliga | 21 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 22 | 4 |
| 2015–16 | 8 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 7 | 0 | 16 | 2 | ||
| 2016–17 | Brøndby IF | Danish Superliga | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2017 | San Jose Earthquakes | Major League Soccer | 25 | 5 | 0 | 0 | — | 25 | 5 | |
| 2018 | Los Angeles FC | Major League Soccer | 9 | 1 | 1 | 1 | — | 10 | 2 | |
| 2018–19 | Alajuelense | Liga FPD | 9 | 0 | — | — | 9 | 0 | ||
| 2019–20 | 31 | 12 | — | — | 31 | 12 | ||||
| 2020 | Gwangju | K League 1 | 8 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | 9 | 0 | |
| 2020–21 | Central Coast Mariners | A-League | 22 | 5 | — | — | 22 | 5 | ||
| 2021–22 | A-League Men | 26 | 7 | 4 | 1 | — | 30 | 8 | ||
| Total | Russia | 31 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 36 | 0 | |
| Denmark | 29 | 5 | 2 | 1 | 7 | 0 | 38 | 6 | ||
| United States | 34 | 6 | 1 | 1 | — | 35 | 7 | |||
| Costa Rica | 40 | 12 | — | — | 40 | 12 | ||||
| South Korea | 8 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | 9 | 0 | |||
| Australia | 48 | 12 | 4 | 1 | — | 52 | 13 | |||
| Career total | 190 | 35 | 11 | 3 | 9 | 0 | 210 | 38 | ||
International Performance
| Costa Rica | ||
|---|---|---|
| Year | Apps | Goals |
| 2009 | 1 | 0 |
| 2010 | 5 | 0 |
| 2011 | 13 | 7 |
| 2012 | 0 | 0 |
| 2013 | 0 | 0 |
| 2014 | 11 | 2 |
| 2015 | 8 | 1 |
| 2016 | 7 | 0 |
| 2017 | 15 | 4 |
| 2018 | 6 | 1 |
| 2019 | 0 | 0 |
| 2020 | 1 | 0 |
| Total | 67 | 15 |
International Goals Scored
- Scores and results list Costa Rica's goal tally first.
| No. | Date | Venue | Opponent | Score | Result | Competition |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | 16 January 2011 | Estadio Rommel Fernández, Panama City, Panama |  Panama |
1–0 | 2–0 | 2011 Copa Centroamericana |
| 2. | 2–0 | |||||
| 3. | 23 January 2011 |  Honduras |
1–2 | 1–2 | ||
| 4. | 9 February 2011 | Estadio Olímpico Luis Ramos, Barcelona, Venezuela |  Venezuela |
2–1 | 2–2 | Friendly |
| 5. | 5 June 2011 | Cowboys Stadium, Arlington, United States |  Cuba |
1–0 | 5–0 | 2011 CONCACAF Gold Cup |
| 6. | 3–0 | |||||
| 7. | 12 June 2011 | Soldier Field, Chicago, United States |  Mexico |
1–4 | 1–4 | |
| 8. | 14 June 2014 | Castelão, Fortaleza, Brazil |  Uruguay |
3–1 | 3–1 | 2014 FIFA World Cup |
| 9. | 3 September 2014 | Robert F. Kennedy Memorial Stadium, Washington, D.C., United States |  Nicaragua |
2–0 | 3–0 | 2014 Copa Centroamericana |
| 10. | 17 November 2015 | Estadio Rommel Fernández, Panama City, Panama | Panama |
2–0 | 2–1 | 2018 FIFA World Cup qualification |
| 11. | 7 July 2017 | Red Bull Arena, Harrison, United States | Honduras |
1–0 | 1–0 | 2017 CONCACAF Gold Cup |
| 12. | 1 September 2017 |  United States |
1–0 | 2–0 | 2018 FIFA World Cup qualification | |
| 13. | 2–0 | |||||
| 14. | 5 September 2017 | Estadio Nacional de Costa Rica, San José, Costa Rica | Mexico |
1–1 | 1–1 | |
| 15. | 23 March 2018 | Hampden Park, Glasgow, Scotland |  Scotland |
1–0 | 1–0 | Friendly |
Personal Life
Marco Ureña got married to Ana Paula Aguilar in May 2014.
Honours and Achievements
Marco Ureña has won several titles and awards during his football career:
Alajuelense
- Costa Rican Championship: Invierno 2010
Midtjylland
- Danish Superliga: 2014–15
Cartaginés
- Costa Rican Cup: 2022
Costa Rica U20
- CONCACAF U-20 Championship: 2009
Individual Awards
- Copa Centroamericana Golden Boot: 2011
See also
In Spanish: Marco Ureña para niños
