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 | 1.76 m (5 ft 9 in) | ||
| Position(s) | Striker | ||
| Team information | |||
|
Current team
|
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) |
| International career‡ | |||
| 2009 | Costa Rica U20 | 7 | (3) |
| 2009–2018 | Costa Rica | 67 | (15) |
| *Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 3 July 2024 ‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 1 February 2020 |
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Marcos Danilo Ureña Porras, known as Marco Ureña, is a professional football player from Costa Rica. He was born on March 5, 1990. Marco plays as a striker, which means he focuses on scoring goals. He currently plays for C.S. Cartaginés and has also been a key player for the Costa Rica national football team.
Contents
Marco's Club Journey
Marco Ureña started his football career in his home country, Costa Rica. He played for a team called Alajuelense.
Playing in Europe
In 2011, Marco moved to Europe to play for FC Kuban Krasnodar in Russia. Later, in 2014, he joined FC Midtjylland in Denmark. He first played for them on a loan, and then his move became permanent. In 2016, he moved to another Danish team, Brøndby IF.
Adventures in Major League Soccer
In 2017, Marco Ureña joined San Jose Earthquakes, a team in Major League Soccer (MLS) in the United States. He scored his first MLS goal against New York City FC. He also helped his team reach the playoffs for the first time since 2012 by scoring a winning goal against Minnesota United FC.
In 2017, a new MLS team, Los Angeles FC, chose Marco to join their squad. After playing for Los Angeles, Marco returned to his former club, Alajuelense, in Costa Rica in 2019.
Playing in Asia and Australia
In 2020, Marco Ureña moved to South Korea to play for Gwangju FC in the K League. Later that year, he signed with the Central Coast Mariners in Australia's A-League. He played for them until 2022.
Back to Costa Rica
Since 2022, Marco has been playing for C.S. Cartaginés in Costa Rica.
Marco's International Career
Marco Ureña has proudly represented Costa Rica in many international football matches.
Playing for the Youth Team
In 2009, Marco played for the Costa Rica U20 team in the 2009 FIFA U-20 World Cup. He scored three goals in that tournament, and his team finished in fourth place.
Playing for the Senior National Team
Marco made his debut for the main Costa Rica national football team in 2009.
World Cup Appearances
- 2014 FIFA World Cup: In 2014, Marco was part of Costa Rica's team for the 2014 FIFA World Cup. In their first match, he scored a goal against Uruguay, helping Costa Rica win 3-1.
- 2018 FIFA World Cup: Marco was also selected for the 2018 FIFA World Cup team that played in Russia.
Key Goals and Moments
- 2017 CONCACAF Gold Cup: In 2017, he scored the winning goal for Costa Rica against Honduras in the 2017 CONCACAF Gold Cup. This performance earned him the "Man of the Match" award.
- World Cup Qualifiers: On September 1, 2017, Marco scored two goals against the United States in a crucial World Cup qualifying match. A few days later, he scored another important goal against Mexico to tie the game.
Marco's last time playing for the Costa Rica national team was in 2018. He later shared that he faced some challenges with players and staff within the football federation, which led to him not being called up for the team anymore.
Career Statistics
Here's a look at Marco Ureña's playing record for his clubs and the national team.
Club Performance
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| 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
- 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 is married to Ana Paula Aguilar. They got married in May 2014.
Honors and Achievements
Marco Ureña has won several championships and awards throughout his career:
- With Alajuelense:
* Costa Rican Championship: Invierno 2010
- With Midtjylland:
* Danish Superliga: 2014–15
- With Cartaginés:
* Costa Rican Cup: 2022
- With Costa Rica U20:
* CONCACAF U-20 Championship: 2009
- Individual Award:
* Copa Centroamericana Golden Boot: 2011 (This means he was the top scorer in the tournament!)
See also
In Spanish: Marco Ureña para niños
