Julian's Biography
| Julián de Guzmán | ||
| Personal information | ||
|---|---|---|
| Date of birth | March 25, 1981 | |
| Place of birth | Toronto, Canada | |
| Height | 1.69 m (5 ft 6+1⁄2 in) | |
| Playing position | Defensive Midfielder | |
| Club information | ||
| Current club | Toronto FC / Canada | |
| Number | 6 | |
| Youth clubs | ||
| 1994-1997 1998-2000 | North Scarborough Ol. Marseille II - 22 (3) | |
| Senior clubs1 | ||
| Years | Club | App (Gls)* |
| 2000-2001 2000-2001 2001–2002 2002–2003 2003–2004 2004–2005 2005-2006 2006-2007 2007-2008 2008-2009 2009-? | FC Saarbrücken II FC Saarbrücken FC Saarbrücken Hannover 96 Hannover 96 Hannover 96 RC Deportivo RC Deportivo RC Deportivo RC Deportivo Toronto FC | 30 (5) 2 (0) 19 (0) 18 (0) 30 (2) 30 (0) 22 (1) 20 (0) 34 (0) 20 (0)* - (-) |
| National team2 | ||
| 2002-present | Canada | 25 (3) |
| 1 Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of May 10, 2006. 2 National team caps and goals correct as of September 28, 2007. * Appearances (Goals) | ||
Julián de Guzmán (b. March 25, 1981, Toronto, Ontario) is a Canadian professional football (soccer) player of Jamaican and Filipino descent.
In 2005 he signed for Deportivo de La Coruña in the First Division of La Liga of Spain, becoming the first Canadian to play in Spain's La Liga. In 2009, he returned home, signing for Toronto FC, being the first TFC's Designated Player.
The 169-cm, 68-kg de Guzmán, a defensive midfielder, was discovered by representatives of Olympique Marseille while playing for the North Scarborough youth soccer club in Toronto. After playing on the Olympique reserves, de Guzmán was a first-team regular in the 1. FC Saarbrücken in the German Second Bundesliga in 2001/02. In 2002 he joined newly promoted Hannover 96, thus becoming only the second Canadian to play in the German First Bundesliga. He played three seasons for Hannover.
For the Canadian national team, Julian de Guzmán has 22 caps to date. Younger brother Jonathan de Guzmán also plays professional football for Netherlands club Feyenoord Rotterdam. In Canada's opening match of the 2007 CONCACAF Gold Cup he scored two goals to help defeat Costa Rica 2-1. de Guzmán is considered by many sport journalists to be one of Canada's best players if not the best.
After the conclusion of the 2007 CONCACAF Gold Cup de Guzmán was named tournament MVP.
