| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | José Pedro Fuenzalida Gana | ||
| Date of birth | February 22, 1985 | ||
| Place of birth | Santiago, Chile | ||
| Height | 1.70 m (5 ft 7 in) | ||
| Playing position | Midfielder | ||
| Club information | |||
| Current club | Colo-Colo | ||
| Number | 13 | ||
| Youth career | |||
| 1996–2003 | Universidad Católica | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps† | (Gls)† |
| 2004–2007 | Universidad Católica | 84 | (9) |
| 2008– | Colo-Colo | 124 | (24) |
| 2008–2009 | → O'Higgins (loan) | 44 | (13) |
| National team | |||
| 2008– | Chile | 18 | (1) |
| * Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only. † Appearances (Goals). | |||
José Pedro Fuenzalida Gana (born February 22, 1985, in Chile) is a Chilean footballer also known as "Chapita". Fuenzalida is a midfielder, who currently plays for Colo-Colo.
Career
He went through the Universidad Católica's youth system, until 2005 when he made his professional debut with the adult squad at the age of 19. In the summer of 2007 at the age of 22, Fuenzalida retired in order to concentrate on his school work. Therefore he did not play in the 2007 Chilean Clausura tournament. In January 2008, Fuenzalida returned to professional football and was expected to play for his team of always Universidad Católica. However in a surprise move he signed for archrival Colo-Colo, which angered Universidad Católica's management and caused them to ask for $210,000 for the signing ($30,000 for each year Fuenzalida was in the youth ranks).
Fuenzalida was an integral part of the Chilean squad at 2005 South American Youth Championship inColombia, which qualified for the 2005 FIFA World Youth Championship in the Netherlands. During the FIFA World Youth Championship, Fuenzalida scored two goals in Chile's 7–0 victory over Honduras.[1]
Fuenzalida scored two goals the prestigious U-23 2008 Toulon Tournament, where he scored one goal in the 5–3 win against France and another in the 2-0 win against the Netherlands. He then went on to start in the 2-0 win against Japan. He played in all five of the team's games in the tournament playing many different positions.
For the 2008 Clausura tournament, Jose Pedro Fuenzalida was loaned to the O'Higgins, most likely because Colo Colo had too many players and had to send some players in a loan, even players as good and talented as Fuenzalida. Fuenzalida has already scored a pair of goals for O'Higgins, and has made some good plays for the team
