 | |||
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Abel Enrique Aguilar Tapias | ||
| Date of birth | 6 January 1985 | ||
| Place of birth | Bogotá, Colombia | ||
| Height | 1.85 m (6 ft 1 in) | ||
| Playing position | Midfielder | ||
| Club information | |||
| Current club | Toulouse | ||
| Number | 21 | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps† | (Gls)† |
| 2002–2005 | Deportivo Cali | 102 | (3) |
| 2005–2010 | Udinese | 2 | (0) |
| 2005 | → Ascoli (loan) | 0 | (0) |
| 2007–2008 | → Xerez (loan) | 48 | (3) |
| 2008–2009 | → Hércules (loan) | 34 | (9) |
| 2009–2010 | → Zaragoza (loan) | 27 | (4) |
| 2010–2013 | Hércules | 73 | (4) |
| 2012–2013 | → Deportivo La Coruña (loan) | 28 | (3) |
| 2013– | Toulouse | 3 | (0) |
| National team‡ | |||
| 2004– | Colombia | 43 | (6) |
| * Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 6 October 2013.
† Appearances (Goals).
‡ National team caps and goals correct as of 11 October 2013 | |||
Abel Enrique Aguilar Tapias (born 6 January 1985 in Bogotá) is a Colombian professionalfootballer who plays for Toulouse FC in France, as a central midfielder.
Club career
Italy
Serie A side Udinese Calcio bought Aguilar's rights in the summer of 2005, from local Deportivo Cali, and loaned him immediately to fellow league team Ascoli Calcio 1898 due to the excess of foreign players in the roster. However, after some problems in the arrival of the transfer, the player missed pre-season training with the club, only joining it a month into the season.
Aguilar returned to Udinese in January 2006, after having never played for Ascoli, but received few playing opportunities in the following months (one league match, and the UEFA Cup 0–1 loss atRC Lens, both incomplete).
Spain
For the following three years, Aguilar was also loaned, always in the Spanish second division. He started out in January 2007 at Xerez CD,[1] and continued at the club until the end of the 2007–08 season, being first-choice.
In the 2008–09 campaign Aguilar represented Hércules CF, being a permanent fixture as theAlicante side fell three points short of a return to La Liga. On 24 July 2009 he was again loaned, now to Real Zaragoza, which in turn promoted to the top flight;[2] he made his debut in the competition on 29 August, starting and playing 71 minutes in a 1–0 home win against CD Tenerife.[3]
Aguilar was released by Udinese in July 2010, immediately signing a four-year contract with former club Hércules, returned to the top division after an absence of 13 years.[4]
International career
Aguilar was the captain of the Colombian national team at U17 and U20 levels. He rose to stardom as leader of the latter side that finished third at the 2003 FIFA World Youth Championship.
Aguilar was then promoted to the senior side for the 2004 Copa América held in Peru. There, he scored two goals, helping his country to the semifinals.[5]
Subsequently, Aguilar again moved to the under-20 (again as captain), helping them to a first-place finish at the 2005 South American Youth Cup, with the consequent qualification for the World Championship of the category in the Netherlands. After helping the national team to three group stage wins, he could not prevent a round-of-16 ousting at the ends of Argentina (1–2).
