Andrés Chitiva Espinoza (born August 13, 1979) is a Colombian former professional

footballer A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby le ...

. He was a pacy left winger who possessed great speed, dribbling skills and crossing ability.

Club career

Chitiva started his top-flight career in 1997 playing for

Millonarios Millonarios Fútbol Club is a professional Colombian football team based in Bogotá, that currently plays in the Categoría Primera A. They play their home games at the El Campín stadium. Millonarios was initially created in 1937 by students f ...

in his hometown of

Bogotá Bogotá (, also , , ), officially Bogotá, Distrito Capital, abbreviated Bogotá, D.C., and formerly known as Santa Fe de Bogotá (; ) during the Spanish period and between 1991 and 2000, is the capital city of Colombia, and one of the larges ...

in Colombia. In 2001, Chitiva was signed by Mexico's

Pachuca Pachuca (; ote, Nju̱nthe), formally known as Pachuca de Soto, is the capital and largest city of the Mexican state of Hidalgo. It is located in the south-central part of the state. Pachuca de Soto is also the name of the municipality of whic ...

, at the recommendation of the team's Colombian goalkeeper and captain

Miguel Calero Miguel Ángel Calero Rodríguez (14 April 1971 – 4 December 2012) was a Colombian professional association football, footballer who played as a goalkeeper (association football), goalkeeper. He played 50 times for the Colombia national footba ...

. Chitiva has been ever present in the Pachuca side ever since and a driving force in the team's four domestic Mexican titles (2001, 2003, 2006, 2007) since his arrival. Chitiva's ability to deliver the killer cross and finish in the box with timely runs have made him a hero to the Pachuca fans. Most recently, Chitiva helped lead Pachuca to its historic capture of the South American Cup

Copa Sudamericana The CONMEBOL Sudamericana, named as ''Copa Sudamericana'' (; pt, Copa Sul-Americana ), is an annual international club football competition organized by CONMEBOL since 2002. It is the second-most prestigious club competition in South American ...

- the first intercontinental title victory for a Mexican side. In July 2011 he returned to Pachuca for the Apertura 2011 to finally retire as one of the most notable players in Pachuca's history.

International career

Chitiva applied and received dual citizenship in Mexico so that Pachuca no longer has to use a foreigner spot for him in their roster. Chitiva remains, however, fiercely loyal to his Colombian heritage and has stated his desire to play for his nation's full national team on numerous occasions. Former Colombian coach, Jorge Luis Pinto, capped the Pachuca player for two friendly matches against Switzerland and Paraguay in late March 2007. Although he entered as a substitute late in the Switzerland game, he helped finish the Colombian win with a final 3rd goal. He was also a crucial element in the 2–0 defeat against Paraguay three days later on March 28, 2007.

Honours

;Pachuca * '' Mexican Championship'' - Invierno 2001, Apertura 2003, Clausura 2006, Clausura 2007 *

CONCACAF Champions' Cup The CONCACAF Champions League, known officially as the Scotiabank CONCACAF Champions League for sponsorship reasons, is an annual continental club football competition organized by CONCACAF. The tournament is contested by clubs from North Ameri ...

: 2002, 2007, 2008 * Copa Nissan Sudamericana: 2006

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Chitiva, Andres 1979 births Living people Colombian men's footballers Mexican men's footballers Millonarios F.C. players C.F. Pachuca players Men's association football midfielders Colombia men's international footballers Colombian emigrants to Mexico Naturalized citizens of Mexico 2000 CONCACAF Gold Cup players 2007 Copa América players Indios de Ciudad Juárez footballers Club América footballers Atlas F.C. footballers C.D. Veracruz footballers Categoría Primera A players Liga MX players Expatriate men's footballers in Mexico Footballers from Bogotá Copa Sudamericana-winning players