Elton David Wallace John (born 8 April 1987) is a

Trinidadian Trinidadians and Tobagonians, colloquially known as Trinis or Trinbagonians, are the people who are identified with the country of Trinidad and Tobago. The country is home to people of many different national, ethnic and religious origins. As a ...

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 ...

who plays as a

midfielder A midfielder is an outfield position in association football. Midfielders may play an exclusively defensive role, breaking up attacks, and are in that case known as defensive midfielders. As central midfielders often go across boundarie ...

Club career

San Juan Jabloteh

John began his professional football career with

San Juan Jabloteh San Juan Jabloteh Football Club is a football club located in San Juan, Trinidad and Tobago that plays in the country's TT Pro League. The team plays its home games in Hasely Crawford Stadium in Mucurapo, Trinidad. History The club was founded ...

. John won his first two

TT Pro League The TT Pro League (formerly known as the Professional Football League) is the Trinidad and Tobago professional league for association football clubs. It is the country's primary football competition and serves as the top division in the Trinidad ...

titles in back-to-back seasons with Jabloteh in 2007 and

2008 File:2008 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Lehman Brothers went bankrupt following the Subprime mortgage crisis; Cyclone Nargis killed more than 138,000 in Myanmar; A scene from the opening ceremony of the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing; ...

. He also helped the club win the

2008 Trinidad and Tobago Classic The 2008 Trinidad and Tobago Classic was the fourth season of the ''TOYOTA Classic'', which is a knockout tournament competition for teams in the TT Pro League and the National Super League. The tournament took place at the conclusion of the 2008 ...

. The following season, John played every minute in all four games for Jabloteh in the

2009 CFU Club Championship The 2009 CFU Club Championship was the 11th edition of the CFU Club Championship, the annual international club football competition in the Caribbean region, held amongst clubs whose football associations are affiliated with the Caribbean Football ...

and scored two goals, helping the club earn third place and qualify for the

2009–10 CONCACAF Champions League The 2009–10 CONCACAF Champions League was the second edition of the CONCACAF Champions League under its current format, and overall the 45th edition of the premier football club competition organized by CONCACAF, the regional governing body of ...

. John again played every minute of every match for Jabloteh in Champions League play that year. He helped the club win its preliminary round play-off against Panamanian side

San Francisco San Francisco (; Spanish for " Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the fourth most populous in California and 17th ...

and then played the first four matches of the group stage against Marathón,

Toluca Toluca , officially Toluca de Lerdo , is the state capital of the State of Mexico as well as the seat of the Municipality of Toluca. With a population of 910,608 as of the 2020 census, Toluca is the fifth most populous city in Mexico. The city f ...

and twice against

FC Dallas FC Dallas is an American professional soccer club based in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex. The club competes as a member of the Western Conference in Major League Soccer (MLS). The franchise began play in 1996 as a charter club of the le ...

before his contract with Jabloteh expired at the end of the 2009 season.

Ma Pau

On 4 January 2010, John signed with Ma Pau ahead of the 2010–11 season.

Second spell at Jabloteh

In 2011, John rejoined Jabloteh for the 2011–12 season.

North East Stars

In the 2012–13 season, John played for

North East Stars Athletic Club Port of Spain (previously known as North East Stars) is a Trinidad and Tobago professional football club, based in Port of Spain, Trinidad, that plays in the TT Pro League. The team plays its home games at the Hasely Crawford Stad ...

and helped the club win the

2012 Trinidad and Tobago Classic The 2012 Trinidad and Tobago Classic was the eighth season of the ''TOYOTA Classic'', which is a knockout tournament competition for teams in Trinidad and Tobago's TT Pro League and the National Super League. The tournament began on 23 November wi ...

Central FC

On 3 September 2013, John signed with

Central FC Central Football Club is a Trinidad and Tobago professional football club, based in California, that plays in the TT Pro League. Founded in 2012, the ''Sharks'' were the 21st team to join the Pro League and plays its home matches in Ato Boldon S ...

. In October 2013 he played in the final of the

Trinidad and Tobago League Cup The Trinidad and Tobago League Cup, or commonly known as the First Citizens Cup for sponsorship reasons, is the League Cup style football competition open for Trinidad and Tobago teams competing in the country's TT Pro League. Similar to the FA Tr ...

, a 2–1 win for Central FC over Defence Force and the club's first League Cup title. In April 2014 he helped Central win the 2014

Trinidad and Tobago Goal Shield The Trinidad and Tobago Goal Shield, or commonly known as the Lucozade Sport Goal Shield for sponsorship reasons, is a knockout tournament competition for football teams competing in the TT Pro League of Trinidad and Tobago. Similar to the First C ...

. At the end of the 2013–14 season he was voted Central FC's Supporters' Player of the Year.

Visé

In August 2014, John transferred to

Belgian Third Division The Belgian Third Division ( nl, Derde klasse, french: Division III) was the third highest level in Belgian football. It had two leagues of 18 teams each ( A and B) at the same level. This competition, originally known as the Belgian Promotion ...

club

Visé Visé (; nl, Wezet, ; wa, Vizé) is a city and municipality of Wallonia, located on the river Meuse in the province of Liège, Belgium. The municipality consists of the following districts: Argenteau, Cheratte, Lanaye, Lixhe, Richelle ...

for an undisclosed fee.

Second spell at Central FC

John left Visé in Fall 2014 and returned to Central FC, helping the club win its first

title. In May 2015, he scored a penalty in a shoot-out in the semi-finals of the

2015 CFU Club Championship The 2015 CFU Club Championship was the 17th edition of CFU Club Championship, the annual international club football competition in the Caribbean region, held amongst clubs whose football associations are affiliated with the Caribbean Football Uni ...

against Haitian side

Don Bosco John Melchior Bosco ( it, Giovanni Melchiorre Bosco; pms, Gioann Melchior Bòsch; 16 August 181531 January 1888), popularly known as Don Bosco , was an Italian Catholic priest, educator, writer and saint of the 19th century. While working ...

, helping Central earn a spot in the final. Central went on to win the final against Trinidadian rivals

W Connection W Connection Football Club is a football club from Trinidad and Tobago, which currently plays in the TT Pro League. The club plays its home games at the Manny Ramjohn Stadium in Marabella. The club's offices are based at the Point Lisas Industria ...

, earning John his first international title. In August 2015, John's transfer to Visé became part of a scandal involving Central FC founders Brent Sancho and Kevin Harrison. Leaked emails revealed that Harrison had allegedly requested that a portion of the fees for the transfers of John and other Central FC players be wired directly to himself and Sancho as a "personal payment." A Visé official later claimed that this request was rebuffed. Sancho left the club in February 2015 when he was appointed Trinidad and Tobago's Minister for Sport and subsequently appointed Harrison as his advisor. In September 2015, after Harrison appeared in the Central FC dressing room to congratulate the players for their victory in the 2015 Charity Shield, John and 23 other Central FC players signed a petition addressed to the club's management to voice their displeasure with Harrison's continued presence at the club in light of the transfer fee scandal and the pair's alleged pocketing of players' performance bonuses after the 2014–15 season. John made his return to the Champions League that season, playing every minute of all four of Central FC's matches in the

group stage A tournament is a competition involving at least three competitors, all participating in a sport or game. More specifically, the term may be used in either of two overlapping senses: # One or more competitions held at a single venue and concen ...

against LA Galaxy and

Comunicaciones Comunicaciones Fútbol Club S.A., better known as Comunicaciones F.C. or Comunicaciones, are a football club based in Guatemala City. They compete in the Liga Nacional, the top tier of Guatemalan football. The most popular and successful footba ...

. Central failed to qualify for the knockout round, but finished second in the group after earning a win against Comunicaciones and a draw against LA Galaxy at home despite losing both away matches. In addition to the Charity Shield title, John helped Central FC win the TT Pro League and the CFU Club Championship, both for the second year in a row. On 17 August 2016, John played 90 minutes for Central FC against Sporting Kansas City in the Champions League group stage.

Second spell at Ma Pau

In the 2016–17 season, John played for Ma Pau Stars.

Second spell at NE Stars

2017 File:2017 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: The War Against ISIS at the Battle of Mosul (2016-2017); aftermath of the Manchester Arena bombing; The Solar eclipse of August 21, 2017 ("Great American Eclipse"); North Korea tests a s ...

, John won his fifth

title with

Queen's Park

In 2018, John played for TT Super League side Queen's Park, scoring three goals in eight appearances.

Third spell at Jabloteh

In August 2018, John returned for a third spell with

and was named captain of his first club.

HFX Wanderers

John signed with

Canadian Premier League The Canadian Premier League (CPL or CanPL; french: Première ligue canadienne, links=no) is a professional men's soccer league in Canada. At the top of the Canadian soccer league system, it is the country's primary national soccer league compe ...

club HFX Wanderers on 10 January 2019. On 14 December 2019, the club announced that John would not be returning for the 2020 season.

International career

John made his Trinidad and Tobago debut on 29 February 2012, in a 4–0 win against Antigua and Barbuda.

Personal life

John was born in

Arima Arima, officially The Royal Chartered Borough of Arima is the easternmost and second largest in area of the three boroughs of Trinidad and Tobago. It is geographically adjacent to Sangre Grande and Arouca at the south central foothills of th ...

Trinidad Trinidad is the larger and more populous of the two major islands of Trinidad and Tobago. The island lies off the northeastern coast of Venezuela and sits on the continental shelf of South America. It is often referred to as the southernmos ...

. He was raised by his grandmother, as his father was absent and his mother moved away when he was young. He is a cousin of former Trinidad and Tobago international footballer

Jason Marcano Jason Marcano (30 December 1983 – 30 May 2019) was a Trinidad and Tobago international footballer who played as a forward. Personal life Marcano was born to parents Maria John and Steve Marcano, the only boy with five sisters. He started his f ...

, with whom he played at

. In May 2018, John and seven other Trinidadian professional footballers created the Can Bou Play Foundation, an outreach program which provides mentorship and football education opportunities to youth in Trinidad and Tobago.

Honours

San Juan Jabloteh *

: 2007,

Trinidad and Tobago Classic The Trinidad and Tobago Classic, or commonly known as the TOYOTA Classic, is a knockout tournament for teams in Trinidad and Tobago's TT Pro League and National Super League. The football competition began in 2005, with TOYOTA as the primary spo ...

North East Stars *TT Pro League:

*Trinidad and Tobago Classic:

2012 File:2012 Events Collage V3.png, From left, clockwise: The passenger cruise ship Costa Concordia lies capsized after the Costa Concordia disaster; Damage to Casino Pier in Seaside Heights, New Jersey as a result of Hurricane Sandy; People gat ...

Central FC *TT Pro League: 2014–15, 2015–16 * CFU Club Championship: 2015,

2016 File:2016 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Bombed-out buildings in Ankara following the 2016 Turkish coup d'état attempt; the Impeachment of Dilma Rousseff, impeachment trial of Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff; Damaged houses duri ...

: 2013 *

2014 File:2014 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Stocking up supplies and personal protective equipment (PPE) for the Western African Ebola virus epidemic; Citizens examining the ruins after the Chibok schoolgirls kidnapping; Bundles of wat ...

Trinidad and Tobago Charity Shield The Trinidad and Tobago Charity Shield is the country's annual football match contested between the champions of the previous TT Pro League season and the holders of the Pro Bowl. If the Pro League champions also won the Pro Bowl, then the league ...

: 2015 Individual *

Supporters' Player of the Year: 2013–14

References

External links

* *
Soca Warriors profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:John, Elton 1987 births Living people Men's association football midfielders Trinidad and Tobago men's footballers Sportspeople from Arima Trinidad and Tobago expatriate men's footballers Expatriate men's footballers in Belgium Trinidad and Tobago expatriate sportspeople in Belgium Expatriate men's soccer players in Canada Trinidad and Tobago expatriate sportspeople in Canada San Juan Jabloteh F.C. players Ma Pau Stars S.C. players AC Port of Spain players Central F.C. players C.S. Visé players HFX Wanderers FC players TT Pro League players Belgian Third Division players TT Super League players Canadian Premier League players Trinidad and Tobago men's international footballers