Giovanni Montesdeoca (born March 28, 1998) is an American

soccer Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a team sport played between two teams of 11 players who primarily use their feet to propel the ball around a rectangular field called a pitch. The objective of the game is ...

player who plays as a

forward Forward is a relative direction, the opposite of backward. Forward may also refer to: People * Forward (surname) Sports * Forward (association football) * Forward (basketball), including: ** Point forward ** Power forward (basketball) ** Sm ...

Career

Youth

Montesdeoca joined the

FC Dallas FC Dallas is an American professional Association football, soccer club based in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex. The club competes as a member of the Western Conference (MLS), Western Conference in Major League Soccer (MLS). The franchise be ...

academy in 2014, where he played until 2016. Giovanni while with FC Dallas Academy scored 27 goals in his first season with FC Dallas, and help to lead the team to two USSDA National Championship.

College

In 2016, Montesdeoca attended the

University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United States ...

to play

college soccer College soccer is played by teams composed of soccer players who are enrolled in colleges and universities. It is very prominent in United States, Japan, South Korea, Canada, and as well as in South Africa and the Philippines. The United Kingd ...

. He didn't appear for North Carolina in 2016, starting his freshman season the next year. He missed the 2019 season due to an ACL injury and only took part in a shortened season due to the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identif ...

. During his time with the Tar Heels, he made 37 appearances, scoring 13 goals and tallying 6 assists.

Amateur

Whilst at college, Montesdeoca appeared in the

USL PDL USL League Two (USL2), formerly the Premier Development League (PDL), is a semi-professional developmental soccer league sponsored by United Soccer Leagues in the United States and Canada, forming part of the United States soccer league syste ...

for

Texas United Texas United is an American soccer club that currently competes in USL League Two, the fourth tier of the American Soccer Pyramid. The club plays its home games at the John Clark Stadium. In March 2017, it was announced that the club had been gra ...

in 2017 and 2018, and in the NPSL for Denton Diablos in 2019. Montesdeoca played in the

2018 U.S. Open Cup The 2018 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup was the 105th edition of the U.S. Open Cup, a knockout cup competition in American soccer. It is the oldest ongoing competition in the United States and was contested by 97 teams from leagues in the U.S. syste ...

with

NTX Rayados The NTX Rayados are a soccer team based in Dallas,Texas that currently competes in North Texas Premier Soccer League. History NTX Rayados plays North Texas Premier Soccer Association, Division 1A since 2011. The team won the NTPSA Division 1A ...

, playing alongside his uncle José Burciaga Jr.

Professional

On January 21, 2021, Montesdeoca was selected 79th overall in the

2021 MLS SuperDraft The 2021 MLS SuperDraft was the 22nd edition of the SuperDraft conducted by Major League Soccer. The SuperDraft is held every January prior to the start of the MLS season. The 2020 SuperDraft was the first held exclusively via conference call and ...

. However, he did not sign with the club. On July 2, 2021, Montesdeoca signed with

USL Championship The USL Championship (USLC) is a professional men's soccer league in the United States that began its inaugural season in 2011. The USL is sanctioned by the United States Soccer Federation (U.S. Soccer) as a Division II league since 2017, pl ...

side

Loudoun United Loudoun United FC is an American professional soccer team based in Leesburg, Virginia. The team was founded in 2018 as the reserve team of D.C. United and made its debut in the USL Championship in 2019. History On July 18, 2018, the team was offi ...

. He debuted for the team two days later, starting in a 2–0 loss to

Hartford Athletic Hartford Athletic is an American professional soccer team based in Hartford, Connecticut. The club was founded in 2018 and started play in the USL Championship in 2019. It is the only pro soccer team in Connecticut. History On June 8, 2021, Ha ...

. Montesdeoca joined

USL League One USL League One (USL1) is a professional men's soccer league in the United States that had its inaugural season in 2019. The Division III league is operated by United Soccer League, the same group that operates the Division II USL Championshi ...

club

Union Omaha Union Omaha Soccer Club is an American professional association football, soccer team based in Omaha, Nebraska. In 2020, the team made its debut in USL League One (USL1). History In 2019, USL1 awarded a franchise to Alliance Omaha Soccer ...

on February 10, 2022.

Personal

Montesdeoca is the nephew of former professional soccer player José Burciaga Jr., who played for

Kansas City Wizards Sporting Kansas City, often shortened to Sporting KC, is an American men's professional soccer club based in the Kansas City metropolitan area. The administrative offices are located in Downtown Kansas City, Missouri, and the team clubhouse and ...

and

Colorado Rapids The Colorado Rapids are an American professional soccer club based in the Denver metropolitan area. The Rapids compete in Major League Soccer (MLS) as a member of the Western Conference. Founded in 1995, as part of the Anschutz Corporation, la ...

MLS Major League Soccer (MLS) is a men's professional soccer league sanctioned by the United States Soccer Federation, which represents the sport's highest level in the United States. The league comprises 29 teams—26 in the U.S. and 3 in Canada ...

References

External links

North Carolina Tar Heels Profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:Montesdeoca, Giovanni 1998 births Living people American men's soccer players Men's association football forwards FC Dallas draft picks Loudoun United FC players National Premier Soccer League players North Carolina Tar Heels men's soccer players Soccer players from Dallas Union Omaha players USL Championship players USL League One players USL League Two players