Miguel Ángel Borja Hernández (born 26 January 1993) is a Colombian 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 lea ...

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) ** Smal ...

for

Argentine Primera División The Primera División (; ), known officially as Liga Profesional de Fútbol, or Torneo Betano for sponsorship reasons, is a professional association football league in Argentina and the highest level of the Argentine football league system. Organ ...

club River Plate and the Colombia national team. Debuting with

Deportivo Cali Asociación Deportivo Cali, best known as Deportivo Cali, is a Colombian sports club based in Cali, most notable for its football team, which currently competes in the Categoría Primera A. Deportivo Cali is one of the most successful football t ...

in 2011, he transferred to

Cúcuta Deportivo Cúcuta Deportivo Fútbol Club S. A. (Spanish ), commonly referred to as Cúcuta Deportivo, is a professional Colombian football club from the city of Cúcuta. Founded on 10 September 1924, it is one of the oldest active football clubs in the co ...

later that year, and then moved to

Cortuluá Cortuluá, officially named Cortuluá Fútbol Club S. A. and previously known as Corporación Club Deportivo Tuluá for short, was a Colombian football club from Tuluá, Valle del Cauca Department. It was founded in 1967 and last played in Categ ...

the following year. While remaining contracted to

, in 2013, Borja was loaned to

La Equidad Club Deportivo La Equidad, also known as La Equidad, is a professional Colombian football team based in Bogotá, that currently plays in the Categoría Primera A. They play their home games at the Metropolitano de Techo stadium. History La Equid ...

before joining

Serie A The Serie A (), officially known as Serie A Enilive in Italy and Serie A Made in Italy abroad for sponsorship reasons, is a professional association football league in Italy and the highest tier of the Italian football league system. Establish ...

club

Livorno Livorno () is a port city on the Ligurian Sea on the western coast of the Tuscany region of Italy. It is the capital of the Province of Livorno, having a population of 152,916 residents as of 2025. It is traditionally known in English as Leghorn ...

for his first experience abroad, followed by a loan to Argentine side Olimpo in 2014. He returned to Colombia in 2015, going on loan to Santa Fe, where he was part of the squad that won both the

Superliga Colombiana The Superliga Colombiana (''Colombian Superleague''), officially known as Superliga BetPlay Dimayor due to sponsorship by online betting company BetPlay, is an official competition contested between the winners of the Apertura and Finalización t ...

and the

Copa Sudamericana The CONMEBOL Sudamericana, also known as Copa Sudamericana (; ), is an annual international club football competition organized by CONMEBOL, the governing body of football in South America, since 2002. It is the second-most prestigious club com ...

. He eventually returned to

in 2016, where he had his breakthrough season, emerging as the top scorer in the league during the

Apertura The ' () and ' () tournaments is a split season format for Spanish-speaking sports leagues. It is a relatively recent innovation for many Latin American football leagues in which the traditional association football season from August to May is ...

, netting 19 goals, which propelled the team to the semi-finals. In June of that year, he transferred to Colombian giants

Atlético Nacional Atlético Nacional S. A., best known as Atlético Nacional, is a Colombian professional football club based in Medellín. The club is one of only three clubs to have played in every first division tournament in the country's history, the other ...

, quickly making an impact by scoring four goals in the

2016 Copa Libertadores The 2016 Copa Libertadores de América (officially the 2016 Copa Bridgestone Libertadores for sponsorship reasons) was the 57th edition of the Copa Libertadores de América, South America's premier club football tournament organized by CONMEBOL. ...

semi-finals against

São Paulo São Paulo (; ; Portuguese for 'Paul the Apostle, Saint Paul') is the capital of the São Paulo (state), state of São Paulo, as well as the List of cities in Brazil by population, most populous city in Brazil, the List of largest cities in the ...

and netting the decisive winning goal in the final against

Independiente del Valle Club de Alto Rendimiento Especializado Independiente del Valle, known simply as Independiente del Valle, is a professional football club based in Sangolquí Ecuador that currently plays in the Ecuadorian Serie A. Founded in 1958, the club plays ...

to secure the team's second title in the competition, while also finishing as the top scorer with 8 goals in that year's

Copa Colombia The Copa Colombia (); officially known as Copa BetPlay Dimayor is an annual football tournament in Colombia. It is contested by the 36 professional clubs affiliated to the División Mayor del Fútbol Profesional Colombiano (DIMAYOR) and is the ...

; a competition he played between

and Nacional. His standout performances earned him a spot in the Copa Libertadores Best XI and the prestigious title of

South American Footballer of the Year The Rey de América ("King of America"), often referred to as the South American Footballer of the Year, is an annual association football award presented to the best footballer in South America over the previous calendar year. The award was con ...

. In February 2017, Borja transferred to Brazilian side

Palmeiras The Sociedade Esportiva Palmeiras (), commonly known as Palmeiras, is a Brazilian professional association football, football club based in the city of São Paulo, in the district of Perdizes (district of São Paulo), Perdizes. Palmeiras is ...

on a five-year deal for a reported fee of $10.5 million, making him the fourth most expensive transfer in Brazilian football history. The following year, he won the

Campeonato Brasileiro Série A The Campeonato Brasileiro Série A (; English: "Brazilian Championship A Series"), commonly referred to as the Brasileirão (; English: "Big Brazilian" or "Great Brazilian"), the Série A or the Brazilian Série A (to distinguish it from the I ...

title, finished as the top scorer in that year’s

Campeonato Paulista The Campeonato Paulista Série A1, commonly known as Campeonato Paulista, nicknamed Paulistão, is the top-flight professional state football league in the Brazilian state of São Paulo. Run by the São Paulo State Football Federation (FPF), ...

, and was included in the Campeonato Paulista Team of the Year. In December 2019, Borja signed a one-year loan deal with

Atlético Junior Club Deportivo Popular Junior F.C. S.A. (), commonly known as Junior de Barranquilla, by its old name Atlético Junior or simply as Junior, is a Colombian professional football team based in Barranquilla, capital of the department of Atlantic ...

, where he played a key role in winning the

2020 Superliga Colombiana The 2020 Superliga Colombiana (known as the Superliga Águila 2020 for sponsorship purposes) was the ninth edition of the Superliga Colombiana. It was contested by the champions of the 2019 Categoría Primera A season from 8 to 11 September 2020. ...

, scoring a crucial penalty in the first leg and helping secure a 3–2 aggregate victory over

América de Cali América de Cali S. A., best known as América de Cali or América, is a Colombian professional football club based in Cali. It competes in the Categoría Primera A, the top-flight league of Colombian football. The team plays its home games at ...

. After a brief loan spell with Grêmio in 2021, he rejoined Atlético Junior in 2022. In July 2022, Borja moved to Argentine giants River Plate, where he signed a contract running until December 2025. He achieved his first titles with the club in 2023, winning the

Supercopa Argentina The Supercopa Argentina (English: Argentine Super Cup) is an official national association football cup of Argentina organized by the Argentine Football Association (AFA). The annual football match was played for the first time in 2012, being con ...

, and Trofeo de Campeones. At youth level, Borja was part of the Colombia under-20 squad that won the

2013 South American Youth Football Championship The 2013 South American Youth Football Championship (, ) was an association football competition for national under-20 teams in the South America (CONMEBOL). The tournament was held in Argentina from 9 January to 3 February 2013 and was won by Col ...

. He also represented Colombia in the 2016 Rio de Janeiro Olympic Games, reaching the quarter-finals. He made his senior debut for Colombia in November 2016 during a 2018 FIFA World Cup qualifier against

Chile Chile, officially the Republic of Chile, is a country in western South America. It is the southernmost country in the world and the closest to Antarctica, stretching along a narrow strip of land between the Andes, Andes Mountains and the Paci ...

and scored his first two goals for the national team the following year in a 4–0 friendly win over

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. With population of China, a population exceeding 1.4 billion, it is the list of countries by population (United Nations), second-most populous country after ...

. Borja was included in Colombia’s squad for the

2018 FIFA World Cup The 2018 FIFA World Cup was the 21st FIFA World Cup, the quadrennial world championship for national association football, football teams organized by FIFA. It took place in Russia from 14 June to 15 July 2018, after the country was awarded t ...

and participated in the

2021 Copa América The 2021 Copa América was the 47th edition of the Copa América, the international men's association football, football championship organised by South America's football ruling body CONMEBOL. The tournament took place in Brazil from 13 June to ...

, where his country achieved third place, as well as the

2024 Copa América The 2024 Copa América was the 48th edition of the Copa América, the quadrennial international men's association football, soccer championship organized by South America's football ruling body CONMEBOL. The tournament was held in the United Sta ...

, where they finished as runners-up.

Club career

Colombia

Borja began his career with

, making his professional debut in 2011. That same year, he was transferred to Cucuta Deportivo, club in which he had few chances to play. He would soon be transferred again, this time to play for

Categoría Primera B Categoría Primera B, commonly referred to as Torneo BetPlay Dimayor due to Sponsor (commercial), sponsorship by online betting company BetPlay, is the second-division association football, football league in Colombia. The tournament was inaugura ...

side,

. Borja would make a name for himself in the second division of Colombia, often being referred to as a 'fast' and 'complete goalscorer', as well as boasting impressive strength on the ball. His impressive performances with Cortuluá eventually led him to becoming an alternative striker for Colombia's national under-20 team in 2013. On 17 January 2013, it was reported that Independiente Medellin had been interested in acquiring Borja's services. However, nothing was finalized and Borja was eventually sold to first division side,

. In his 2 disputable games, Borja scored 4 goals before being transferred to

side

Livorno and Olimpo

During the summer of 2013, it was confirmed that Borja would join Italian club

on loan. The loan consisted of a fee of €150,000 with an option to buy for €1.5 million. His debut for ''Le Triglie'' came on 20 October, coming off the bench in a 1–2 loss to

Sampdoria Unione Calcio Sampdoria, commonly referred to as Sampdoria (), is an Italian professional football club based in Genoa, Liguria. Sampdoria was formed in 1946 from the merger of two existing sports clubs whose roots can be traced back to the ...

. Borja made seven season appearances for the club but failed to score a goal. Livorno was eventually regulated to the

Serie B The Serie B (), officially known as Serie BKT for sponsorship reasons, is the second-highest division in the Italian football league system after the Serie A. It has been operating for over ninety years since the 1929–30 season. It had b ...

after placing last for the season. Shortly after Livorno were relegated, Borja was sent on loan to Argentine club

Club Olimpo Club Olimpo, usually referred to as Olimpo de Bahía Blanca, is an Argentine sports club based in the city of Bahía Blanca, Buenos Aires Province. The club was founded October 15th, 1910. Its primary activity is soccer. The club is recognized in ...

, where he scored three in sixteen games.

Return to Colombia

Borja was loaned to

Independiente Santa Fe Club Independiente Santa Fe, known simply as Santa Fe, is a Colombian professional Association football, football team based in Bogotá, that currently plays in the Categoría Primera A. They play their home games at the Estadio El Campín, El Cam ...

for the second half of 2015. That season, Borja scored ten goals in thirty-three matches. He won the

2015 Copa Sudamericana The 2015 Copa Sudamericana () was the 14th edition of the Copa Sudamericana, South America's secondary club football tournament organized by CONMEBOL. Colombian team Santa Fe qualified to play in the 2016 Copa Libertadores, the 2016 Recopa Sud ...

with the team (he played seven matches with no goals). For the 2016 season, he was sold to

who was 17th in the league the previous season. In the Apertura tournament of the season, Borja scored a record of nineteen goals in twenty-one matches, breaking the record of most goals scored by a player in a league tournament (the previous record was held by

Jackson Martínez Jackson Arley Martínez Valencia (; born 3 October 1986) is a Colombian former professional association football, footballer who played as a Forward (association football)#Striker, striker. He started his career with Independiente Medellín, I ...

, with eighteen goals in the 2009 Finalizacion). His team Cortuluá reached the Semifinals, which they lost to

Independiente Medellín Deportivo Independiente Medellín, also known as Independiente Medellín or DIM, is a Colombian professional football club (association football), football club based in Medellín that currently plays in the Categoría Primera A. They play their ...

. He was transferred again on 8 June, this time to

. On 6 July, during his first match for his new team, while playing against

in the semi-finals of the

Copa Libertadores The CONMEBOL Libertadores, also known as Copa Libertadores de América (), is an annual continental club football competition organized by CONMEBOL since 1960. It is the highest level of competition in South American club football. The tournam ...

, he scored twice, a feat he repeated in the second leg a week after. Then, on 27 July 2016, he went on to score the definitive goal in the final series against Ecuadorian team

, which Atlético Nacional ended up winning 2–1 on the aggregate. At the end of the year, Borja was included in the best 11 of the year.

Palmeiras

On 9 February 2017, it was announced that Borja had agreed to transfer to Brazilian side

. He signed a five-year deal for a fee believed to be around US$10.5 million. Borja became the fourth most expensive transfer of Brazilian football.

Junior

On 28 December 2019, Borja signed a one-year loan deal with

. On 8 September 2020, in the first leg of the

, which had been moved from January to September due to the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic (also known as the coronavirus pandemic and COVID pandemic), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), began with an disease outbreak, outbreak of COVID-19 in Wuhan, China, in December ...

, Borja scored a penalty in an eventual 2-1 loss against

. However, this goal later proved to be crucial in the second leg, with Junior winning the second leg 2-0 and winning the title 3-2 on aggregate.

Grêmio

On 5 August 2021, Borja signed with Grêmio until December 2022 on loaned from

, and was given the number 9 shirt.

River Plate

On 12 July 2022, Borja signed a contract with Argentine giants River Plate, running until December 2025.

International career

Borja was included in Colombia's 23 man

squad In military terminology, a squad is among the smallest of Military organization, military organizations and is led by a non-commissioned officer. NATO and United States, U.S. doctrine define a squad as an organization "larger than a fireteam, ...

for the

Russia Russia, or the Russian Federation, is a country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia. It is the list of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the world, and extends across Time in Russia, eleven time zones, sharing Borders ...

, making one substitute appearance in the group stage match against

Senegal Senegal, officially the Republic of Senegal, is the westernmost country in West Africa, situated on the Atlantic Ocean coastline. It borders Mauritania to Mauritania–Senegal border, the north, Mali to Mali–Senegal border, the east, Guinea t ...

Career statistics

Club

International

:''Scores and results list Colombia's goal tally first.''

Honours

Independiente Santa Fe *

2015 2015 was designated by the United Nations as: * International Year of Light * International Year of Soil __TOC__ Events January * January 1 – Lithuania officially adopts the euro as its currency, replacing the litas, and becomes ...

Atlético Nacional *

2016 2016 was designated as: * International Year of Pulses by the sixty-eighth session of the United Nations General Assembly. * International Year of Global Understanding (IYGU) by the International Council for Science (ICSU), the Internationa ...

Palmeiras *

2018 Events January * January 1 – Bulgaria takes over the Presidency of the Council of the European Union, after the Estonian presidency. * January 4 – SPLM-IO rebels loyal to Chan Garang Lual start a raid against Juba, capital of ...

Junior *Superliga Colombiana:

2020 The year 2020 was heavily defined by the COVID-19 pandemic, which led to global Social impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, social and Economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, economic disruption, mass cancellations and postponements of even ...

River Plate *

2023 Catastrophic natural disasters in 2023 included the Lists of 21st-century earthquakes, 5th-deadliest earthquake of the 21st century 2023 Turkey–Syria earthquakes, striking Turkey and Syria, leaving up to 62,000 people dead; Cyclone Freddy ...

Colombia *

Copa América The CONMEBOL Copa América (; known until 1975 as the South American Football Championship), often simply called the Copa America, is the top men's quadrennial association football, football tournament contested among list of men's national ass ...

third place:

2021 Like the year 2020, 2021 was also heavily defined by the COVID-19 pandemic, due to the emergence of multiple Variants of SARS-CoV-2, COVID-19 variants. The major global rollout of COVID-19 vaccines, which began at the end of 2020, continued ...

; runner-up:

2024 The year saw the list of ongoing armed conflicts, continuation of major armed conflicts, including the Russian invasion of Ukraine, the Myanmar civil war (2021–present), Myanmar civil war, the Sudanese civil war (2023–present), Sudane ...

Colombia U20 *

South American Youth Championship South American Youth Championships may refer to: * South American Youth Football Championship The South American Youth Football Championship, also known as South American U-20 Championship (; ), branded as CONMEBOL Sub 20, is a South American foo ...

2013 2013 was the first year since 1987 to contain four unique digits (a span of 26 years). 2013 was designated as: *International Year of Water Cooperation *International Year of Quinoa Events January * January 5 – 2013 Craig, Alask ...

Individual *

: 2016 *

top scorer:

*Campeonato Paulista Team of the Year:

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Borja, Miguel 1993 births Living people Footballers from Córdoba Department Colombian men's footballers Categoría Primera A players Cúcuta Deportivo footballers Cortuluá footballers La Equidad footballers US Livorno 1915 players Club Olimpo footballers Independiente Santa Fe footballers Atlético Nacional footballers Serie A players Club Atlético River Plate footballers Argentine Primera División players Colombian expatriate men's footballers Expatriate men's footballers in Argentina Expatriate men's footballers in Italy Expatriate men's footballers in Brazil Colombian expatriate sportspeople in Argentina Colombian expatriate sportspeople in Italy Colombian expatriate sportspeople in Brazil Colombia men's under-20 international footballers 21st-century Colombian sportsmen Colombia men's international footballers Footballers at the 2016 Summer Olympics Olympic footballers for Colombia SE Palmeiras players Grêmio FBPA players Campeonato Brasileiro Série A players Men's association football forwards Copa Libertadores–winning players Copa Sudamericana–winning players 2018 FIFA World Cup players 2021 Copa América players 2024 Copa América players Atlético Junior footballers Copa Libertadores top scorers Colombian people of African descent Copa Sudamericana top scorers