Joshua Javier Calderón Chaparro (born 11 September 1996) is a Puerto Rican
soccer player who plays as a
defender.
Early life
Calderón was born in
North Haven, Connecticut
North Haven is a town in New Haven County, Connecticut on the outskirts of New Haven, Connecticut. As of the 2020 census, it had a population of 24,253.
North Haven is home of the Quinnipiac University School of Health Sciences, the School of Nur ...
to a Colombian father and Puerto Rican mother.
College soccer
Having played soccer at the
St. Benedict's Preparatory School
St. Benedict's Preparatory School is a Catholic college preparatory school in Newark, New Jersey run by the Benedictines.
The school serves boys and girls in kindergarten through twelfth grade on a urban campus. The school has been accredit ...
's player development academy, Calderón committed to playing college soccer at the
Iona University
Iona University is a private Roman Catholic university with a main campus in New Rochelle, New York. It was founded in 1940 by the Congregation of Christian Brothers and occupies a campus of in New Rochelle and a campus of in Bronxville, N ...
. He went on to make a total of fifty-nine appearances over four years for the university soccer team, the
Iona Gaels
The Iona Gaels are the athletics teams of Iona University, in New Rochelle, New York. They compete in the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC) and participate in 21 NCAA Division I programs.
Varsity athletic programs
Men's basketball
...
, scoring five goals.
Club career
After leaving university, Calderón spent a season with
Elm City Express
Elm City Express is a men's soccer club based in New Haven, Connecticut that most recently competed in the National Premier Soccer League. The club's colors are blue and white, and plays its home matches at Jess Dow Field at Southern Connecticut ...
in the
National Premier Soccer League
The National Premier Soccer League (NPSL) is an American men's soccer league. The NPSL is a semi-professional league, comprising some teams that have paid players and some that are entirely amateur. The league is officially affiliated to the U ...
in 2018.
He later travelled to Colombia and went on trial with
Boyacá Chicó Boyacá is the name of a region in Colombia. It may refer to other connections to Colombia:
* Battle of Boyacá
* Boyacá Department (Gran Colombia)
* Boyacá Department
** Boyacá, Boyacá, a municipality
* Boyacá State, a former state
* Puert ...
, before spending six months with
Patriotas Boyacá
Patriotas Boyacá, also known as Patriotas, is a professional Colombian football team based in Tunja, that currently plays in the Categoría Primera B. They play their home games at the La Independencia stadium.
History
Patriotas was founded i ...
, though he was unable to sign officially with either.
[
Calderón spent time with Colombian side Acción Cívica in 2019, and was briefly signed with Boca Gibraltar in December of the same year, before spending the 2020 pre-season with American side ]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, ...
.EFL League Two
The English Football League Two (often referred to as League Two for short or Sky Bet League Two for sponsorship purposes, and known as the Football League Two from 2004 until 2016) is the third and lowest division of the English Football L ...
side Cambridge United
Cambridge United Football Club is a professional association football club based in the city of Cambridge, England. They compete in EFL League one , the 3rd tier of the English football league system. The club is based at the Abbey Stadium on N ...
, before his stay was cut short by the COVID-19 pandemic in England
The COVID-19 pandemic was first confirmed to have spread to England with two cases among Chinese nationals staying in a hotel in York on 31 January 2020. The two main public bodies responsible for health in England are NHS England and Public ...
.[
In October 2020, he was one of five Puerto Rican soccer players to travel to Bolivia to play in the ]Copa Simón Bolívar
Copa or COPA may refer to:
COPA
COPA may refer to:
* Computer Operator Programming Assistant. trade of ITI
* Child Online Protection Act, a former U.S. law to protect minors from certain material on the internet
* Canadian Owners and Pilots Asso ...
with CD Ferroviario.[ He returned to the United States in 2021, playing two games for ]AC Connecticut
AC Connecticut is an American amateur soccer team based in Newtown, Connecticut, playing in USL League Two, the fourth tier of the American soccer pyramid. The team colors are blue, black and white.
History
CFC Azul was founded as a USL PDL tea ...
in the USL League Two
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 sy ...
in May 2021.
He signed with Puerto Rican side Metropolitan FA
Metropolitan FA is a Puerto Rican association football club from the capital of San Juan that currently plays in the Liga Puerto Rico. The club plays its home matches at the Parque Reparto Metropolitano.
History
Metropolitan FA was founded in ...
in July 2021, ahead of the club's participation in the CONCACAF Champions League
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 Amer ...
.[ Later in the same year, he returned to Colombia to train with ]Categoría Primera A
The Categoría Primera A (), commonly referred to as Liga BetPlay Dimayor (between 2015 and 2019 ''Liga Águila'') due to sponsorship by online betting company BetPlay, is a Colombian professional league for association football clubs. It is th ...
side 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 ...
He signed his first professional contract under Juan Carlos Osorio for América de Cali. Because of his affiliation with Metropolitan, the Puerto Rican Federation did not acknowledge him as a free agent and prevented him from debuting in the Colombian 1st Division. [
In 2022, he made two appearances for the ]Western Mass Pioneers
Western Mass Pioneers is an American soccer team based in Ludlow, Massachusetts, United States. Founded in 1998, the team plays in USL League Two, the fourth tier of the American Soccer Pyramid.
The team plays its home games at Lusitano Stadiu ...
in the USL League Two, and received a red card in team's 2–0 U.S. Open Cup
The Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup, commonly known as the U.S. Open Cup (USOC), is a knockout cup competition in men's soccer in the United States of America. It is the oldest ongoing national soccer competition in that country.
The 2023 U.S. O ...
win over Brockton.
Personal life
His younger brother, Giovanni, is also a soccer player, and has also represented Puerto Rico at international level.[ His older brother, Neekoli, is a former soccer player.]
Career statistics
Club
International
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Calderón, Joshua
1996 births
Living people
Sportspeople from New Haven County, Connecticut
Soccer players from Connecticut
Iona University alumni
Puerto Rican men's footballers
Puerto Rico men's international footballers
American men's soccer players
American sportspeople of Puerto Rican descent
American sportspeople of Colombian descent
Men's association football defenders
USL League Two players
Iona Gaels men's soccer players
F.C. Boca Gibraltar players
AC Connecticut players
Western Mass Pioneers players
American expatriate men's soccer players
American expatriate sportspeople in Gibraltar
Expatriate men's footballers in Gibraltar