Eriq Zavaleta
Eriq Anthony Zavaleta Vanney (born August 2, 1992) is a professional footballer who plays as a centre-back for LA Galaxy of Major League Soccer. Born in the United States, he represents the El Salvador national team. Youth and college. Zavaleta played his freshman and senior seasons of high school soccer at Westfield High School in Westfield, Indiana. He scored 25 goals and nine assists as a freshman and twenty goals and ten assists as a senior. He also spent his youth career with FC Pride, Real Salt Lake, and Chivas USA, and was also part of Columbus  Crew's USL Super-20 championship team in 2011. On February 7, 2011, Zavaleta signed a letter of intent to play college soccer at Indiana University. In his freshman year with the Hoosiers in 2011, Zavaleta started 22 games and led the team with ten goals and five assists and was also the team leader in points with 25. He went on to be named "College Soccer News" All-Freshman first team, NSCAA All-Great Lakes Region first team selection, Soccer America All-Freshman first team and Chicagoland Soccer News Player of the Year. In his sophomore year, Zavaleta started all  24 matches and again was the team leader with 40 points, with 18 goals and four assists. He led the team to their eighth national title. One of the four assists came in the 2012 College Cup final against no. 3 Georgetown, when he set up teammate Nikita Kotlov for what turned out to be the title-clinching goal. He went on to be named Big Ten All-Tournament team, NSCAA third-team All-American, College Soccer News first-team All-American and the College Cup All-Tournament team. At Indiana University he was a member of the Kappa Sigma  fraternity. Club career. Seattle Sounders FC. On January 5, 2013, it was announced by agent Ron Waxman that Zavaleta had signed a Generation Adidas contract with Major League Soccer, making him eligible for the 2013 MLS SuperDraft. On January 17, Zavaleta was selected 10th overall by Seattle Sounders FC and immediately added to the roster. He made his professional debut on March 23, 2013, in a 1–0 loss to the San Jose Earthquakes. Chivas USA. On February 28, 2014, Chivas USA announced that they had added Zavaleta to their roster on loan from Seattle Sounders FC for one year. In  2014, he replaced Bobby Burling as the center back was out of play after he underwent a knee surgery. Toronto FC. On January 26, 2015, Toronto FC announced that they had traded their 2016 MLS SuperDraft second-round pick to Seattle for Zavaleta. On September 5, 2015, Zavaleta scored his first goal for Toronto in a 2–1 loss against his former club, the Seattle Sounders. In 2016, he was briefly loaned to Toronto FC II. On February 23, 2021, Zavaleta re-signed with Toronto FC. At the end of the season, his contract option was declined. LA Galaxy. On March  10, 2022, Zavaleta signed a one-year deal with LA Galaxy.<ref>