Alexander Mejía

Not to be confused with Alex Mejia.

Alexander Mejía

Mejía with Colombia at the 2014 FIFA World Cup
Personal information
Full name	Alexander Mejía Sabalza[1]
Date of birth	(1988-07-11) 11 July 1988 (age 36)
Place of birth	Barranquilla, Atlántico, Colombia
Height	1.72 m (5 ft 8 in)[2]
Position(s)	Midfielder
Team information
Current team	Deportivo Cali
Number	13
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps	(Gls)
2005–2012	Deportes Quindío	101	(4)
2011	→ Once Caldas (loan)	37	(0)
2012–2014	Atlético Nacional	88	(0)
2015–2016	Monterrey	14	(0)
2015–2016	→ Atlético Nacional (loan)	40	(0)
2016–2018	León	63	(0)
2019–2021	Libertad	65	(0)
2021–2022	Santa Fe	11	(0)
2022–2023	Atlético Nacional	13	(1)
2023	Unión Magdalena	7	(0)
2024–	Deportivo Cali	2	(0)
International career^‡
2012–2022	Colombia	27	(0)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 6 July 2021 ‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 22:08, 27 January 2022 (UTC)

Alexander Mejía Sabalza (born 11 July 1988) is a Colombian professional footballer who plays as a midfielder for Deportivo Cali.[3] He is described by FIFA's official website as "a linchpin noted for his ability to tidy up mistakes, rob possession and track down and pressurize opponents".[4]

Club career

Colombia

Mejía made his professional debut for Deportes Quindío in 2005, where he played for seven years, including a loan spell at Once Caldas.[4] In 2012, he joined Atlético Nacional and won both the Copa Colombia and the Superliga Colombiana in his first season.[4] In the following seasons, Mejía helped Nacional to three consecutive Colombian league titles, becoming team captain after the departure of Macnelly Torres.[4]

Mexico

Mejía finished his loan at Nacional in June 2016. He was then transferred to León in the Liga MX for the Apertura 2016.[5] However, as a part of the deal, he was able to stay with Nacional until after the Medellín club had finished its campaign in the Copa Libertadores.[6]

Libertad

On 29 December 2018, Mejia joined Club Libertad of Paraguay on a free transfer for two years.[7]

International career

In 2012, Mejía made his debut for the Colombia national team in a FIFA World Cup qualifier against Peru.[4] He went on to become a regular member of the squad in the remainder of the campaign, making five appearances overall.[4]

2014 World Cup

On 9 June 2014, he was named in Colombia's squad for the 2014 FIFA World Cup, and played in four of the five matches Colombia had.[8] On 14 June, Mejía appeared as a sixty-ninth-minute substitute in Colombia's opening match of the tournament, a 3–0 victory over Greece in Belo Horizonte, Minas Gerais, Brazil.[9] Mejía also appeared in the following match against Ivory Coast on 19 June 2014, coming on as a substitute in the seventy-ninth minute, and seeing out a 2–1 victory in Brazil's capital, Brasília.[10] In Colombia's third – and last – game of the Group Stage, they played against Japan. Mejía started at a defensive midfielder role alongside Fredy Guarín, playing the entire eighty-minute game. Colombia won 1–4.[11] Mejía's last game of the 2014 World Cup came against Uruguay in the Round of 16 in the Maracanã Stadium, Rio de Janeiro on 28 June. Colombia won 2–0,[12] and progressed to the Quarter-finals, playing against the hosts, Brazil, losing 2–1.[13]

Season statistics

Domestic club statistics

Club	Season	League			Cup[a]		Continental[b]		Other[c]		Total
		Division	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals
Atlético Nacional	2012	Categoría Primera A	27	0	11	0	8	0	2	0	48	0
	2013		36	0	4	0	8	0	—		48	0
	2014		19	0	2	0	10	0	2	0	33	0
Atlético Nacional (loan)	2015		23	0	1	0	0	0	—		24	0
	2016		17	0	1	0	12	0	1	0	31	0
	Total		122	0	19	0	38	0	5	0	184	0
Monterrey	2014–15	Liga MX	14	0	3	0	—				17	0
León	2016–17	Liga MX	23	0	3	1	—				26	1
	2017–18		25	0	4	0					29	0
	2018–19		10	0	5	0					15	0
	Total		74	0	12	1	—				86	1
Career total			196	0	31	1	38	0	5	0	270	1

1. Appearances in the Copa Colombia and Copa MX
2. Includes appearances in the Copa Libertadores and the Copa Sudamericana
3. Appearances only in the Superliga Colombiana

Honours

Club

Atlético Nacional

• Categoría Primera A
  • Winner: 2013-I, 2013-II, 2014-I

• Copa Colombia
  • Winner: 2012, 2013

• Superliga Colombiana
  • Winner: 2012

• Copa Libertadores
  • Winner: 2016

References

1. "2014 FIFA World Cup Brazil: List of players: Colombia" (PDF). FIFA. 14 July 2014. p. 9. Archived from the original (PDF) on 21 January 2016. Retrieved 11 July 2019.
2. "Alexander Mejía" (in Spanish). Atlético Nacional. Retrieved 4 October 2022.
3. Alexander Mejía es nuevo jugador de Libertad de Paraguay, goal.com, 29 December 2018
4. "Alexander MEJIA". FIFA. Archived from the original on 20 June 2014. Retrieved 18 June 2014.
5. "Alexander Mejía regresa a México con León". Univision Deportes (in Spanish). 9 June 2016. Retrieved 6 October 2018.
6. "Oficial: Atlético Nacional cede a Davinson Sánchez al Ajax, pero jugará Copa Libertadores". HSB Noticias (in Spanish). 21 June 2016. Archived from the original on 23 June 2016. Retrieved 6 October 2018.
7. "Alexander Mejía es nuevo jugador de Libertad de Paraguay". Goal.com (in Spanish). 29 December 2018. Retrieved 14 December 2023.
8. "World Cup 2014: Radamel Falcao out of Colombia squad". BBC Sport. 9 June 2014. Retrieved 18 June 2014.
9. Whalley, Mike (14 June 2014). "Colombia 3–0 Greece". BBC Sport. Retrieved 18 June 2014.
10. Sanghera, Mandeep (19 June 2014). "World Cup: Colombia 2–1 Ivory Coast". BBC Sport. Retrieved 6 October 2018.
11. Fanning, Evan (24 June 2014). "Japan v Colombia, World Cup 2014: as it happened". The Telegraph. Retrieved 6 October 2018.
12. McNulty, Phil (28 June 2014). "Colombia 2–0 Uruguay". BBC Sport. Retrieved 6 October 2018.
13. Rich, Tim (4 July 2014). "Brazil vs Colombia match report World Cup 2014: Thiago Silva and David Luiz score to set up semi-final against Germany". The Independent. Archived from the original on 6 October 2018. Retrieved 6 October 2018.

External links

• Alexander Mejía at Soccerway