Alonso Coello (footballer)

Born in Madrid, Spain,^[1] Coello began playing football at age four with Madrid Sur de Vallecas, eventually moving onto the Atlético Madrid youth system, when he was six, where he played for five years.^[2] Afterwards, he joined the youth system of Rayo Vallecano, where he played until the age of 18.^[3][4] With the Rayo Vallecano Juvenil, he won the Copa Federación Nacional Juvenil.^{[citation needed]}

In 2018, Coello moved to the United States to attend Florida Atlantic University, where he played for the men's soccer team, joining through the La Liga ProPlayer initiative, a program that allows players from academy teams in Spain, between the ages 16 and 22, to go to the United States to play college soccer, where they can earn a university degree concurrently.^[5][6] At FAU, he studied economics.^[7] He scored his first goal on 19 October 2018, on a free kick, against the FIU Panthers.^[8][9] During his freshman season, he led the team with four assists and was named to the C-USA All-Conference Third Team and the C-USA All-Freshman Team.^[10] As a sophomore, he became FAU’s first-ever player to earn C-USA First Team honors.^[11] In his junior year, he was named to the All-C-USA Second Team.^[12] In his senior year in 2021, he was named to the All-C-USA Second Team, All-C-USA Tournament Team, and United Soccer Coaches All-Southeast Region Third Team,^[13] as FAU reached the C-USA finals for the first time in program history.^[14] He served as a team captain from 2019 to 2021.^[15]

In 2019, Coello played with the Dalton Red Wolves in USL League Two.^[16] In 2020, he was set to join the Portland Timbers U23 in USL2, however, the season was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.^[17][18]

In 2022, Coello signed a professional contract with Toronto FC II in MLS Next Pro.^[19] He made his debut on April 3 against FC Cincinnati 2.^[20] He scored his first professional goal on 8 May, converting a penalty kick against New York City FC II.^[21] He served as team captain and played a team-high 2,189 minutes in 25 appearances.^[22]

In March 2023, Coello joined the Toronto FC first team on a short-term four day loan ahead of the team's match against the San Jose Earthquakes.^[20] He made his Major League Soccer debut on 25 March, starting the match against San Jose, playing the full 90 minutes.^[23][24] He signed a second short-term loan for the following match, as well.^[25] In April 2023, he was signed to a permanent contract with the first team for the 2023 season, with club options for 2024 and 2025,^[26][27] after having played the maximum number of two games under MLS short-term loan agreements.^[28] He made 21 league appearances in his rookie season.^[29] On 19 June 2024, he scored his first MLS goal in a match against Nashville SC.^[30][31]

As of match played 19 June 2024^[32]

• Alonso Coello at Soccerway
• Alonso Coello at LaPreferente.com (in Spanish)