Yeltsin Tejeda

Yeltsin Ignacio Tejeda Valverde (Spanish pronunciation: [ˈʝeltsin teˈxeða]; born 17 March 1992) is a Costa Rican professional footballer who plays as a defensive midfielder for Liga FPD club Herediano, which he captains, and the Costa Rica national team.

Yeltsin Tejeda
Tejeda with Costa Rica at the 2018 FIFA World Cup
Personal information
Full nameYeltsin Ignacio Tejeda Valverde[1]
Date of birth (1992-03-17) March 17, 1992 (age 32)
Place of birthLimón, Costa Rica
Height1.79 m (5 ft 10 in)[1]
Position(s)Defensive midfielder
Team information
Current team
Herediano
Number10
Youth career
Saprissa
Senior career*
YearsTeamApps(Gls)
2011–2014Saprissa110(5)
2014–2016Evian53(1)
2016–2018Lausanne-Sport28(1)
2019–Herediano84(5)
International career
2008–2009Costa Rica U179(0)
2010–2011Costa Rica U2013(0)
2011–Costa Rica78(1)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 25 May 2021
‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 03:22, 29 March 2023 (UTC)

He is named after the first President of Russia Boris Yeltsin.[2]

Club career

Saprissa

Tejeda began his career with Saprissa in 2011 scoring one goal against San Carlos. In the 2014 Verano season, Tejeda was named the captain of the team.

Evian

After Costa Rica's campaign at the 2014 FIFA World Cup, Tejeda traveled to the United Kingdom to sign with Swansea City, but the club halted the negotiations, and Tejeda instead traveled to France.[3] On 22 August 2014, then-Ligue 1 club Evian announced that Tejeda had signed a four-year contract.[4] He scored his first goal for the club on 19 September 2014 in a 2–1 loss to Bordeaux.[5] During the winter transfer window, Tejeda was joined by his countryman and former Saprissa teammate David Ramírez.[6] The team was relegated to Ligue 2 at the end of the season.[7]

Lausanne-Sport

In July 2016 Tejeda joined Swiss club Lausanne-Sport on a three-year contract.[8]

Herediano

In January 2019 Tejeda returned to Costa Rica, signing with Herediano.[9] He signed a two-year contract extension with the club in October 2021.[10]

International career

Tejeda was selected in Costa Rica's squad for the 2009 CONCACAF U-17 Championship and he was named in the 2011 CONCACAF U-20 Championship. He played for his country at the 2009 FIFA U-17 and 2011 FIFA U-20 World Cups.[1]

He officially debuted in the senior Costa Rica national football team on 11 December 2011 in a friendly match against Cuba, in Havana and has, as of November 2014, earned a total of 30 caps, scoring no goals. Tejeda was a key part during Costa Rica's successful qualification to the 2014 FIFA World Cup and during the finals tournament.[11] He also played at the 2013 Copa Centroamericana and 2013 CONCACAF Gold Cup.

In May 2018 he was named in Costa Rica's 23 man squad for the 2018 FIFA World Cup in Russia.[12]

In November 2022, Tejeda was named to Costa Rica's 26-man squad for the 2022 FIFA World Cup.[13] On December 1 in Costa Rica's final group stage game, he scored his first goal for Costa Rica against Germany in a 4–2 defeat.[14]

Career statistics

International

As of match played 28 March 2023[15]
Costa Rica
YearAppsGoals
201120
201260
2013100
2014120
201540
201650
201770
201860
201900
202030
2021100
2022111
202320
Total781
As of match played 1 December 2022
Costa Rica score listed first, score column indicates score after each Tejeda goal.
List of international goals scored by Yeltsin Tejeda
No.DateVenueCapOpponentScoreResultCompetitionRef.
11 December 2022Al Bayt Stadium, Al Khor, Qatar76  Germany1–12–42022 FIFA World Cup[16]

References