Juan Riquelme Angulo
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Juan Riquelme Angulo Caicedo[1] | ||
| Date of birth | 12 January 2008 | ||
| Place of birth | San Lorenzo, Esmeraldas, Ecuador[1] | ||
| Height | 1.93 m (6 ft 4 in)[1] | ||
| Position | Centre-forward | ||
| Team information | |||
Current team | Sunderland | ||
| Number | 50 | ||
| Youth career | |||
| Independiente del Valle | |||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2026 | Independiente del Valle | 15 | (6) |
| 2026– | Sunderland | 0 | (0) |
| International career‡ | |||
| 2024 | Ecuador U15 | 7 | (4) |
| 2025– | Ecuador U17 | 6 | (1) |
| 2026– | Ecuador | 3 | (1) |
|
* Club domestic league appearances and goals as of 1 September 2026 ‡ National team caps and goals as of 5 October 2026 | |||
Juan Riquelme Angulo Caicedo (born 12 January 2008) is an Ecuadorian professional footballer who plays as a centre-forward for Premier League club Sunderland.
Club career
[edit]In August 2025, he went on trial with Spanish club Celta Vigo, alongside Independiente del Valle teammates Ariel Angulo and Zair Arroyo.[2] In October of the same year, he was named by English newspaper The Guardian as one of the best players born in 2008 worldwide.[3][4]
Angulo marked his professional debut for Independiente del Valle with a goal; the third in the club's 3–1 win against Mushuc Runa on 7 March 2026.[5] Having been linked with a move to English Premier League club Manchester United,[6] Independiente del Valle president Santiago Morales confirmed the club had not received any offers, following Angulo's good performance in the club's 0–0 Copa Libertadores draw with Argentine club Rosario Central.[7]
Sunderland
[edit]On 1 September 2026, Angulo signed a long-term contract with Premier League side Sunderland.[8]
International career
[edit]Angulo was called up to the Ecuador under-15 squad for the 2023 South American U-15 Championship, held in October 2024. Goals against Uruguay and Brazil helped his side to a second-place finish in the group stage, and he notched another against Chile in the semi-final. Despite finishing as the tournament's top scorer, he was unable to prevent his side losing 4–3 in a penalty shoot out to Paraguay in the final, after a 0–0 draw in normal time.[4]
In March 2025, following injuries to John Yeboah and Kevin Rodríguez, Angulo was called up by manager Sebastián Beccacece to the senior squad.[9] Despite this, he did not feature in Ecuador's 0–0 2026 FIFA World Cup qualification draw with Chile, and instead was called up to the under-17 squad for the 2025 South American U-17 Championship. Despite scoring in Ecuador's opening 4–0 win against Uruguay,[10] this would be his only goal in the competition, as Ecuador finished eighth.
Style of play
[edit]Standing at 1.93 m, Angulo has drawn comparisons to prolific Norwegian forward Erling Haaland.[11] He has been lauded for his agility and mobility, despite his height, but in spite of this advantage over other players, his lack of heading ability is a noted weakness, with his brother, José Enrique Angulo, stating that he "doesn't like" heading.[11][12]
Personal life
[edit]Angulo is the brother of fellow professional footballer José Enrique Angulo, and following good performances at the 2023 South American U-15 Championship, José stated that Juan was the "improved version" of him.[12]
Career statistics
[edit]Club
[edit]- As of 1 September 2026.[13]
| Club | Season | League | National cup[a] | League cup | Continental | Other | Total | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Independiente del Valle | 2026 | LigaPro Serie A | 15 | 6 | 2 | 1 | — | 5[b] | 0 | 1[c] | 0 | 23 | 7 | |
| Sunderland | 2026–27 | Premier League | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 | 0 | |
| Career total | 15 | 6 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 23 | 7 | ||
- ↑ Includes Copa Ecuador
- ↑ Appearances in Copa Libertadores
- ↑ Appearance in Supercopa Ecuador
International
[edit]- As of match played 5 October 2026
| National team | Year | Apps | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ecuador | 2026 | 3 | 1 |
| Total | 3 | 1 | |
- Scores and results list Ecuador's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Angulo goal.
| No. | Date | Venue | Opponent | Score | Result | Competition |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | 5 October 2026 | National Stadium, Tokyo, Japan |  Panama | 1–1 | 1–1 (6–7 p) | 2026 Kirin Cup Soccer |
References
[edit]- 1 2 3 Juan Riquelme Angulo at WorldFootball.net
- ↑ "¡Juan Riquelme Angulo y 2 PROMESAS DE IDV van a cumplir con su Primera Experiencia en Europa!" [Juan Riquelme Angulo and two promising IDV players are about to have their first European experience!]. Futbol Ecuador (in Spanish). 20 August 2025. Retrieved 17 October 2025.
- ↑ Christenson, Marcus; Bloor, Steven; Blight, Garry (14 October 2025). "Next Generation 2025: 60 of the best young talents in world football". The Guardian. Retrieved 17 October 2025.
- 1 2 Ayala, Paul (15 October 2025). "Juan Riquelme Angulo, entre los 60 mejores juveniles del mundo, según The Guardian" [Juan Riquelme Angulo, among the 60 best young players in the world, according to The Guardian]. Expreso (in Spanish). Retrieved 17 October 2025.
- ↑ "Juan Riquelme Angulo y su debut con gol en Independiente del Valle: "Lo importante es mantenerse"" [Juan Riquelme Angulo and his debut with a goal for Independiente del Valle: "The important thing is to stay in the game"]. ESPN (in Spanish). 7 March 2026. Retrieved 10 April 2026.
- ↑ ""Gusta mucho": el interés del Manchester United por Juan Riquelme Angulo, joya de Independiente del Valle" ["He's very much liked": Manchester United's interest in Juan Riquelme Angulo, Independiente del Valle's star player]. Ole (in Spanish). 9 April 2026. Retrieved 10 April 2026.
- ↑ "Independiente del Valle confirma que no ha recibido ofertas del Manchester United por Riquelme Angulo" [Independiente del Valle confirms they have not received any offers from Manchester United for Riquelme Angulo]. El Universo (in Spanish). 10 April 2026. Retrieved 10 April 2026.
- ↑ "Sunderland AFC sign young starlet Angulo". Sunderland A.F.C. 2 September 2026.
- ↑ "¿Quién es Juan Riquelme Angulo, el convocado de apuro en Ecuador para las Eliminatorias?" [Who is Juan Riquelme Angulo, the player who was called up in a hurry to Ecuador for the qualifiers?]. Ole (in Spanish). 25 March 2025. Retrieved 17 October 2025.
- ↑ Montalván, Christopher (31 March 2025). "Juan Riquelme Angulo: ¿Quién es el delantero ecuatoriano que brilla con la sub-17?" [Juan Riquelme Angulo: Who is the Ecuadorian striker shining for the U-17s?]. Expreso (in Spanish). Retrieved 17 October 2025.
- 1 2 Piera, Joaquim (19 October 2024). "Alucinan con el Haaland ecuatoriano" [They are amazed by the Ecuadorian Haaland]. Sport (in Spanish). Retrieved 17 October 2025.
- 1 2 Palacios, Juan José (17 October 2024). "Tin Angulo sobre su hermano Juan Riquelme: "Es una versión mejorada de mí"" [Tin Angulo on his brother Juan Riquelme: “He’s an improved version of me.”]. Studio Futbol (in Spanish). Retrieved 17 October 2025.
- ↑ Juan Riquelme Angulo at Soccerway
- 2008 births
- Footballers from Esmeraldas Province
- Living people
- Men's association football forwards
- Ecuadorian men's footballers
- Ecuador men's youth international footballers
- Independiente del Valle footballers
- Sunderland A.F.C. players
- Ecuadorian expatriate men's footballers
- Ecuadorian expatriate sportspeople in England
- Expatriate men's footballers in England
- 21st-century Ecuadorian sportsmen
- Ecuador men's international footballers