Anthony Valencia

Anthony Valencia
Personal information
Full name	Anthony Lenín Valencia Bajaña
Date of birth	21 July 2003 (age 21)
Place of birth	Guayaquil, Ecuador
Height	1.76 m (5 ft 9 in)
Position(s)	Midfielder
Team information
Current team	Royal Antwerp
Number	14
Youth career
2013–2014	Deportivo Azogues
2017–2020	Independiente del Valle
Senior career*
Years	Team
2020–2021	Independiente Juniors
2022	Independiente del Valle
2022–	Royal Antwerp
2022–	Young Reds Antwerp
	*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 18:37, 31 March 2024 (UTC)

Anthony Lenín Valencia Bajaña (born 21 July 2003) is an Ecuadorian professional footballer who plays as a midfielder for Belgian club Royal Antwerp.

Career

Born in the Ecuadorean city of Guayaquil, Valencia began his footballing career with Deportivo Azogues, training with the Azogues-based side from 2013 until 2014.^[2] He went on to join Independiente del Valle in 2017, and represented the club's youth side at the U-20 Copa Libertadores, with his performances earning him a place in The Guardian's "Next Generation 2020", highlighting the best young players in world football.^[3]^[4]

On 8 June 2022 it was announced that Valencia would join Belgian club Royal Antwerp on a 4 year deal.^[5] He notched his first assist for the club in his second appearance for the club; providing the pass for Radja Nainggolan's second goal in a 3–1 win over Norwegian opposition Lillestrøm in the UEFA Europa Conference League on 4 August 2022.^[6] The following month, he scored his first goal for the club; after an attack by Royal Antwerp, the attempted clearance from a Westerlo defender rebounded off forward Vincent Janssen and fell for Valencia, who headed the ball past goalkeeper Sinan Bolat.^[7]

Career statistics

Club

As of 22 July 2022^[1]^[8]

Appearances and goals by club, season and competition
Club	Season	League			Cup^[a]		Continental		Other		Total
Club	Season	Division	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals
Independiente Juniors	2020	Ecuadorian Serie B	10	2	–		–		0	0	10	2
	2021	Ecuadorian Serie B	18	3	–		–		0	0	18	3
	Total		28	5	0	0	0	0	0	0	28	5
Independiente del Valle	2022	Ecuadorian Serie A	2	0	0	0	1^[b]	0	0	0	3	0
Royal Antwerp	2022–23	Belgian First Division A	10	1	1	0	3^[c]	1	0	0	14	2
	2023–24	Belgian First Division A	2	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	2	0
	Total		12	1	1	0	3	1	0	0	16	2
Royal Antwerp II	2022–23	Belgian National Division 1	1	0	–		–		–		1	0
Career total			30	5	0	0	2	0	0	0	32	6

^ Includes Copa Ecuador and Belgian Cup
^ Appearances in the Copa Libertadores
^ Appearances in the UEFA Europa Conference League

Honours

Royal Antwerp

References

^ ^a ^b ^c ^d Anthony Valencia at WorldFootball.net
^ "Independiente del Valle transfirió a Europa a su figura de la Libertadores Sub20" [Independiente del Valle transferred the figure from the Libertadores Sub20 to Europe]. eltelegrafo.com.ec (in Spanish). 9 June 2022. Retrieved 28 August 2023.
^ "Conmebol destacó un 'golazo' de Anthony Valencia en la Libertadores sub-20" [Conmebol highlighted a 'great goal' by Anthony Valencia in the Libertadores sub-20]. eltelegrafo.com.ec (in Spanish). 8 February 2022. Retrieved 28 March 2022.
^ "Next Generation 2020: 60 of the best young talents in world football". The Guardian. 8 October 2020. Retrieved 28 March 2022.
^ "Welkom Anthony Valencia" [Welcome Anthony Valencia] (in Dutch). 8 June 2022. Retrieved 8 June 2022.
^ Álvarez, Paulo (6 August 2022). "Anthony Valencia aprovecha sus oportunidades en Europa" [Anthony Valencia seizes his opportunities in Europe]. benditofutbol.com (in Spanish). Retrieved 28 August 2023.
^ "Anthony Valencia anota con el Royal Antwerp en Bélgica" [Anthony Valencia scores for Royal Antwerp in Belgium]. primicias.ec (in Spanish). 4 September 2022. Retrieved 28 August 2023.
^ Anthony Valencia at Soccerway
^ "Antwerp wint nu ook de Supercup! KV Mechelen plooit pas na strafschoppen" [Antwerp now also wins the Supercup! KV Mechelen only folds after penalties] (in Dutch). Sporza. 23 July 2023. Retrieved 23 July 2023.