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 | Independiente del Valle | ||
| Youth career | |||
| Independiente del Valle | |||
| International career | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2024 | Ecuador U15 | 6 | (4) |
| 2025– | Ecuador U17 | 6 | (1) |
Juan Riquelme Angulo Caicedo (born 12 January 2008) is an Ecuadorian professional footballer who plays as a centre-forward for Independiente del Valle.
Club career
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]
International career
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.[5] 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,[6] this would be his only goal in the competition, as Ecuador finished eighth.
Style of play
Standing at 1.93 m, Angulo has drawn comparisons to prolific Norwegian forward Erling Haaland.[7] He has been lauded for his agility and mobility, despite his height, but despite 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.[7][8]
Personal life
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.[8]
References
- ^ a b c 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.
- ^ a b 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.
- ^ "¿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.
- ^ a b Piera, Joaquim (19 October 2024). "Alucinan con el Haaland ecuatoriano" [They are amazed by the Ecuadorian Haaland]. Sport (in Spanish). Retrieved 17 October 2025.
- ^ a b 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.