José Alegría (born 5 October 1980) is a Peruvian former footballer.

José Alegría
Personal information
Date of birth (1980-10-05) October 5, 1980 (age 44)
Place of birth Lima, Peru
Height 5 ft 8 in (1.73 m)
Position(s) Midfielder
Youth career
Alianza Lima
Washington Diplomats
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2001–2003 D.C. United 38 (1)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals

He holds the MLS record for fastest red card in league history, earning one in 18 seconds during a match on 13 June 2001.[1]

Career

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Born in Lima, he moved to the United States when he was 12 and grew up in Springfield, Virginia.[2][3]

He was initially signed by D.C. United directly out of high school in 1998.[4] However, after participating in their spring training, he was forced to return to Peru in order to obtain a work visa.[3] The process was delayed because he overstayed his initial tourist visa limit and he missed both the 1999 and 2000 seasons as a result.[5] While waiting in Peru, Alegría trained with Alianza Lima, the country's most successful team,[5] and played in the second division.[3]

He joined D.C. United in October 2001 and made 38 league appearances across three seasons with the team, registering one goal and three assists before he was waived in early 2004.[2]

References

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  1. ^ Fuller, John K. (21 July 2020). "Atlanta United 0-1 FC Cincinnati: Staff Player Ratings". Dirty South Soccer. SB Nation. Retrieved 21 October 2020.
  2. ^ a b "D.C. United Waives Midfielder Jose Alegria". Our Sports Central. 1 March 2004. Retrieved 21 October 2020.
  3. ^ a b c Goff, Steven (27 September 2000). "Red Tape Away, Alegria Can Play". The Washington Post. Retrieved 21 October 2020.
  4. ^ McHugh, Liam (2 December 2000). "Long Wait Finally Over For Alegria". Newsday. Retrieved 21 October 2020.[permanent dead link]
  5. ^ a b For Alegria, the Wait of the World washingtonpost.com
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