Rolando Fonseca

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Rolando Fonseca Jiménez (born 6 June 1974) is a Costa Rican former professional footballer who played as a forward.

Nicknamed El Principito (The little prince)<ref name="Nacion Special">La Nación."Nuevo Estadio Nacional: Joya del Deporte Costarricense", p. 30. 15 March 2011. Retrieved on 26 May 2013.</ref> and El Rolo,<ref>Calvo, Rodrigo. "Rolo llegó a los 20 títulos y superó los 360 goles". La Nación, 7 January 2009. Retrieved on 26 May 2013.</ref> Fonseca usually played just off the main striker and was renowned for his ability to create opportunities for his teammates and his fierce long shot.<ref>World Soccer. "Rolando Fonseca World Cup Profile". CNNSI.com, 12 March 2002. Retrieved on 26 May 2013.</ref>

With 47 goals, Fonseca is the Costa Rica national team's all-time top goalscorer.<ref name="RSSSF Career" />

Club career

Fonseca played for Comunicaciones in Guatemala, Independiente Medellín and América de Cali in Colombia, Pachuca and La Piedad in Mexico, as well as having home spells with Saprissa, Alajuelense and Municipal Liberia.

In Costa Rica, he played a total of 271 games, scoring over 100 goals, between the league's two best teams, Saprissa and Alajuelense. His debut was with Deportivo Saprissa, on 1 June 1991, against ASODELI, and scored his first goal against San Carlos on 28 August.<ref name="Buzon 01">Calvo, Rodrigo. "El Buzón de Rodrigo". La Nación, 16 April 2001. Retrieved on 26 May 2001.</ref> He also won Costa Rican championships in 1993–94, 1994–95 (Saprissa), and 1996–97, 2001–02, 2002–03 and 2004–05 (Alajuelense), adding three CONCACAF Champions' Cups in 1993, 1995 (Saprissa), and 2004 (Alajuelense).<ref name="Rodriguez 10">Rodríguez, José Luis. "Rolando Fonseca ya tiene 22 títulos" Template:Webarchive. La Nación, 21 December 2010. Retrieved on 26 May 2013.</ref> Outside Costa Rica, Fonseca won league titles with Comunicaciones in 1998, 1999, 2000, 2002, 2008, and 2010, and with América de Cali in 1997.<ref name="Rodriguez 10" />

After solid performances with Alajuelense and the national team, Fonseca received offers in 2007 from China, Chile, Turkey and Major League Soccer, but finally settled, as co-owner, player and captain of Municipal Liberia.<ref>Rivera, Arnoldo. "Rolando Fonseca confirma su incorporación a Liberia". La Nación, 26 June 2007. Retrieved on 26 May 2013.</ref> Although he was having a great season, he left the project a few days before finishing the Apertura tournament, apparently due to personal issues and some differences with then co-owner Mario Sotela.<ref>Morales, Ingrid. "Rolando Fonseca fuera de Liberia Mía". La Nación, 21 November 2007. Retrieved on 26 May 2013.</ref> Rumors surfaced that Fonseca would return to Alajuelense, but they were all quickly discarded.

After failed negotiations with Brujas, Fonseca returned to Comunicaciones, a team he had already represented on two other spells, remaining as one of side's best imports ever. Fonseca retired in January 2011, but a year and seven months later, he made his return to professional football by joining Asociación Deportiva Carmelita on 19 August 2012.<ref>Aguilar Arroyo, Yensy. "Rolando Fonseca entrenará mañana con Carmelita". Al Día, 19 August 2012. Retrieved on 26 May 2013.</ref> After three matches with Carmelita, he was released in September 2012. Coach Orlando de León cited that Fonseca has been busy with his other activities besides football.<ref>Umaña, Johan. "Carmelita evalúa dar de baja a Rolando Fonseca". La Nación, 24 September 2012. Retrieved on 26 May 2013.</ref>

International career

Fonseca has also been a fixture on the Costa Rica national team since 1992. He played in more than 100 internationals, and is currently the nation's all-time scorer, with 47 goals.<ref name="RSSSF Career">Passo Alpuin, Luis Fernando. "Rolando Fonseca Jiménez – Century of International Appearances". RSSSF, 6 April 2011. Retrieved on 26 May 2013.</ref>

Fonseca earned his first cap at the age of 17 on 27 May 1992, in a friendly match against Ecuador.<ref name="RSSSF Career" /> By November of that year, he appeared in a 1994 World Cup qualifier against St. Vincent and the Grenadines,<ref>Owsianski, Jaroslaw. "International Matches 1992 – North and Central America and Caribbean". RSSSF, 2 February 2005. Retrieved on 26 May 2013.</ref> the first of his five World Cup qualifying campaigns for Costa Rica.<ref name="RSSSF Career" /><ref>FIFA. "FIFA Player Statistics: Rolando FONSECA". Retrieved on 26 May 2013.</ref> The following year saw Fonseca's first international goal, which came on 9 March in an UNCAF Nations Cup match against Panama.<ref name="RSSSF Career" /><ref>Reyes, Macario. "UNCAF Tournament 1993". RSSSF, 2 June 2003. Retrieved on 26 May 2013.</ref>

By late 1996, Fonseca had become a regular in the national team, playing four World Cup qualifiers in the fall.<ref name="RSSSF Career" /> He scored a hat trick against Honduras in the 1997 UNCAF Nations Cup,<ref>Courtney, Barrie; Jönsson, Mikael; Morrison, Neil. "UNCAF Tournament 1997". RSSSF, 26 January 2003. Retrieved on 26 May 2013.</ref> the first of three in his international career.<ref name="RSSSF Career" /> He earned a call to the squad for the Copa América in Bolivia, but he appeared only in the first-round match against Mexico as the team lost all three group games.<ref>Tabeira, Martín. "Copa América 1997". RSSSF, 2 August 2007. Retrieved on 26 May 2013.</ref>

At the turn of the millennium, Fonseca was entering the highest-scoring stretch of his international career; he scored eight times for Costa Rica in 1999, six times in 2000, and twelve times in 2001.<ref name="RSSSF Career" /> During the same period, Costa Rica rose fast in CONCACAF, finishing in first place in World Cup qualifying.<ref>Stokkermans, Karel. "World Cup 2002 Qualifying". RSSSF, 26 November 2009. Retrieved on 26 May 2013.</ref> At the 2001 Copa América, Fonseca appeared in all four matches and scored against Bolivia, as the Costa Ricans won their first-round group with a team that also included Paulo César Wanchope, Walter Centeno, and Hernán Medford.<ref>Tabeira, Martín. "Copa América 2001". RSSSF, 31 May 2012. Retrieved on 26 May 2013.</ref> Fonseca played in two games for the team at the 2002 World Cup, appearing in the first-round matches against China<ref>FIFA. "Match Report – China PR – Costa Rica 0:2 (0:0)". 4 June 2002. Retrieved on 26 May 2013.</ref> and Brazil.<ref>FIFA. "Match Report – Costa Rica – Brazil 2:5 (1:3)". 13 June 2002. Retrieved on 26 May 2013.</ref>

Fonseca remained in the national team after the World Cup, playing in the 2003 CONCACAF Gold Cup and scoring twice against the United States,<ref>Saaid, Hamdan. "CONCACAF Championship, Gold Cup 2003 – Full Details". RSSSF, 6 December 2006. Retrieved on 26 May 2013.</ref> but he was limited to only one cap in 2004 and two in 2005.<ref name="RSSSF Career" /> He was excluded from the 2006 FIFA World Cup squad selected by Alexandre Guimarães.<ref>ESPN. "Costa Rica's World Cup roster leads to criticism". 25 April 2006. Retrieved on 26 May 2013.</ref> Upon the appointment of former teammate Medford as national coach, however, Fonseca returned to the national team in early 2007.<ref>Rodríguez, José Luis. "Medford va con dos delanteros". La Nación, 31 January 2007. Retrieved on 26 May 2013.</ref> He appeared only once for Costa Rica during the two-year span after the 2007 CONCACAF Gold Cup, but he was recalled late in 2009 for the last stages of World Cup qualifying by coach René Simões.<ref>FIFA. "Simoes: It's not impossible". 9 October 2009. Retrieved on 26 May 2013.</ref> Fonseca played his final competitive international match in the intercontinental playoff match against Uruguay on 18 November 2009, coming off the bench for the last 26 minutes.<ref name="RSSSF Career" /><ref>FIFA. "Match Report – Uruguay – Costa Rica 1:1 (0:0)". 18 November 2009. Retrieved on 26 May 2013.</ref>

His 47th and last international goal came against Chile, in a spectacular strike with his back to the goal, which also meant the number 1000 for Costa Rica in international matches.<ref>La Nación. "Con un lujo de Fonseca, la Tricolor se plantó en Chile". 29 March 2007. Retrieved on 26 May 2013.</ref> The all-time top scorer in the UNCAF Nations Cup with 19 goals,<ref>Goldberg, David. "Números de Rolo respaldan su talento". La Nación, 5 January 2011. Retrieved on 26 May 2013.</ref> Fonseca was voted the tournament's best player in 1999, adding five goals.<ref>Soccer America. "International: Costa Rica wins UNCAF Cup". 29 March 1999. Retrieved on 26 May 2013.</ref>

On 26 March 2011, Rolando Fonseca played in the first game of the new Costa Rican Estadio Nacional against China.<ref name="Nacion Special" /> He substituted Álvaro Saborío in the 78th minute.<ref>Rivera, Arnoldo. "La Selección desentonó en el estreno de su nueva casa". La Nación, 27 March 2011. Retrieved on 26 May 2013.</ref> This was his last game with the Costa Rica national football team, as he retired from international play as Costa Rica's all-time leading scorer.

Career statistics

International

Appearances and goals by national team and year<ref>Template:NFT player</ref>
National team Year Apps Goals
Costa Rica 1992 6 0
1993 7 3
1994 1 0
1995 4 3
1996 6 0
1997 9 4
1999 10 8
2000 8 6
2001 21 12
2002 9 2
2003 12 3
2004 1 1
2005 2 0
2007 12 5
2008 1 0
2009 3 0
2011 1 0
Total 113 47


Scores and results list Costa Rica's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Fonseca goal.
List of international goals scored by Rolando Fonseca
No. Date Venue Opponent Score Result Competition Template:Abbr
1 Template:Dts Estadio Nacional Chelato Uclés, Tegucigalpa, Honduras Template:Fb 2–0 2–0 1993 UNCAF Nations Cup <ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
2 Template:Dts Estadio Atanasio Girardot, Medellín, Colombia Template:Fb 1–2 1–4 Friendly <ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
3 Template:Dts Estadio Nacional, San José, Costa Rica Template:Fb 2–0 3–1 Friendly <ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
4 Template:Dts Estadio Nacional Flor Blanca, San Salvador, El Salvador Template:Fb 1–0 2–1 1995 UNCAF Nations Cup <ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
5 Template:Dts Estadio Nacional Flor Blanca, San Salvador, El Salvador Template:Fb 1–0 1–1 1995 UNCAF Nations Cup <ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
6 Template:Dts Estadio Cuscatlán, San Salvador, El Salvador Template:Fb 1–2 1–2 1995 UNCAF Nations Cup <ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
7 Template:Dts Estadio Doroteo Guamuch Flores, Guatemala City, Guatemala Template:Fb 1–0 4–0 1997 UNCAF Nations Cup <ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
8 2–0
9 4–0
10 Template:Dts Estadio Doroteo Guamuch Flores, Guatemala City, Guatemala Template:Fb 1–0 1–1 1997 UNCAF Nations Cup <ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
11 Template:Dts Estadio Ricardo Saprissa Aymá, San Juan de Tibás, Costa Rica Template:Fb 4–0 9–0 Friendly <ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
12 5–0
13 Template:Dts Estadio Nacional, San José, Costa Rica Template:Fb 2–0 7–0 1999 UNCAF Nations Cup <ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
14 6–0
15 Template:Dts Estadio Nacional, San José, Costa Rica Template:Fb 1–0 1–0 1999 UNCAF Nations Cup <ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
16 Template:Dts Estadio Nacional, San José, Costa Rica Template:Fb 1–1 1–2 1999 UNCAF Nations Cup <ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
17 Template:Dts Estadio Nacional, San José, Costa Rica Template:Fb 3–0 4–0 1999 UNCAF Nations Cup <ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
18 Template:Dts Estadio Centenario, Montevideo, Uruguay Template:Fb 3–4 4–5 Friendly <ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
19 Template:Dts Estadio Alejandro Morera Soto, Alajuela, Costa Rica Template:Fb 1–1 5–1 Friendly <ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
20 3–1
21 4–1
22 Template:Dts Estadio Ricardo Saprissa Aymá, San Juan de Tibás, Costa Rica Template:Fb 1–0 2–1 2002 FIFA World Cup qualification <ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
23 Template:Dts Estadio Ricardo Saprissa Aymá, San Juan de Tibás, Costa Rica Template:Fb 2–0 3–0 2002 FIFA World Cup qualification <ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
24 Template:Dts Estadio Carlos Salazar Hijo, Mazatenango, Guatemala Template:Fb 1–1 1–2 2002 FIFA World Cup qualification <ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
25 Template:Dts Miami Orange Bowl, Miami, United States Template:Fb 2–1 5–2 2002 FIFA World Cup qualification <ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
26 4–1
27 Template:Dts Estadio Ricardo Saprissa Aymá, San Juan de Tibás, Costa Rica Template:Fb 1–1 2–2 2002 FIFA World Cup qualification <ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
28 Template:Dts Estadio Alejandro Morera Soto, Alajuela, Costa Rica Template:Fb 1–0 2–2 Friendly <ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
29 Template:Dts Estadio Olímpico Metropolitano, San Pedro Sula, Honduras Template:Fb 1–0 4–0 2001 UNCAF Nations Cup <ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
30 2–0
31 4–0
32 Template:Dts Estadio Azteca, Mexico City, Mexico Template:Fb 1–1 2–1 2002 FIFA World Cup qualification <ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
33 Template:Dts Estadio Nacional Chelato Uclés, Tegucigalpa, Honduras Template:Fb 2–0 3–2 2002 FIFA World Cup qualification <ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
34 Template:Dts Estadio Atanasio Girardot, Medellín, Colombia Template:Fb 4–0 4–0 2001 Copa América <ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
35 Template:Dts Estadio Ricardo Saprissa Aymá, San Juan de Tibás, Costa Rica Template:Fb 1–0 2–0 2002 FIFA World Cup qualification <ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
36 2–0
37 Template:Dts Miami Orange Bowl, Miami, United States Template:Fb 2–0 2–0 2002 CONCACAF Gold Cup <ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
38 Template:Dts Miami Orange Bowl, Miami, United States Template:Fb 1–0 1–1 2002 CONCACAF Gold Cup <ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
39 Template:Dts Estadio Ricardo Saprissa Aymá, San Juan de Tibás, Costa Rica Template:Fb 1–0 1–0 Friendly <ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
40 Template:Dts Miami Orange Bowl, Miami, United States Template:Fb 1–0 2–3 2003 CONCACAF Gold Cup <ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
41 2–1
42 Template:Dts Estadio Ricardo Saprissa Aymá, San Juan de Tibás, Costa Rica Template:Fb 5–0 5–0 2006 FIFA World Cup qualification <ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
43 Template:Dts Estadio Alejandro Morera Soto, Alajuela, Costa Rica Template:Fb 4–0 4–0 Friendly <ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
44 Template:Dts Estadio Cuscatlán, San Salvador, El Salvador Template:Fb 1–0 3–1 2007 CONCACAF Gold Cup <ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
45 3–1
46 Template:Dts Estadio Cuscatlán, San Salvador, El Salvador Template:Fb 2–0 2–0 2007 CONCACAF Gold Cup <ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
47 Template:Dts Estadio Fiscal de Talca, Talca, Chile Template:Fb 1–1 1–1 Friendly <ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Honours

Saprissa

Alajuelense

Comunicaciones

Costa Rica

Individual

  • UNCAF Nations Cup All-star team: 1997

See also

References

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