Petter Villegas
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| Peter Villegas | ||
| Personal information | ||
|---|---|---|
| Full name | Petter Villegas-Espana | |
| Date of birth | November 15, 1975 (age 31) | |
| Place of birth | Esmeraldas, Ecuador | |
| Height | 5 ft 7 in | |
| Playing position | Midfielder / Forward / Defender | |
| Club information | ||
| Current club | Retired | |
| Youth clubs | ||
| 1991-1993 1995 |
Saint Benedict's Preparatory School Kean College |
|
| Senior clubs1 | ||
| Years | Club | App (Gls)* |
| 1995-1999 1996 1999-2002 2002 2005 |
New Jersey Stallions MetroStars (loan) MetroStars D.C. United Barcelona SC ESPOLI Manta Cuenca Puerto Rico Islanders |
3 (0) 88 (15) 18 (2) 23 (6) |
|
1 Senior club appearances and goals |
||
Petter Villegas (born November 15, 1975 in Esmeraldas, Ecuador) is a soccer winger, who made his name with the MetroStars of Major League Soccer.
Villegas came to the United States at an early age, and played high school boy's soccer at Saint Benedict's Preparatory School. He was a three time New Jersey All State high school player. In 1993, he scored 34 goals, assisted on 18 more. He went on to play a year of college soccer at Kean College, earning first team All-NJAC honors in 1995. His first taste of Major League Soccer action came in 1996, when he played three games for the MetroStars while on loan from the New Jersey Stallions of the USISL. Three years in the minors followed, until the Metros drafted Villegas in the first round of the 1999 MLS Supplemental Draft. He played the next four and a half seasons for the Metros, mostly as a right midfielder, but also as a forward and defender. Villegas' erratic play matched his versatility. Brilliant one moment, awful the next - a lot like the team he played for - earned him the sarcastic nickname The Greatest Metro Ever. Despite his inconsistency, he scored a number of key goals, including an overtime game winner in a comeback against the Tampa Bay Mutiny in 2000. Overall, Villegas scored 13 goals and 21 assists in his Metro career, adding two goals and two assists in the playoffs.
On May 10, 2002, the MetroStars traded Villegas and defender Orlando Perez to D.C. United for Craig Ziadie and Mark Lisi. At the time of the trade, Villegas had started all seven MetroStars' games that season. He spent the rest of the year with D.C., scoring two goals and adding five assists. Villegas left MLS afterwards, going back to his native Ecuador to play for Barcelona SC, ESPOLI, Manta and Cuenca. In 2005, he came back to the U.S., signing with the Puerto Rico Islanders of the USL First Division.
