| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Ray Anthony Pepito Jónsson[1] | ||
| Date of birth | 3 February 1979 | ||
| Place of birth | Cebu, Philippines | ||
| Height | 1.75 m (5 ft 9 in)[2] | ||
| Playing position | Full back, wide midfielder | ||
| Club information | |||
| Current club | Grindavik | ||
| Number | 3 | ||
| Youth career | |||
| –1997 | Grindavik | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps† | (Gls)† |
| 1997– | Grindavik | 188 | (5) |
| 1997–1998 | → GG (loan) | ? | (?) |
| 1999 | → Völsungur (loan) | ? | (?) |
| National team‡ | |||
| 2001 | Iceland U-21 | 2 | (0) |
| 2010– | Philippines | 18 | (0) |
| * Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 14:17, 7 October 2011 (UTC). † Appearances (Goals). |
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Ray Anthony Pepito Jónsson (born 3 February 1979) is an Icelandic–Filipino footballer who plays for Icelandic Premier League club Grindavik. A former Iceland U-21 international, he has since switched allegiance to the Philippines, making his debut in 2010. He plays mainly as a left back but has also played as a winger and even as a forward early in his career.[3]
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He signed a new three-year contract in March 2010.[4][5] He has played in 146 premier league matches as of September 2010[6] and also in some domestic and European cup matches.[4]
His father is Icelandic and his mother is a Filipina making him eligible to represent either country at international level. In 2001, he played two games with the Icelandic U-21 team,[7] but since he has not played for the senior national team, he is eligible to play for the Philippines.[8] This is after FIFA removed the age limit on players changing national teams in June 2009.[9] In September 2010 he was called up to play for the Philippines national team in the 2010 AFF Suzuki Cup qualification.[6]
Jónsson was initially planning on going to Asia on holiday but was tipped about possibly trying out for the Philippines national team. He eventually got in touch with the people involved with the national team and he was able to join the team in time for the 2010 Long Teng Cup.[10] He then made his full international debut in their final match against Macau on 12 October 2010, playing the full 90 minutes and keeping a clean sheet in a 5–0 win.[11]
During the Suzuki Cup qualifiers, he played in all three matches and was instrumental in keeping two clean sheets against Timor-Leste and Cambodia. This helped the Philippines stay undefeated with one win and two draws and clinch qualification for the 2010 AFF Suzuki Cup.[12][13][14] His good form would continue at the Suzuki Cup with the Philippines conceding only a single goal in the group stage, in the 1–1 draw with Singapore.[15] Thus, the Philippines qualified for the knockout stage of the tournament for the first time ever. They faced Indonesia in the semi-finals and in the first-leg, the Philippines lost 1–0 with the goal coming from a mix up between Jónsson and goalkeeper Neil Etheridge.[16] The Philippines eventually lost 2–0 on aggregate.[17]
Jónsson was born and raised in Liloan, Cebu before moving to Iceland when he was eight years old.[18] He has a younger brother named Michael, who is also a footballer and a former teammate at Grindavik.[19]