Jhon Kennedy Hurtado Valencia (born May 16, 1984) is a Colombian footballer who last played for Chivas USA in Major League Soccer.

Jhon Kennedy Hurtado
Personal information
Full name Jhon Kennedy Hurtado Valencia
Date of birth (1984-05-16) May 16, 1984 (age 40)
Place of birth Palmira, Colombia
Height 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m)
Position(s) Defender
Youth career
Deportivo Cali
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2004 Unión Magdalena 8 (0)
2005 Monagas
2006–2007 Centauros 12 (0)
2006Expreso Rojo (loan) 17 (1)
2007Real Cartagena (loan) 28 (0)
2008–2009 Deportivo Cali 23 (0)
2009Expreso Rojo (loan) 1 (1)
2009Seattle Sounders FC (loan) 27 (1)
2010–2013 Seattle Sounders FC 81 (0)
2014 Chicago Fire 19 (1)
2014 Chivas USA 6 (0)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of October 29, 2014

Career

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Professional

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Hurtado began his career in the youth ranks of Deportivo Cali. In 2004, he began his professional career with Unión Magdalena, and since went on to appear in 121 matches at the first and second division levels in Colombia. In 2005 Hurtado played for Monagas in the Primera División Venezolana. The following season, he returned to Colombia signing with Centauros. In 2007, Hurtado played for Expreso Rojo and Real Cartagena of the Colombian Categoría Primera B, while in 2008 he played for Deportivo Cali.[1]

Known for his incredible pace, Hurtado had a trial at Italian giants Milan, and played a friendly against German side Hannover, prior to signing with Major League Soccer expansion side Seattle Sounders FC on loan from Cali. “Jhon has good speed, he’s a good man-to-man marker, a good tackler and uses his speed to close people down,” said Sounders FC technical director Chris Henderson. “We had a chance to see him play 2-3 times, plus some video. We’re excited to have him join our team.”[2] Hurtado made his MLS debut on March 19 where he started in Seattle's first ever game, which Seattle won 3-0 defeating the New York Red Bulls. On May 16, 2009 Hurtado celebrated his 25th birthday by scoring his first MLS goal in a 1-1 draw at FC Dallas.[3] On February 16, 2010, Hurtado signed a permanent deal with Seattle Sounders FC.[4] He made a total of 108 league appearances for the club, scoring one goal, before leaving the club in the winter of 2014. During his time in Seattle the club captured the U.S. Open Cup three consecutive years.

On January 15, 2014 Hurtado was traded from the Seattle Sounders to the Chicago Fire along with Patrick Ianni and the 13th overall pick in the 2014 MLS SuperDraft. In return, the Sounders acquired Jalil Anibaba, the 8th overall pick in the 2014 MLS Superdraft, and a conditional pick in the 2015 MLS SuperDraft from Chicago.[5] After appearing in 19 matches as a starter for Chicago, Hurtado was traded to Chivas USA on August 22, 2014 in exchange for allocation money.[6]

On December 4, 2015, it was announced that he was given a trial with Major League Soccer side New York City FC.[7]

Personal life

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Hurtado is married to wife Daysury with whom he has one child named Paolo, born on June 19, 2009. Following the birth of Paolo, Hurtado missed the Seattle Sounders versus the New York Red Bulls game. Hurtado and his wife watched the match as Fredy Montero and Osvaldo Alonso celebrated Paolo's birth via t-shirt messages. Montero and Hurtado are good friends who first met while playing for Deportivo Cali. They often carpooled to work.[8]

Hurtado was granted a U.S. green card in December 2010. This status qualifies him as a domestic player for MLS roster purposes.[9]

Honours

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Seattle Sounders FC

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References

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  1. ^ "Hurtado Valencia John Kennedy". golgolgol.net. Retrieved 2010-01-15.
  2. ^ Sounders sign Hurtado Archived 2011-10-03 at the Wayback Machine - soundersfc.com
  3. ^ Sounders settle for a draw at Dallas Archived 2015-09-24 at the Wayback Machine - soundersfc.com
  4. ^ Sounders FC Completes Hurtado Transfer[permanent dead link] - soundersfc.com
  5. ^ Chicago Fire acquire Hurtado from Seattle - chicago-fire.com
  6. ^ Chivas acquire Hurtado Archived 2015-02-16 at the Wayback Machine - cdchivasusa.com
  7. ^ "New York City FC announce 2016 roster moves, squad for next week's friendly vs. Puerto Rico | MLSSoccer.com".
  8. ^ "Sounders FC players Fredy Montero and Jhon Kennedy Hurtado bond". The Seattle Times. July 29, 2009. Archived from the original on June 4, 2011.
  9. ^ "Sounders | Sounders FC's Jhon Kennedy Hurtado, Blaise Nkufo, Steve Zakuani granted green cards | Seattle Times Newspaper". Seattletimes.nwsource.com. December 7, 2010. Retrieved July 9, 2012.
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