Jonathan Cisneros on trial at CD Leganes

Discussion in 'Yanks Abroad Academy' started by zlatan_but_a_car, Dec 13, 2018.

  1. zlatan_but_a_car

    Botswana Meat Commission FC
    United States
    Oct 16, 2017
    #1 zlatan_but_a_car, Dec 13, 2018
    Last edited: Dec 13, 2018
    I couldn't find a thread for this kid, so here goes nothing:

    Jonathan Ali Cisneros Mejía is a '96 'Forward / Central Mid / Winger' (his / his agent's words) from the greater Dallas area. He played for Dallas Texans during high school, then 1 year for Louisburg College before turning pro and signing for Platense FC in the Honduran first division in 2017. I actually can't find much info about his time there, and based on his recent social media activity he might've been released from his contract there.

    Recently he found his way to Spain to compete in some kind of trial tournament, and played against Leganes C sometime in the beginning of December:
    1070366394733203461 is not a valid tweet id


    Then got a trial there a few days later:
    1071475965295874050 is not a valid tweet id


    1071476219730833408 is not a valid tweet id


    And then, today said that he missed his flight home as Leganes has 'asked him to stay':
    1073283347877634049 is not a valid tweet id


    I'll try and keep an eye out for any developments. It's also worth noting that Facebook-translate describes Johnny as a "Honduran player who grew up in America", and he tagged the Honduran FA in the pic of him at Leganes so I guess it's possible that he's not a dual-national, but he seems to follow US Soccer and most of his social media is in English... might be one for the "is this guy even a yank" thread.

    Edit: Just saw in the highlights video I linked to above that he holds passports for USA, Honduras, and El Salvador, so is a tri-national yank. Still interesting that he tagged to Honduran FA in that pic.
     
  2. Dave Marino-Nachison

    Jun 9, 1999
    The odds are certainly against a guy his age popping up more or less out of nowhere and getting anywhere near the Primera. But you gotta give it a shot when you get the chance!
     
  3. TxEx

    TxEx Member+

    Tottenham Hotspur, Crystal Palace, FC Dallas
    Aug 19, 2016
    DFW
    Club:
    Tottenham Hotspur FC
    Obviously the money is different but guys can carve out a living in the 2nd division in Spain, just as well, if not better than anything they can do in Honduras. Good luck to him and nice find Dave. Your internet stalking is amazing.
     
  4. Dave Marino-Nachison

    Jun 9, 1999
    I hope @zlatan_but_a_car's name is Dave! I added nothing to this thread apart from a few banalities -- they did the real work.
     
  5. Eighteen Alpha

    Eighteen Alpha Member+

    Aug 17, 2016
    Club:
    Stoke City FC
    Why do you think everything is about you? ;)
     
  6. TxEx

    TxEx Member+

    Tottenham Hotspur, Crystal Palace, FC Dallas
    Aug 19, 2016
    DFW
    Club:
    Tottenham Hotspur FC
    See what happens when you reply to the last post instead of the original post like you should have? This happens. Sorry @zlatan_but_a_car. Full kudos to you. But I'll stand by my props to @Dave Marino-Nachison because his googlefu skills truly are unparallelled here.
     
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  7. Catracho_Azul

    Catracho_Azul Member+

    Jun 16, 2008
    New Orleans
    Club:
    Corinthians Sao Paulo
    Nat'l Team:
    Honduras
    I think he tagged the Honduran FA because the person who found him that shot in Spain is an agent/coach who works in Honduras. He wants to represent Honduras.. doubt he will tho. Leganes B/C might be his apex or... USL 1
     
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  8. zlatan_but_a_car

    Botswana Meat Commission FC
    United States
    Oct 16, 2017
    He's still in Spain, which I guess is a good sign for getting the contract he wants in January, but this tweet is pretty interesting:

    1076119997322313728 is not a valid tweet id


    His profile and highlights show him mostly as an attack center mid or winger... this may be a sign that he's not good enough, but if he can play at the back confidently a club might just take a flyer on him.
     
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  9. zlatan_but_a_car

    Botswana Meat Commission FC
    United States
    Oct 16, 2017
    Still no contract, but sounds like his trial is going well. They've got him playing left-wing back which means every USMNT fan should instantly be interested in his success /s

    1083071941743910912 is not a valid tweet id
     
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  10. zlatan_but_a_car

    Botswana Meat Commission FC
    United States
    Oct 16, 2017
    Winoman repped this.
  11. zlatan_but_a_car

    Botswana Meat Commission FC
    United States
    Oct 16, 2017
    Yeah, that guy holding the scarf with him in the photos is Jorge Broto, the coach of CD Leganes C. They categorize that team in their academy section, so this is presumably the u23 squad. Jay is 22, so it's probably a contract until the end of the season, or maybe a 1 year contract.
     
  12. butters59

    butters59 Member+

    Feb 22, 2013
    What is Leganes C? Where do they play?
     
  13. zlatan_but_a_car

    Botswana Meat Commission FC
    United States
    Oct 16, 2017
    Primera de Aficionados Group 4 (6th division). As for the "what", your guess is as good as mine. I think it's the u23 team based on how they categorize it on their website.
     
  14. butters59

    butters59 Member+

    Feb 22, 2013
    OK, thank you. Then, probably, position he is playing is irrelevant. Still, good luck to the kid.
     
  15. zlatan_but_a_car

    Botswana Meat Commission FC
    United States
    Oct 16, 2017
    #15 zlatan_but_a_car, Jan 30, 2019
    Last edited: Jan 30, 2019
    The Honduran and Salvadorian media is making a pretty big deal out of this:





    https://www.diariomas.hn/2019/01/30/leganes-de-espana-contrata-al-hondureno-jonathan-cisneros/

    They all mention that Real Sociedad was also interested (edit: just kidding, they meant the Honduran club C.D Real Sociedad, where he spent some time a year ago, and not the Spanish club), and describe Leganes C as a reserve team rather than a Uxx team... that part is pretty confusing, because Leganes also have a B team that plays in the 4th division. Dario Mas says that he was actually signed by the senior team but will play with the reserves for this season. No one has mentioned a length of the contract.
     
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  16. BostonRed

    BostonRed Member+

    Oct 9, 2011
    Somerville, MA
    Club:
    New England Revolution
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    1090669378834702341 is not a valid tweet id
     
  17. zlatan_but_a_car

    Botswana Meat Commission FC
    United States
    Oct 16, 2017
    1091345416099192832 is not a valid tweet id


    Interview with Honduran media. I can't tell if it's a translation error or not, but he says he's been in Leganes' academy since November, which explains how he got the chance to trial with them. He also said that he considers himself both Honduran and American and that while he would play for either national team, he follows Honduran soccer closely.

    I've found this whole ordeal very interesting... this wouldn't be a big story for someone 18 or 19, but 22-going-on-23 is very late to be signing like this for a club like Leganes, considering his previous history (high school, minor college, reserve teams in Honduras, no youth national team experience). He mentions a company called Genova International, which I guess is a deal where you pay them and they arrange trails in Europe (specifically Italy and Spain, I guess)? Anyway, we'll see how quickly he's up to speed down in the 6th division.
     
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