Wilder José Cartagena Mendoza (born 23 September 1994) is a Peruvian professional

footballer A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby lea ...

who plays as a

defensive midfielder In the sport of association football, a midfielder takes an outfield position primarily in the middle of the pitch. Midfielders may play an exclusively defensive role, breaking up attacks, and are in that case known as defensive midfielders. ...

for

Major League Soccer Major League Soccer (MLS) is a professional Association football, soccer league in North America and the highest level of the United States soccer league system. It comprises 30 teams, with 27 in the United States and 3 in Canada, and is sanc ...

club Orlando City and the Peru national team.

Early life

Cartagena spent most of his free time playing football on the streets and on a bad pitch. El Carmen was badly affected by an earthquake that collapsed Cartagena's school, which forced him to go study in

Lima Lima ( ; ), founded in 1535 as the Ciudad de los Reyes (, Spanish for "City of Biblical Magi, Kings"), is the capital and largest city of Peru. It is located in the valleys of the Chillón River, Chillón, Rímac River, Rímac and Lurín Rive ...

. While studying in Lima he made friends who were playing youth football with various clubs and it was there he tried out for

Alianza Lima Club Alianza Lima, more commonly known as simply Alianza Lima, is a Peru, Peruvian professional sports club based in La Victoria District, Lima, La Victoria District of Lima, Peru. The club was founded under the name of Sport Alianza on February ...

and was accepted. Cartagena started out playing as a goalkeeper for Alianza Lima, but following a scrimmage between his school, which he did not play as a goalkeeper for, and the academy of Alianza Lima, the club moved him into midfield.

Club career

Alianza Lima

Wilder Cartagena was promoted to the Alianza Lima first team in January 2012. He soon made his Torneo Descentralizado league debut on matchday one in a 2–2 home draw against

León de Huánuco Club Social Deportivo León de Huánuco, more commonly known as León de Huánuco, is a professional Peruvian football (soccer), football club based in the city of Huánuco. It is historically the biggest football club of Huánuco city. Founded in ...

. He was used again as a starter by manager José Soto on matchday 27 in away match against

Juan Aurich Club Juan Aurich S. A., commonly known as Juan Aurich, is a Peru, Peruvian association football, football club based in Chiclayo. The original Juan Aurich club was founded in 1922, this incarnation however was founded in 2005. The club currently ...

. In the 2013 season, Cartagena made many more appearances for the senior side. On 30 November, Cartagena scored his first senior goal for the club when he equalized in a match against UCV, helping the match to end 1–1.

Vitória de Setúbal

On 21 January 2014, Cartagena signed a contract through June 2015 with

Primeira Liga The Primeira Liga (), also known as Liga Portugal Betclic for sponsorship reasons, is a professional association football league in Portugal and the highest level of the Portuguese football league system. Organised and supervised by the Liga ...

club Vitória Setúbal. Cartagena spoke about how he wished to establish himself at the club and that he hoped his performance at the club would improve his chances to be called up to the Peru senior team. However, Cartagena failed to make an appearance for the club and only was put on the bench once during a match on 28 September against

Nacional Nacional, the Portuguese and Spanish word for "national", may refer to: Airlines * Nacional Transportes Aéreos, a Brazilian airline defunct in 2002 * Transportes Aéreos Nacional, a Brazilian airline defunct in 1961 Bank * Banco Nacional, a ...

, which Vitória won 2–0.

Universidad San Martín

On 12 January 2015, Cartagena returned to Peru and joined Torneo Descentralizado club Universidad San Martín due to a lack of playing opportunities at Vitória Setúbal, signing a one year contract. On 15 February, Cartagena made his debut for the club at

Cienciano Club Cienciano, more commonly known as Cienciano, is a Peru, Peruvian professional association football, football club based in Cusco, that currently plays in the Peruvian Primera División. It gained worldwide recognition after defeating Club At ...

in the

Torneo del Inca The Torneo del Inca was a football competition in Peru played by the football clubs of the Primera División. It was founded in 2011 under the name Torneo Intermedio and was played as a domestic football cup competition between clubs of the first ...

in a match that ended in a 1–0 loss. At the conclusion of the 2015 season, Cartagena had his contract renewed through the 2016 season. On 5 July 2016, Cartagena scored his first goal for the club and the second of his senior career, again against UCV, in a match that ended in a 2–2 draw. At the conclusion of the 2016 season, Cartagena once again had his contract renewed for another season. In the 2017 season, Cartagena made the most appearances of his career up to that point in a single season, logging 38 appearances and one goal.

Veracruz

On 7 January 2018, Cartagena was announced as a

Liga MX Liga MX, also known as Liga BBVA MX for sponsorship reasons, is a professional association football league in Mexico and the highest level of the Mexican football league system. Formerly known as Liga Mayor (1943–1949) and also as Primera Divis ...

club

Veracruz Veracruz, formally Veracruz de Ignacio de la Llave, officially the Free and Sovereign State of Veracruz de Ignacio de la Llave, is one of the 31 states which, along with Mexico City, comprise the 32 Political divisions of Mexico, Federal Entit ...

signing. On 28 January, Cartagena made his debut for the club in a 1–1 draw against

Santos Laguna Club Santos Laguna S.A. de C.V., simply known as Santos Laguna or Santos, is a Mexican professional football club based in Torreón, Coahuila. The club competes in Liga MX, the top division of Mexican football. Founded in 1983 as Club Santos I ...

and played the full match. In total, Cartagena would make just 13 appearances for the club across the 2017–18 season. In the following season, Cartagena made one less appearance in the league, but he made his

Copa MX Copa MX, also known as Copa Corona MX for sponsorship reasons, was an association football competition in Mexico and the domestic cup tournament for clubs at the highest and second levels of Mexican football league system. Formerly known as Copa ...

debut in a 3–0 loss at

Club América Club de Fútbol América S.A. de C.V., commonly known as Club América, is a professional association football, football club based in Mexico City. Nicknamed ''Las Águilas'' (The Eagles), it competes in Liga MX, the top tier of Mexican football ...

Return to Alianza Lima

On 5 January 2019, Cartagena rejoined Alianza Lima in the Peruvian Primeira División on a one year deal. On 15 February, Cartagena made his first appearance for the club since his return in a 3–0 win over

Sport Boys The Sport Boys Association, commonly referred to as the Sport Boys or simply the Boys, is a Peruvian association football club based in the port city of Callao, founded on 28 July 1927. The club currently participate in the Peruvian Primera Divi ...

. On 6 March, Cartagena made his senior international cup debut in the

Copa Libertadores The CONMEBOL Libertadores, also known as Copa Libertadores de América (), is an annual continental club football competition organized by CONMEBOL since 1960. It is the highest level of competition in South American club football. The tournam ...

against Argentinian club River Plate, resulting in a 1–1 draw. In total, Cartagena made 30 domestic appearances and five international appearances for his first club across the 2019 season, but he did not sign a new contract with the club.

Godoy Cruz

On 21 January 2020, Cartagena was announced as an

Argentine Primera División The Primera División (; ), known officially as Liga Profesional de Fútbol, or Torneo Betano for sponsorship reasons, is a professional association football league in Argentina and the highest level of the Argentine football league system. Organ ...

club Godoy Cruz signing. On 23 February, Cartagena made his debut for the club in a 3–0 loss at

Boca Juniors Club Atlético Boca Juniors () is an Argentine professional sports club based in La Boca, a neighbourhood of Buenos Aires. The club is best known for its men's professional Association football, football team which, since its promotion in 1913 ...

, playing the full match. Six days later, Cartagena scored his first goal for the club, the opening goal of a 3–1 loss to Unión. On 14 March, Cartagena made his first and only Copa de la Superliga appearance in a 4–1 loss to Boca Juniors. Cartagena would only make five appearances across all competitions for the club in the 2020 season. In the following season, Cartagena would only make two more appearances in two Godoy Cruz losses. In the 2022 season, Cartagena began to make regular appearances for the club again, making 11 appearances and scoring two more goals before he left the club.

Kalba FC

On 28 July 2021, Cartagena was announced as a

UAE Pro League The UAE Pro League (), also known as the ADNOC Pro League for sponsorship reasons, is a professional association football league in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and the highest level of the Emirati football league system. The first team to w ...

club Kalba FC signing. On 20 August, Cartagena made his debut for the club in a 1–0 loss at

Sharjah FC Sharjah Football Club () is an Emirati professional football club based in Sharjah that competes in the UAE Pro League. Their home stadium is the Sharjah Stadium. Founded in 1966, Sharjah is considered to be one of the pioneers of complaining s ...

. On 25 October, Cartagena made his

UAE League Cup The UAE League Cup () is a knockout tournament for clubs in the UAE Pro-League. The first edition of the tournament was played in the 2008–09 Etisalat Emirates Cup, 2008–2009 season. In the 2008–09 season, UAE League Cup replaced the UAE Fed ...

debut in a 1–0 loss at Al Orooba. Across the 2021–22 season, Cartagena made 25 appearances across all competitions.

Loan to Orlando City

On 2 August 2022, Cartegena joined

club Orlando City on loan from the remainder of the 2022 season with an option to extend through 2023. On 13 August, Cartagena made his debut for the club when he came on as a 91st-minute substitute for Facundo Torres in a 1–0 victory at the

New York Red Bulls The New York Red Bulls are an American professional association football, soccer club based in the New York metropolitan area. The Red Bulls compete in Major League Soccer (MLS) as a member of the Eastern Conference (MLS), Eastern Conferenc ...

. Four days later, Cartagena made a single appearance with Orlando City's reserve affiliate

Orlando City B Orlando City B (or OCB for short) is an American soccer club that began play in 2016 and currently plays in MLS Next Pro. Owned by Orlando City SC and based at the Orlando City training facility in Kissimmee, the club plays its home games at ...

against Rochester New York in which he scored the third goal of a 5–2 victory. On 30 July 2023, Cartagena scored his first goal for the club in a

Leagues Cup The Leagues Cup is an annual soccer competition between clubs from Major League Soccer (MLS), the main soccer league in the United States, and Liga MX, the main soccer league in Mexico. It is hosted in Canada and the United States. It began in ...

match against

. Cartagena's goal, which was scored in added time, allowed Orlando City to progress to the knockout state of the competition. On 2 September, during a match against

FC Cincinnati Football Club Cincinnati is an American professional soccer club based in Cincinnati. The club competes in Major League Soccer (MLS) as a member of the Eastern Conference. The team was first announced on August 12, 2015 as a United Soccer Leag ...

, Cartagena was involved in a scuffle with the opposition players in which he received a red card for his role. Cartagena was fined four days later by the MLS Disciplinary Committee for failing to leave the pitch in a timely manner after his ejection. On 30 October, Cartagena scored his first MLS Cup playoffs goal in the first round of Orlando City's series with

Nashville SC Nashville Soccer Club is an American professional soccer club based in Nashville, Tennessee. The club competes in Major League Soccer (MLS) as a member of the Eastern Conference. The team spent two seasons in the USL Championship before joining ...

when he struck the ball from outside the penalty box and hit the ball on the underside of the crossbar and into the goal to help Orlando to a 1–0 win.

Orlando City

Cartagena was acquired by the club permanently on 14 December 2023 with a guaranteed contract through 2025. In the 2024 season, Cartagena made the most appearances in his senior career across an entire season for a single club, registering 39 appearances across all competitions. On 25 January 2025, Cartagena suffered an injury to his left

achilles tendon The Achilles tendon or heel cord, also known as the calcaneal tendon, is a tendon at the back of the lower leg, and is the thickest in the human body. It serves to attach the plantaris, gastrocnemius (calf) and soleus muscles to the calcane ...

in a preseason friendly match against

Atlético Mineiro Atlético, Spanish for ''athletics'', or Athletico in English, may refer to: Sports Teams Athletico *Athletico SC (Lebanon), a Lebanese football academy *Athletic Bilbao, or Atletico Bilbao, Basque students athletic club (also forming Athletic Cl ...

. Four days later, Cartagena underwent a successful surgery to repair his tendon, but he was placed onto the season-ending injury list.

International career

Youth

Cartagena was called up by manager Juan José Oré to the Peru U17 team to participate in the 2011 South American U-17 Championship in

Ecuador Ecuador, officially the Republic of Ecuador, is a country in northwestern South America, bordered by Colombia on the north, Peru on the east and south, and the Pacific Ocean on the west. It also includes the Galápagos Province which contain ...

. On 12 March 2011, Cartagena made his international debut in the tournament in a 4–2 loss to

Argentina Argentina, officially the Argentine Republic, is a country in the southern half of South America. It covers an area of , making it the List of South American countries by area, second-largest country in South America after Brazil, the fourt ...

in which he played the entire match. Peru were eventually eliminated after placing fourth in Group A, one spot below third which would've seen the team advance to the final round of the tournament. Cartagena was called up to the Peru U20 for the 2013 South American Youth Football Championship in

by manager Daniel Ahmed. Cartagena made his debut for the team on 10 January 2013 in a 3–3 draw with

Uruguay Uruguay, officially the Oriental Republic of Uruguay, is a country in South America. It shares borders with Argentina to its west and southwest and Brazil to its north and northeast, while bordering the Río de la Plata to the south and the A ...

and he once again played the full match. Peru placed first in Group B, allowing the team to advance to the final round, but they placed fifth out of six teams.

Senior

Cartagena received his first senior team call-up by

Ricardo Gareca Ricardo Alberto Gareca Nardi (; born 10 February 1958), nicknamed ''el Tigre'' and ''el Flaco'' ("Tiger " and "Slim"), is an Argentine football manager and former player. He was recently the manager of the Chile national team. During his play ...

for friendlies against

Scotland Scotland is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It contains nearly one-third of the United Kingdom's land area, consisting of the northern part of the island of Great Britain and more than 790 adjac ...

Saudi Arabia Saudi Arabia, officially the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA), is a country in West Asia. Located in the centre of the Middle East, it covers the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula and has a land area of about , making it the List of Asian countries ...

, and

Sweden Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden, is a Nordic countries, Nordic country located on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. It borders Norway to the west and north, and Finland to the east. At , Sweden is the largest Nordic count ...

ahead of the

2018 FIFA World Cup The 2018 FIFA World Cup was the 21st FIFA World Cup, the quadrennial world championship for national association football, football teams organized by FIFA. It took place in Russia from 14 June to 15 July 2018, after the country was awarded t ...

Russia Russia, or the Russian Federation, is a country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia. It is the list of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the world, and extends across Time in Russia, eleven time zones, sharing Borders ...

. Cartagena made his debut as an 84th-minute substitute for

Renato Tapia Renato Fabrizio Tapia Cortijo (born 28 July 1995) is a Peruvian professional footballer who plays as a defensive midfielder or centre-back for club Leganés and the Peru national team. Club career Youth career Born in Lima, Peru, Tapia start ...

in a 2–0 win over Scotland on 29 May 2018. On 4 June, Gareca named Cartagena to the squad that would compete in the World Cup. On 26 June, Cartagena made his World Cup debut and only appearance of the tournament when he came on as a 79th-minute substitute for

André Carrillo André Martín Carrillo Díaz (born 14 June 1991) is a Peruvian professional footballer who plays as an attacking midfielder for Campeonato Brasileiro Série A club Corinthians and the Peru national team. He is nicknamed ''La Culebra'' (The Sna ...

in a 2–0 win over

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...

. Peru's victory over Australia marked their first win at a World Cup since

1978 Events January * January 1 – Air India Flight 855, a Boeing 747 passenger jet, crashes off the coast of Bombay, killing 213. * January 5 – Bülent Ecevit, of Republican People's Party, CHP, forms the new government of Turkey (42nd ...

over

Iran Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran (IRI) and also known as Persia, is a country in West Asia. It borders Iraq to the west, Turkey, Azerbaijan, and Armenia to the northwest, the Caspian Sea to the north, Turkmenistan to the nort ...

, but they were eliminated in the group stage. Cartagena was called up by Ricardo Gareca for the

2021 Copa América The 2021 Copa América was the 47th edition of the Copa América, the international men's association football, football championship organised by South America's football ruling body CONMEBOL. The tournament took place in Brazil from 13 June to ...

Brazil Brazil, officially the Federative Republic of Brazil, is the largest country in South America. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by area, fifth-largest country by area and the List of countries and dependencies by population ...

on 10 June 2021. On 21 June, Cartagena made his tournament debut when he came on as a 83rd-minute substitute for Sergio Peña in a 2–1 win over

Colombia Colombia, officially the Republic of Colombia, is a country primarily located in South America with Insular region of Colombia, insular regions in North America. The Colombian mainland is bordered by the Caribbean Sea to the north, Venezuel ...

. Peru would advance to the knockout stage of the tournament but were eliminated by hosts

in the semi-finals and lose to Colombia in the third place match. On 15 June 2024, Cartagena was called up by

Jorge Fossati Jorge Daniel Fossati Lurachi (born 22 November 1952 in Montevideo) is a Uruguayan football (soccer), football manager and former player who played as a Goalkeeper (association football), goalkeeper. He is the current manager of Peruvian club Cl ...

for the

2024 Copa América The 2024 Copa América was the 48th edition of the Copa América, the quadrennial international men's association football, soccer championship organized by South America's football ruling body CONMEBOL. The tournament was held in the United Sta ...

in the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

. Cartagena played in all three matches of the group stage, but the Peruvians were eliminated after placing last in Group A.

Personal life

Cartagena has a daughter. Cartagena describes his relationship with fellow Orlando City player Pedro Gallese as a "brotherhood" as they have played for the same clubs in the past and their families are very close together.

Career statistics

Club

International

Honours

Orlando City * U.S. Open Cup:

2022 The year began with another wave in the COVID-19 pandemic, with SARS-CoV-2 Omicron variant, Omicron spreading rapidly and becoming the dominant variant of the SARS-CoV-2 virus worldwide. Tracking a decrease in cases and deaths, 2022 saw ...

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Cartagena, Wilder 1994 births Living people Men's association football midfielders Peruvian men's footballers 21st-century Peruvian sportsmen Peruvian expatriate men's footballers Club Alianza Lima footballers Vitória F.C. players Club Deportivo Universidad de San Martín de Porres players C.D. Veracruz footballers Godoy Cruz Antonio Tomba footballers Kalba FC players Orlando City SC players Orlando City B players Peruvian Primera División players Primeira Liga players Liga MX players Argentine Primera División players UAE Pro League players 2018 FIFA World Cup players 2021 Copa América players 2024 Copa América players Peru men's international footballers Peruvian expatriate sportspeople in Portugal Peruvian expatriate sportspeople in Mexico Peruvian expatriate sportspeople in Argentina Peruvian expatriate sportspeople in the United Arab Emirates Peruvian expatriate sportspeople in the United States Expatriate men's footballers in Portugal Expatriate men's footballers in Mexico Expatriate men's footballers in Argentina Expatriate men's footballers in the United Arab Emirates Expatriate men's soccer players in the United States Major League Soccer players MLS Next Pro players Footballers from Lima