Daniel_Leyva
Danny Leyva
American soccer player
Daniel Ulises Leyva (born May 5, 2003) is an American professional soccer player who plays as a defensive midfielder for Major League Soccer club Seattle Sounders FC.
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Daniel Ulises Leyva[1] | ||
| Date of birth | (2003-05-05) May 5, 2003 (age 21) | ||
| Place of birth | Las Vegas, Nevada, United States | ||
| Height | 5 ft 10 in (1.78 m)[2] | ||
| Position(s) | Defensive midfielder | ||
| Team information | |||
Current team | Seattle Sounders FC | ||
| Number | 75 | ||
| Youth career | |||
| Barcelona USA Academy | |||
| 2017–2019 | Seattle Sounders FC | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2018– | Tacoma Defiance | 31 | (2) |
| 2019– | Seattle Sounders FC | 56 | (0) |
| 2023 | → Colorado Rapids (loan) | 36 | (2) |
| International career‡ | |||
| 2018 | United States U16 | 5 | (1) |
| 2019 | United States U17 | 10 | (0) |
| 2021 | United States U20 | 2 | (0) |
| 2023– | United States U23 | 5 | (1) |
|
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of October 7, 2023 ‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of November 16, 2021 | |||
Leyva was raised in Las Vegas, Nevada; his father Ulises had played in the youth academy of Club América in Mexico City, but left the sport to pursue a career in civil engineering.[3] Leyva played for the Barcelona USA Academy in Las Vegas before joining the Seattle Sounders FC Academy at the age of 13. Leyva was placed on Seattle's under-15 team ahead of the 2017–18 season, but was later moved to the under-17 squad.[4][5][6]
Seattle Sounders FC
He made his debut for the Sounders reserve team in the United Soccer League (USL) on September 29, 2018, during a 3–1 loss to San Antonio FC, becoming the second-youngest player in league history.[4][7] Leyva signed a full USL contract with the team the following month and began training with the senior team during the 2019 preseason, appearing in friendlies against the Portland Timbers and Club Nacional.[3] Leyva signed a homegrown contract with Seattle Sounders FC on April 9, 2019, becoming the youngest player in the team's history.[8] He made his first-team debut on June 5, 2019, as a late substitute during an away loss to the Montreal Impact, becoming the third-youngest player in the league's history.[9] Leyva played in 12 matches during the 2022 season and had two assists as a temporary replacement for injured midfielders João Paulo and Obed Vargas until they returned mid-season.[10]
Loan to Colorado Rapids
On April 24, 2023, the Sounders loaned Leyva to the Colorado Rapids for the rest of the season in exchange for a future MLS SuperDraft pick and $92,000 in general allocation money.[10]
In October 2019, Leyva was named to the United States squad for the 2019 FIFA U-17 World Cup in Brazil.[11]
Leyva who has only played for U.S. youth national teams, also holds the option to be called up by Mexico.[12]
Club
- As of match played October 7, 2023[14]
| Club | Season | League | National cup | Continental | Other | Total | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Tacoma Defiance | 2018 | USL | 1 | 0 | — | — | — | 1 | 0 | |||
| 2019 | USL | 14 | 1 | — | — | — | 14 | 1 | ||||
| 2020 | USL | 1 | 0 | — | — | — | 1 | 0 | ||||
| 2021 | USL | 6 | 0 | — | — | — | 6 | 0 | ||||
| 2022 | MLS Next Pro | 9 | 1 | — | — | — | 9 | 1 | ||||
| Total | 31 | 2 | — | — | — | 31 | 2 | |||||
| Seattle Sounders FC | 2019 | MLS | 6 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | — | 7 | 0 | ||
| 2020 | MLS | 2 | 0 | — | 1[lower-alpha 1] | 0 | — | 3 | 0 | |||
| 2021 | MLS | 24 | 0 | — | — | — | 24 | 0 | ||||
| 2022 | MLS | 19 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2[lower-alpha 1] | 0 | — | 22 | 0 | ||
| 2023 | MLS | 3 | 0 | — | — | 1[lower-alpha 2] | 0 | 4 | 0 | |||
| Total | 54 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 60 | 0 | ||
| Colorado Rapids (loan) | 2023 | MLS | 16 | 0 | 2 | 0 | — | 1[lower-alpha 3] | 0 | 19 | 0 | |
| Career total | 101 | 2 | 4 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 110 | 2 | ||
- Appearance(s) in CONCACAF Champions League
- Appearance in FIFA Club World Cup
- Appearance in Leagues Cup
Seattle Sounders FC
Individual
- CONCACAF U-17 Championship Best XI: 2019
- "FIFA U-17 World Cup Brazil 2019: List of Players: United States" (PDF). FIFA. October 31, 2019. p. 24. Archived from the original (PDF) on December 27, 2019.
- "FIFA Club World Cup Morocco 2022™: List of Players: Seattle Sounders FC" (PDF). FIFA. February 7, 2023. p. 6. Archived (PDF) from the original on February 12, 2023. Retrieved February 18, 2023.
- Baker, Geoff (February 26, 2019). "Teenage dream: At age 15, Danny Leyva is already knocking on the Sounders' door". The Seattle Times. Retrieved April 20, 2019.
- Mondello, Joseph (October 16, 2018). "Barcelona USA Academy". Seattle Sounders FC. Retrieved April 20, 2019.
- Hammond, Andrew (March 8, 2019). "Meet the Tacoma Defiance's unflappable Danny Leyva, who's all of 15 years old". The News Tribune. Retrieved April 20, 2019.
- "Seattle Sounders FC U-15". ussoccerda.com. U.S. Soccer Development Academy. Retrieved March 24, 2020.
- Evans, Jayda (April 9, 2019). "Sounders contract signed, 15-year-old midfielder Danny Leyva eyes next goal: an MLS start". The Seattle Times. Retrieved April 20, 2019.
- Baker, Geoff (June 5, 2019). "Shorthanded Sounders cough up two late road goals, lose 2–1 to the Montreal Impact". The Seattle Times. Retrieved June 12, 2019.
- Evans, Jayda (April 25, 2023). "In rare deal, Sounders loan Danny Leyva to Colorado Rapids". The Seattle Times. Retrieved April 25, 2023.
- "Head Coach Raphael Wicky Names USA Roster for 2019 FIFA U-17 World Cup in Brazil". www.ussoccer.com. Retrieved October 10, 2019.
- Interview: Danny Leyva on being named to the USMNT U-17 World Cup squad. Youtube.com. Seattle Sounders FC. October 11, 2019. Retrieved October 24, 2019.
- "América y Chivas sueñan con Carlos Vela, Chicharito Hernández y Jonathan Dos Santos; llegarían prestados". Soy Fútbol (in Spanish). August 13, 2020. Retrieved March 7, 2023.
- Danny Leyva at Soccerway
- Danny Leyva at USL Championship
- Danny Leyva at Major League Soccer
- Danny Leyva at Soccerway