Personal information | |||
---|---|---|---|
Full name | Joel Johnson Alajarín [1] | ||
Date of birth | [1] | 20 September 1992||
Place of birth | Torrent, Spain [1] | ||
Height | 5 ft 11 in (1.80 m) [1] | ||
Position(s) | Right-back | ||
Team information | |||
Current team | Charlotte Independence | ||
Number | 8 | ||
Youth career | |||
2000–2001 | Torrent | ||
2001–2009 | Valencia | ||
Senior career* | |||
Years | Team | Apps | ( Gls) |
2009–2012 | Valencia B | 69 | (1) |
2010 | Valencia | 1 | (0) |
2012–2014 | Real Madrid C | 50 | (0) |
2014–2015 | Jaén | 16 | (0) |
2015–2016 | Buñol | 9 | (0) |
2016–2021 | Charlotte Independence | 146 | (3) |
2022 | Hartford Athletic | 34 | (4) |
2023– | Charlotte Independence | 35 | (7) |
International career‡ | |||
2018– | Liberia | 10 | (0) |
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 09:36, 11 December 2023 (UTC) ‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 09:37, 11 December 2023 (UTC) |
Joel Johnson Alajarín (born 20 September 1992) is a professional footballer who plays as a right-back for USL League One club Charlotte Independence. Born in Spain, he represents the Liberia national team.
Born in Torrent, Valencia, to a Liberian father and a Spanish mother, Johnson was a product of Valencia CF's youth system. [2] He made his senior debut at only 17, appearing with the reserves in the Segunda División B and suffering relegation in 2010. [3]
On 8 March 2010, as both right-backs in the first team, Bruno and Miguel, were unavailable, Johnson made his only La Liga appearance, playing the full 90 minutes in a 0–0 home draw against Racing de Santander. [4] [5] Released on 30 June 2012, he went on to compete solely in the lower leagues, first with Real Madrid C and then with Real Jaén, both in the third tier. [6] [7] [8]
After a season with CD Buñol in the Tercera División, Johnson signed with USL Championship side Charlotte Independence on 6 April 2016. [9] Six years later, he joined Hartford Athletic of the same country and league. [10]
Johnson received his first call for the Liberia national team on 31 August 2016, [11] being an unused substitute in the 4–1 away loss to Tunisia for the 2017 Africa Cup of Nations qualifying phase the following week. [12] He only won his first cap on 9 September 2018, starting and playing 90 minutes in a 1–1 draw against DR Congo for the 2019 Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers. [13]