Javier_Astúa
Javier Astúa
Costa Rican footballer (1968–2022)
Javier Astúa Araya (6 November 1968 – 4 January 2022) was a Costa Rican professional footballer who played as a forward.
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Javier Astúa Araya | ||
| Date of birth | (1968-11-06)6 November 1968 | ||
| Place of birth | Quepos, Costa Rica | ||
| Date of death | 4 January 2022(2022-01-04) (aged 53) | ||
| Height | 1.75 m (5 ft 9 in) | ||
| Position(s) | Striker | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 1989–1992 | Puntarenas | 168 | (46) |
| 1992 | Morelia | 2 | (0) |
| 1993 | Palestino | 7 | (1) |
| 1994–1995 | Alajuelense | ||
| 1995 | San Carlos | ||
| 1996 | Herediano | ||
| 1999 | Carmelita | ||
| International career | |||
| 1992–1994 | Costa Rica | 13 | (7) |
| Managerial career | |||
| 2011 | Municipal Puntarenas | ||
| 2013 | Jicaral | ||
| *Club domestic league appearances and goals | |||
Born in Quepos,[1] Astúa played several years for Municipal Puntarenas and played two matches for Mexican outfit Morelia in September 1992.[2] He had a frustrating four-month stint at Chilean side Palestino,[3] before returning to Costa Rica where he joined Alajuelense. He later played for San Carlos, who released him in November 1995 after an injury-hit spell.[4] In March 2006, he was released by Herediano.[5] He finished his career at Carmelita before more injury cut short his career.
He was twice the Costa Rica Premier Division top goalscorer, in 1992 and 1994.[6]
Astúa made his debut for Costa Rica in an April 1992 friendly against El Salvador and earned a total of 13 caps, scoring seven goals. He has represented his country in four FIFA World Cup qualification matches[7] and played at the 1993 UNCAF Nations Cup.[8]
He played his final international game in January 1994 against Norway.
Astúa was married and had a daughter and a son,[1] who was manager of Third Division side Jicaral in 2013.[9] He died on 4 January 2022, at the age of 53.[10]
- Scores and results list Costa Rica's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Astúa goal.
| No. | Date | Venue | Opponent | Score | Result | Competition |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 23 August 1992 | Estadio Nacional de Costa Rica, San José, Costa Rica |  Panama | 5–0 | 5–1 | 1994 FIFA World Cup qualification |
| 2 | 5 December 1992 | Estadio Tiburcio Carías Andino, Tegucigalpa, Honduras |  Honduras | 1–2 | 1–2 | 1994 FIFA World Cup qualification |
| 3 | 13 December 1992 | Estadio Nacional de Costa Rica, San José, Costa Rica |  Saint Vincent and the Grenadines | 1–0 | 5–0 | 1994 FIFA World Cup qualification |
| 4 | 3–0 | |||||
| 5 | 4–0 | |||||
| 6 | 16 February 1993 | Estadio Nacional de Costa Rica, San José, Costa Rica |  Nicaragua | 1–0 | 6–0 | 1993 UNCAF Nations Cup qualification |
| 7 | 3–0 |
- “Extraño el fútbol”, Al Día, (in Spanish)
- Mexican league stats Archived 2 April 2015 at the Wayback Machine - Mediotiempo (in Spanish)
- Javier Astúa se confiesa - Nación (in Spanish)
- Separado Astúa - Nación (in Spanish)
- Sacudida en Herediano Archived 4 March 2016 at the Wayback Machine - Nación (in Spanish)
- Goleadores de Campeonato Nacional Archived 30 October 2013 at the Wayback Machine - UNAFUT
- Javier Astúa – FIFA competition record (archived)
- UNCAF Tournament 1993 - RSSSF
- Jicaral y Siquirres a un paso de la final - DiarioExtra (in Spanish)
- Javier Astúa at National-Football-Teams.com