Álex Aguinaga

Álex Darío Aguinaga Garzón was born on June 7, 1969 in Ibarra. He is a

famous Ecuadorian soccer midfielder. He is one of the all-time cap leaders for
Ecuador with 109 matches and scoring 23 goals. He is considered one of the
best Ecuadorian players of all time, if not the best.

Aguinaga has played for Sociedad Deportivo Quito, Club Atlético Guayaquil,
Necaxa and currently in Liga Deportiva Universitaria.

Aguinaga has been a central player in Ecuador's national team since his first
appearance in the late 1980s. During the '90s, he became a national hero and a
very well known player after he was publicly embarrassed by Ronaldo who
scored a goal through his legs. He is also recognized as the best player in the
Ecuador squad.

In a game against Chile, Aguinaga scored one of the most beautiful goals in the
national squad's history. He was inside the penalty area facing back against the
goal, and in an almost impossible and acrobatic move, he made a bicycle kick
and put the ball into the net. This assured his reputation as not just a cerebral
type of midfielder, but also an able goalscorer.

Thanks to a perfect pass executed by Aguinaga, Iván Kaviedes (forward)

scored a header, which took Ecuador to their first World Cup final (Korea-
Japan 2002). Aguinaga was part of the squad during that World Cup; in which
Ecuador lost to Italy (0-2) and Mexico (1-2), but managed to beat Croatia 1-0.
He was injured in both the games that Ecuador lost in the World Cup 2002.

Aguinaga retired from the national team after the 2002 World Cup. He
announced his retirement from professional football after completing the 2005
"Torneo Clausura" (closing tournament) with Liga Deportiva Universitaria de
Quito.

He is currently living in Quito, Ecuador. After the end of the contract with
Liga, he returned to Mexico City, Mexico, where he established with his wife
and children since the time he played in Necaxa.