Biography
Who is Jorge Valdivia?
Early life and youth career
Jorge Luis Valdivia Toro was born in Maracay, Venezuela, in 1983. His parents were Luis Valdivia and Elizabeth Toro, who were Chilean citizens living abroad due to his father's work with LAN airlines. The family returned to their home country in 1985, where they settled in the La Florida commune of Santiago.
During his early years in Venezuela, he developed an interest in baseball, but this shifted to football after moving to Chile. In 1993, he joined the football academy at Colo-Colo. He was promoted to the first team in 2003 when he was nineteen years old.
Professional club career
Jorge Valdivia began his professional path with a loan spell at Universidad de Concepción. He debuted there on March 16, 2003, during a match against Cobresal. After an impressive debut season, he had loan spells in Europe with Rayo Vallecano and Servette FC. He returned to Colo-Colo in 2005. The following year, he helped the club win the Torneo Apertura title under coach Claudio Borghi.
In August 2006, he transferred to the Brazilian club Palmeiras for a reported fee of 3.5 million dollars. He spent many years with the team, interrupted by a move to the United Arab Emirates club Al Ain in 2008. While at Al Ain, he secured titles including the Etisalat Emirates Cup and the President Cup. He returned to Palmeiras in 2010, where he was greeted by thousands of fans at Estádio do Pacaembu.
International achievements
He represented Chile internationally from 2004 until 2017. Before joining the senior squad, he appeared for Chile's under-20 team in the 2003 South American Youth Championship. He earned his first cap for the senior national team in June 2004 during a match against Mexico.
Jorge was a key member of the squad that qualified for the 2010 FIFA World Cup, ending a twelve-year absence for the national team. He also participated in the 2014 World Cup. His most significant achievement with the national team was winning the 2015 Copa América, which marked the first time Chile had ever won the tournament in its history. Throughout his international career, he recorded seven goals in 78 caps. He was selected for the team of the tournament during the 2011 Copa América competition. Despite several successful campaigns, his international tenure also included controversies, such as a suspension following an incident during the 2007 Copa América and disciplinary issues involving the team concentration before a 2014 World Cup qualifying match.
Birthday and age
Jorge Valdivia was born on October 19, 1983, which makes Jorge 43 years old today. That birthday falls under the Libra sign. Jorge shares the date with 38 other famous people.
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