Jona (footballer)

Jonathan Mejía Ruiz (born 7 January 1989), commonly known as Jona, is a Honduran professional footballer who plays as a striker.

In this Spanish name, the first or paternal surname is Mejía and the second or maternal family name is Ruiz.
Jona
Personal information
Full name Jonathan Mejía Ruiz
Date of birth (1989-01-07) 7 January 1989
Place of birth Málaga, Spain
Height 1.83 m (6 ft 0 in)
Position(s) Striker
Youth career
Málaga
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2008–2009 Lorca Deportiva 22 (2)
2009–2010 Melilla 9 (0)
2010–2011 Deportivo B 28 (5)
2011–2012 Zamora 36 (12)
2012–2013 Ourense 18 (11)
2013–2015 Granada 0 (0)
2013 → Vitória Guimarães B (loan) 2 (0)
2013 → Vitória Guimarães (loan) 3 (0)
2013–2014 → Jaén (loan) 39 (16)
2014–2015 → Cádiz (loan) 32 (18)
2015–2017 Albacete 29 (5)
2016–2017 → UCAM Murcia (loan) 37 (15)
2017–2019 Córdoba 18 (3)
2018 → Cádiz (loan) 14 (0)
2018–2019 → Lugo (loan) 8 (0)
2019–2020 Hércules 34 (4)
2020–2022 Alcoyano 34 (7)
2022–2023 Torre del Mar 10 (1)
International career
2013–2015 Honduras 6 (0)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 08:58, 20 July 2023 (UTC)

Club career

Born in Málaga, Andalusia, Jona only played lower league football in his beginnings, always in the Segunda División B. He represented in quick succession Lorca Deportiva CF, UD Melilla, Deportivo Fabril, Zamora CF[1] and CD Ourense.

In mid-January 2013, after excelling in the first half of the season with Ourense,[2] Jona was acquired by La Liga club Granada CF, being immediately loaned to Vitória S.C. of Portugal.[3] He made his Primeira Liga debut with the latter on 4 March, playing two minutes in a 2–0 home win against Académica de Coimbra.[4]

In the following years, Jona all but competed in the Spanish Segunda División, representing Real Jaén,[5] Cádiz CF (two spells),[6][7] Albacete Balompié,[8] UCAM Murcia CF,[9] Córdoba CF[10] and CD Lugo.[11] He was relegated from that level three times.[12]

Jona terminated his contract with Córdoba on 15 January 2019,[13] and signed a two-and-a-half-year deal with third division side Hércules CF the following day.[14]

International career

Jona's father, Leonidas Mejía, was a Honduran from Tegucigalpa, and his mother was Spanish. In April 2013, he expressed interest in representing the Honduras national team.[15]

Jona made his debut on 2 June 2013, in a friendly with Israel.[16] He represented the nation at the 2014 Copa Centroamericana.[17]

Personal life

Jona's older brother, Antonio Moreno, was also a footballer and a forward. He played once with Sevilla FC's first team, and also represented Cádiz.[18]

References
  1. Zamora confirma fichaje de Jona. (Zamora confirm signing of Jona); esFutbol, 16 July 2011 (in Spanish)
  2. Jona ratifica su compromiso con el proyecto futbolístico de O Couto (Jona confirms commitment to O Couto's football project); La Voz de Galicia, 27 November 2012 (in Spanish)
  3. El Granada ficha a Jona y lo cede al Vitoria Guimaraes portugués (Granada sign Jona and loan him to Portugal's Vitoria Guimaraes) Archived 4 March 2016 at the Wayback Machine; La Verdad, 12 January 2013 (in Spanish)
  4. Vitória de Guimarães 2–0 Académica (final) (Vitória de Guimarães 2–0 Académica (end)); Rádio Renascença, 4 March 2013 (in Portuguese)
  5. El Jaén logra las cesiones de Kitoko y Jona (Jaén get loans of Kitoko and Jona); Marca, 19 July 2013 (in Spanish)
  6. Jona Mejía: "Quedan 90 minutos por jugar y 90 minutos para ascender" (Jona Mejía: "There are 90 minutes to be played and 90 minutes to promote"); Vavel, 25 June 2015 (in Spanish)
  7. Jona regresa al Cádiz para ayudar en ataque (Jona returns to Cádiz to help in attack); Cádiz CF, 25 January 2018 (in Spanish)
  8. El Granada traspasa a Jona al Albacete (Granada transfer Jona to Albacete); Marca, 14 July 2015 (in Spanish)
  9. Jona Mejía cierra la ofensiva del UCAM (Jona Mejía completes UCAM's attacking lines); Cadena SER, 15 July 2016 (in Spanish)
  10. Insólito: El Córdoba ficha a siete jugadores en un día (Unheard of: Córdoba sign seven players in one day); Marca, 2 July 2017 (in Spanish)
  11. Jona, primer fichaje albivermello (Jona, first red-and-white signing); CD Lugo, 4 July 2018 (in Spanish)
  12. Jona Mejía: "La selección de Honduras tiene que mejorar y hay como" (Jona Mejía: "The Honduras national team has to improve and it can be done"); Diez, 21 July 2017 (in Spanish)
  13. "El Córdoba Club de Fútbol y Jona Mejía acuerdan la rescisión de su contrato" [Córdoba Club de Fútbol and Jona Mejía agree to termination of his contract] (in Spanish). Córdoba CF. 15 January 2019. Retrieved 9 February 2019.
  14. "Jona Mejía, nuevo delantero del Hércules" [Jona Mejía, new forward of Hércules] (in Spanish). Hércules CF. 16 January 2019. Retrieved 9 February 2019.
  15. Jonathan Mejía, un español que quiere jugar con Honduras (Jonathan Mejía, Spaniard who wants to play for Honduras); Diez, 1 April 2013 (in Spanish)
  16. Honduras perdió 2–0 ante Israel en fogueo preparativo para juego contra Costa Rica (Honduras lost 2–0 to Israel in preparation for game against Costa Rica); Al Día, 2 June 2013 (in Spanish)
  17. Convocados de Honduras para Copa Centroamericana (Honduras selection for Centroamerican Cup); Diez, 29 August 2014 (in Spanish)
  18. Jona Mejía ante un posible llamado a la selección: “Lo primero es el Cádiz” (Jona Mejía regarding national team call-up: "Cádiz is the priority"); El Heraldo, 12 March 2015 (in Spanish)
  • Jona at BDFutbol
  • Jona at Futbolme (in Spanish)
  • Jona at National-Football-Teams.com
  • Jona at Soccerway
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