Raúl Díaz Arce

Raúl Díaz Arce (born February 1, 1970) is a Salvadoran former professional footballer who played as a forward. He is El Salvador's most prolific goal scorer, with 39 goals in just 68 appearances.[1]

Raúl Díaz Arce
Personal information
Full name Raúl Ignacio Díaz Arce
Date of birth (1970-02-01) February 1, 1970
Place of birth San Miguel, El Salvador
Height 1.75 m (5 ft 9 in)
Position(s) Forward
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
1988–1990 Dragón
1991–1996 C.D. Luis Angel Firpo
1996–1997 D.C. United 50 (38)
1998 New England Revolution 32 (18)
1999 San Jose Clash 18 (4)
1999–2000 Tampa Bay Mutiny 22 (13)
2000–2001 D.C. United 18 (6)
2001 Colorado Rapids 12 (3)
2002 Charleston Battery 24 (5)
2002 Águila 24 (5)
2003 Charleston Battery 26 (6)
2004 Puerto Rico Islanders 15 (7)
Total 241 (105)
International career
1987–2003 El Salvador 68 (39)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals
In this Spanish name, the first or paternal surname is Díaz and the second or maternal family name is Arce.

Playing career

From 1985 to 1986, Arce played for Deportivo Jalapa in Guatemala. From 1988 to 1991, Arce played for Dragon in the Salvadoran second division, where he was the league's leading scorer in the 1991–92 season with 21 goals. Playing for Dragon, in two seasons in first division, "Ignacio Raul" scored 34 goals (13 in 1989–90 and 21 in 1990–91), in the second season he was the scoring champion of the regular season when he played four laps.

He then moved up to play for C.D. Luis Ángel Firpo of the Salvadoran first division from 1991 to 1996. Here he won the league's top scorer three season in a row (1993–1996) with 24, 21 and 25, respectively. In Luis Ángel Firpo he scored in five seasons with a total of 119 goals. These early achievements earned him a spot in the national team and a move to the United States.[2]

D.C. United

In 1996, Diaz Arce signed with Major League Soccer, and was drafted tenth overall in the MLS Inaugural Player Draft by D.C. United. He quickly established himself as a dangerous striker in the league, scoring 23 goals in his first season with United, second in the league behind Roy Lassiter. Diaz Arce was also the first player in MLS history to score a hat-trick in postseason play. He scored 3 against the Tampa Bay Mutiny on October 10, 1996. DC United won 4-1 and went on to become the first MLS champions. Diaz Arce continued to perform well in his second season, registering 15 goals, and helping D.C. United to win their second consecutive MLS Cup.

New England Revolution

Salary cap pressures and reported conflicts between Diaz Arce and Marco Etcheverry, resulted in D.C. trading one of the league's most prolific scorers to the New England Revolution in the offseason of 1997. Diaz Arce continued to excel in New England, scoring 18 goals and 8 assists for his new team.

End of MLS career

Nevertheless, Diaz Arce was traded again, and eventually played for the Tampa Bay Mutiny and San Jose Clash, as well as briefly with the MetroStars, registering 13 goals and 7 assists in the 1999 season. Diaz Arce continued to be shuttled around in 2000, playing for Tampa Bay and D.C. again in 2000, and scoring a career low 9 goals. Diaz Arce continued to decline in 2001, playing only briefly for D.C. United, before being traded again to the Colorado Rapids, with whom he ended his career in MLS.

Diaz Arce left MLS second in career goals scored with 82, behind only Roy Lassiter; although he has fallen as others have surpassed both of their totals.

Charleston & Puerto Rico

For the 2002 season, Diaz Arce played for the Charleston Battery of the A-League, scoring 6 goals and 4 assists in 1319 minutes. He was not the success Charleston had hoped for, however, and left following the year. In 2004, Diaz Arce joined the struggling expansion Puerto Rico Islanders, and gave the team a significant boost, scoring two goals in his first game and a total of 7 in 1233 minutes, and helping the team attain a level of respectability. He is now the U.S. Soccer Development Academy Director at the Chicago Magico Soccer Club.

International career

Diaz Arce made his debut for El Salvador in an April 1991 UNCAF Nations Cup qualification match against Nicaragua in which he scored two goals. Over his career, he earned a total of 68 caps, scoring a record 39 goals. He represented his country in 28 FIFA World Cup qualification matches[3] and played at several UNCAF Nations Cups as well as at the 1996[4] and 1998 CONCACAF Gold Cups.[5] His final international was a September 2000 FIFA World Cup qualification match against Honduras.

International goals
Scores and results list El Salvador's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each El Salvador goal.
List of international goals scored by Raúl Díaz Arce
No. Date Venue Opponent Score Result Competition Ref.
1 4 April 1991 Dennis Martínez National Stadium, Managua, Nicaragua  Nicaragua 1–0 3–2 1991 UNCAF Nations Cup qualification
2 3–2
3 24 April 1991 Estadio Cuscatlán, San Salvador, El Salvador 2–0 2–0
4 29 May 1991 Estadio Nacional, San José, Costa Rica  Costa Rica 1–0 1–7 1991 UNCAF Nations Cup
5 6 December 1992 Estadio Cuscatlán, San Salvador, El Salvador  Jamaica 2–1 2–1 1994 FIFA World Cup qualification
6 18 February 1993 Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, Los Angeles, United States  Russia 1–2 1–2 Friendly
7 7 March 1993 Estadio Tiburcio Carías Andino, Tegucigalpa, Honduras  Panama 1–0 1–1 1993 UNCAF Nations Cup
8 12 March 1993 Estadio Cuscatlán, San Salvador, El Salvador  Bolivia 1–1 2–2 Friendly
9 2–1
10 23 March 1993  United States 1–0 2–2
11 9 May 1993  Honduras 1–0 2–1 1994 FIFA World Cup qualification
12 3 May 1994 Miami Orange Bowl, Miami, United States 1–0 3–1 Miami Cup
13 2–0
14 3–0
15 29 November 1995 Estadio Cuscatlán, San Salvador, El Salvador  Belize 3–0 3–0 1995 UNCAF Nations Cup
16 10 December 1995  Costa Rica 1–0 2–1
17 10 January 1996 Anaheim Stadium, Anaheim, United States  Trinidad and Tobago 1–0 3–2 1996 CONCACAF Gold Cup
18 3–2
19 8 September 1996 Estadio Cuscatlán, San Salvador, El Salvador  Cuba 1–0 5–0 1998 FIFA World Cup qualification
20 4–0
21 8 September 1996 Estadio Rommel Fernández, Panama City, Panama  Panama 1–1 1–1
22 10 November 1996 Estadio Cuscatlán, San Salvador, El Salvador 1–1 3–2
23 1 December 1996  Cuba 2–0 3–0
24 4 May 1997  Costa Rica 1–0 2–1
25 29 June 1997  United States 1–1 1–1
26 14 September 1997  Canada 4–1 4–1
27 16 November 1997 Foxboro Stadium, Foxboro, United States  United States 2–3 2–4
28 8 October 1999 Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, Los Angeles, United States  Canada 1–1 1–2 2000 CONCACAF Gold Cup qualification
29 10 October 1999  Cuba 1–1 1–3
30 29 February 2000 Estadio Jorge "Mágico" González, San Salvador, El Salvador  Panama 2–0 3–1 Friendly
31 3–1
32 5 March 2000 Estadio Cuscatlán, San Salvador, El Salvador  Belize 3–0 5–0 2002 FIFA World Cup qualification
33 28 March 2000 Estadio Jorge "Mágico" González, San Salvador, El Salvador  Haiti 1–0 3–1 Friendly
34 2 April 2000 Estadio Doroteo Guamuch Flores, Guatemala City, Guatemala  Guatemala 3–0 5–0 2002 FIFA World Cup qualification
35 16 April 2000 People's Stadium, Orange Walk Town, Belize  Belize 1–0 3–1
36 7 May 2000 Estadio Cuscatlán, San Salvador, El Salvador  Guatemala 1–0 3–1
37 23 July 2000  Saint Vincent and the Grenadines 5–1 7–1
38 6–1
39 7–1

Honours

C.D. Luis Ángel Firpo

D.C. United

Charleston Battery

Individual

References
  1. Raúl Ignacio Díaz Arce - International Goals - RSSSF
  2. "Los goles hablan por él". elgrafico.com. Archived from the original on 3 October 2012. Retrieved 21 July 2011.
  3. Raúl Díaz Arce – FIFA competition record (archived)
  4. CONCACAF Championship, Gold Cup 1996 - Full Details - RSSSF
  5. CONCACAF Championship, Gold Cup 1998 - Full Details - RSSSF
  6. All-Star Game flashback, 1997 at MLSsoccer.com
  7. "1998 MLS All-Star Game". MLSsoccer.com. August 2, 1998. Retrieved July 27, 2023.
  8. "1999 MLS All-Star Game". MLSsoccer.com. July 17, 1999. Retrieved July 27, 2023.
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