Sebastián Soria

In this Spanish name, the first or paternal surname is Soria and the second or maternal family name is Quintana.
Sebastián Soria
Soria at the Qatar Stars League launch ceremony in 2012
Personal information
Full name Andrés Sebastián Soria Quintana
Date of birth (1983-11-08) 8 November 1983 (age 40)
Place of birth Paysandú, Uruguay
Height 1.86 m (6 ft 1 in)
Position(s) Striker
Team information
Current team
 Qatar SC
Number 23
Youth career
0000–2002 Centenario
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2002 Centenario 9 (9)
2002–2004 Liverpool Montevideo 50 (11)
2004–2005 Al-Gharafa 26 (14)
2005–2012 Qatar SC 152 (104)
2012–2015 Lekhwiya 64 (42)
2015–2020 Al-Rayyan 104 (35)
2020–2021 Al-Arabi 19 (2)
2021– Qatar SC 61 (13)
International career‡
2006 Qatar U23 7 (6)
2007–2017 Qatar 123 (39)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 20 October 2024
‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 28 March 2017

Andrés Sebastián Soria Quintana (Spanish pronunciation: [anˈdɾes seβasˈtjan ˈsoɾja kinˈtana]; Arabic: أندريس سيبستيان سوريا كوينتانا; born 8 November 1983) commonly known as Sebastián Soria, is a professional footballer who plays as a striker for Qatar SC. Born in Uruguay, he has represented the Qatar national team since 2007. He was shortlisted for the Asian Footballer of the Year award in 2008. He currently holds the record for the fastest goal scored in AFC Champions League history at 9 seconds – a record which was set in 2013 when he was playing for Lekhwiya SC.[1]

Club career

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Early career

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As a youngster, Soria had an unsuccessful trial at Uruguayan club Defensor Sporting in Montevideo.[2]

Soria continued playing in the minor leagues and a new chance soon emerged. In 2001, a cyclist, who had watched Soria playing in the minor leagues and was impressed by his talents, brought him to the attention of a football agent he knew, and Soria was sent to Montevideo to play in Liverpool Montevideo, where he played under coach Julio Ribas. He was sent to the reserve team for a brief while before making it back on the first team. He eventually proved his value and ended up playing the rest of the 2003 season on the first team.[2]

In mid-2004, Soria got an offer from Frenchman Bruno Metsu to play for Al-Gharafa in Qatar. He arrived in Qatar in 2004 and was naturalized in 2006.[2]

Al Gharafa

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Soria joined Al Gharafa in 2004 under the supervision of Bruno Metsu. It was the first time he had played outside of Uruguay. He won the 2004–05 Qatar Stars League with Al Gharafa.

Qatar SC

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Soria transferred to Qatar SC from league winners Al Gharafa in 2005. He won the Qatar Crown Prince Cup with the club in 2009. He attracted interest from Europe, with Italian team Udinese and Spanish capital sides Getafe and Atletico Madrid scouting him. However, he chose to extend his contract with Qatar SC in 2010.[3]

When AC Milan came to visit Doha in March 2009, in a farewell match for Jafal Rashed Al-Kuwari, Soria guested for Al Sadd. "They invited me to play for Al Sadd, so of course I said yes. I like to play against the strong defenders," Soria said after his scuffles with Milan defender Philippe Senderos. After being substituted, Soria was swarmed by local fans and patiently signed autographs for approximately 15 minutes.[2]

Lekhwiya

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After transferring to Qatari champions Lekhwiya, Soria had the opportunity to play in the 2013 AFC Champions League. He scored 4 goals in Lekhwiya's first four group stage games, including one of the fastest goals in any Asian competition after 9 seconds against Pakhtakor on 9 April 2013.[4] It is the fastest goal ever scored in Asia's premier continental club competition during the AFC Champions League format.[5]

Al Rayyan

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Soria joined Al-Rayyan SC on a one-year deal in 2015.[6]

Soria in 2012

International career

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Sebastián Soria is the third top scorer (39) and one of the most capped players (123) in Qatar.

Soria was born and raised in Paysandú, but moved to Qatar early in his footballing career and became a naturalized citizen. He won a gold medal in the 2006 Asian Games for the Qatar U-23 team. The official Qatar SC website has him listed as being born in 1984. In addition, QFA's website lists his actual date of birth as 1983.[7]

Soria saved the Qatari national team by scoring in the last 20 minutes, which helped tie the score. This happened in the AFC 2007 in both their games, one against Japan, and the other just recently against Vietnam. He also scored the leading goal against the United Arab Emirates. He is the only Qatari player to score on the 2007 Asian Cup. He scored three goals.

Soria scored a goal against eventual winners Japan in the 2011 Asian Cup quarterfinals but the homeside were silenced after a late goal from Inoha put Japan in the lead to win by a 3–2 victory. However, he was not included in Djamel Belmadi's squad for 2015 AFC Asian Cup.

Career statistics

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Club

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As of match played 20 October 2024
Appearances and goals by club, season and competition
Club Season League National cup[a] Continental Other Total
Division Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals
Centenario 2002 Campeonato de Clubes del Interior 9 9 – – – 9 9
Liverpool 2002 Uruguayan Primera División 8 3 – – – 8 3
2003 26 3 – – – 26 3
2004 16 5 – – – 16 5
Total 50 11 – – – 50 11
Al-Gharafa 2004–05 QSL 26 14 1 0 0 0 5 3 32 17
Qatar SC 2005–06 25 19 2 1 0 0 6 3 33 23
2006–07 21 10 2 3 0 0 0 0 23 13
2007–08 23 18 2 1 0 0 2 0 27 19
2008–09 23 19 2 1 0 0 2 0 27 20
2009–10 20 17 2 1 8 3 4 3 34 24
2010–11 20 12 2 2 0 0 4 4 26 18
2011–12 20 9 2 2 0 0 0 0 22 11
Total 152 104 14 11 8 3 18 10 192 128
Al-Duhail 2012–13 QSL 22 19 1 2 7[b] 4 2 0 32 25
2013–14 20 12 0 0 5[b] 2 1 2 26 16
2014–15 22 11 1 0 7[b] 2 3 2 33 15
Total 64 42 2 2 19 8 6 4 91 56
Al-Rayyan 2015–16 QSL 25 10 2 1 – 1 0 28 11
2016–17 22 6 3 0 6[b] 1 2 0 33 7
2017–18 20 11 0 0 5[b] 1 5[c] 3 30 15
2018–19 20 6 2 0 6[b] 2 5[c] 5 33 13
2019–20 17 2 1 0 – 3[c] 1 21 3
Total 104 35 8 1 17 4 16 9 145 49
Al-Arabi 2020–21 QSL 19 2 3 0 – 5[d] 2 27 4
Qatar SC 2021–22 18 8 2 0 – 3[c] 3 23 11
2022–23 18 4 1 0 – 9 2 28 6
2023–24 18 0 3 0 – 3 0 24 0
2024–25 7 1 0 0 – 2 1 10 2
Total 61 13 6 0 – 17 6 84 19
Career total 497 230 34 14 44 15 67 34 629 293
  1. ^ Includes Emir Cup
  2. ^ a b c d e f Appearances in AFC Champions League
  3. ^ a b c d Appearances in Qatari Stars Cup
  4. ^ Four appearances and two goals in Qatari Stars Cup, one appearance in Qatar FA Cup

International

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As of 27 March 2024

.[8]

Competition Appearances Goals
Pan Arab Games 1 0
Asian Cup 7 4
Asian Cup Qualifier 7 2
Arabian Gulf Cup 13 0
FIFA World Cup qualifiers 38 10
Friendlies 57 (6) 23 (4)
Total 123 39
  • Notes: Values between brackets refer to matches/goals which are not considered full A-internationals.

International goals

Scores and results list Qatar's goal tally first.[9]
# Date Venue Opponent Score Result Competition
– 24 November 2006 Doha, Qatar China Team XI 1–0 2–0 Unofficial friendly
– 24 November 2006 Doha, Qatar China Team XI 2–0 2–0 Unofficial friendly
– 19 June 2007 Ascheim Ghana U-21 3–1 3–1 Unofficial friendly
1. 9 July 2007 Mỹ Đình National Stadium, Hanoi, Vietnam  Japan 1–1 1–1 2007 AFC Asian Cup
2. 12 July 2007 Mỹ Đình National Stadium, Hanoi, Vietnam  Vietnam 1–1 1–1 2007 AFC Asian Cup
3. 16 July 2007 Quân khu 7 Stadium, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam  United Arab Emirates 1–0 1–2 2007 AFC Asian Cup
4. 16 October 2007 Thani bin Jassim Stadium, Doha, Qatar  Iraq 2–1 3–2 Friendly
5. 21 October 2007 Sugathadasa Stadium, Colombo, Sri Lanka  Sri Lanka 1–0 1–0 2010 FIFA World Cup qualification
6. 28 October 2007 Jassim Bin Hamad Stadium, Doha, Qatar  Sri Lanka 1–0 5–0 2010 FIFA World Cup qualification
7. 4–0
8. 4 March 2008 Jassim Bin Hamad Stadium, Doha, Qatar  Bahrain 1–0 1–2 Friendly
9. 16 March 2008 Jassim Bin Hamad Stadium, Doha, Qatar  Jordan 1–0 2–1 Friendly
10. 23 May 2008 Jassim Bin Hamad Stadium, Doha, Qatar  Kuwait 1–1 1–1 Friendly
11. 27 May 2008 Thani bin Jassim Stadium, Doha, Qatar  Lebanon 1–1 2–1 Friendly
12. 2–1
13. 7 June 2008 Tianjin Olympic Center Stadium, Tianjin, China  China 1–0 1–0 2010 FIFA World Cup qualification
14. 20 August 2008 Khalifa International Stadium, Doha, Qatar  Tajikistan 2–0 5–0 Friendly
15. 10 September 2008 Jassim Bin Hamad Stadium, Doha, Qatar  Bahrain 1–0 1–1 2010 FIFA World Cup qualification
– 30 December 2008 Thani bin Jassim Stadium, Doha, Qatar  Libya 2–1 5–2 Unofficial friendly
16. 21 March 2009 Aleppo International Stadium, Aleppo, Syria  Syria 1–0 2–1 Friendly
17. 2–0
18. 8 October 2009 Stadion Kantrida, Rijeka, Croatia  Croatia 2–2 2–3 Friendly
19. 16 December 2010 Khalifa International Stadium, Doha, Qatar  Egypt 1–0 2–1 Friendly
20. 22 December 2010 Khalifa International Stadium, Doha, Qatar  Estonia 1–0 2–0 Friendly
21. 21 January 2011 Thani bin Jassim Stadium, Doha, Qatar  Japan 1–0 2–3 2011 AFC Asian Cup
22. 11 November 2011 Jassim Bin Hamad Stadium, Doha, Qatar  Indonesia 4–0 4–0 2014 FIFA World Cup qualification
23. 3 June 2012 Camille Chamoun Sports City Stadium, Beirut, Lebanon  Lebanon 1–0 1–0 2014 FIFA World Cup qualification
24. 6 September 2012 Audi Sportpark, Ingolstadt, Germany  Tajikistan 1–2 1–2 Friendly
25. 7 November 2012 Jassim Bin Hamad Stadium, Doha, Qatar  Iraq 2–0 2–1 friendly
26. 14 November 2012 Jassim Bin Hamad Stadium, Doha, Qatar  Lebanon 1–0 1–0 2014 FIFA World Cup qualification
27. 9 September 2013 Jassim Bin Hamad Stadium, Doha, Qatar  Lebanon 1–1 1–1 Friendly
28. 13 October 2013 Thani bin Jassim Stadium, Doha, Qatar  Yemen 6–0 6–0 2015 AFC Asian Cup qualification
29. 15 November 2013 Sheikh Khalifa International Stadium, Al Ain, United Arab Emirates  Yemen 1–0 4–1 2015 AFC Asian Cup qualification
30. 6 October 2014 Abdullah bin Khalifa Stadium, Doha, Qatar  Uzbekistan 1–0 3–0 Friendly
31. 24 March 2016 Jassim Bin Hamad Stadium, Doha, Qatar  Hong Kong 2–0 2–0 2018 FIFA World Cup qualification
32. 18 August 2016 Swissporarena, Luzern, Switzerland  Jordan 1–0 3–2 Friendly
33. 2–1
34. 3–2
35. 29 September 2016 Jassim Bin Hamad Stadium, Doha, Qatar  Serbia 1–0 3–0 Friendly
36. 2–0
37. 3–0
38. 6 October 2016 Suwon World Cup Stadium, Suwon, South Korea  South Korea 2–1 2–3 2018 FIFA World Cup qualification
39. 17 January 2017 Jassim Bin Hamad Stadium, Doha, Qatar  Moldova 1–0 1–1 Friendly

Honours

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Club

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Al Gharafa

Qatar SC

Lekhwiya

Al Rayyan

Individual

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See also

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References

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  1. ^ "Know Your Rivals: Qatar's Three Key Players". goal.com. 18 November 2013. Retrieved 13 May 2014.
  2. ^ a b c d "Interview: Sebastian Soria – Sport". Al Jazeera. 25 March 2009. Archived from the original on 27 March 2014.
  3. ^ "Soria targets more success". ESPN. 17 August 2010. Archived from the original on 16 July 2012. Retrieved 5 May 2015.
  4. ^ "Sebastian Soria's 10 Second Goal Against Pakhtakor". AOL.com. Retrieved 13 April 2013.
  5. ^ "Fastest goal in the history of the AFC Champions League". sauress.com. Retrieved 13 April 2013.
  6. ^ "Sebastian Soria Joins Al Rayyan". Qatars Hub. 2 August 2015. Retrieved 13 August 2015.
  7. ^ "Players Profile – Sebastian Soria". Archived from the original on 30 March 2012.
  8. ^ "Century of international appearances". RSSSF. Retrieved 23 December 2014.
  9. ^ "Soria Quintana, Sebastián". National Football Teams. Retrieved 17 February 2017.
  10. ^ "Top Goalscorers". Goalzz.com. Retrieved 24 November 2012.
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