Alexander Callens

In this Spanish name, the first or paternal surname is Callens and the second or maternal family name is Asín.

Alexander Martín Callens Asín (born 4 May 1992) is a Peruvian professional footballer who plays as a central defender for Super League Greece club AEK Athens and the Peru national team.

Alexander Callens

Callens with New York City in 2022
Personal information
Full name	Alexander Martín Callens Asín[1]
Date of birth	(1992-05-04) 4 May 1992 (age 33)[2]
Place of birth	Callao, Peru
Height	1.85 m (6 ft 1 in)[2]
Position(s)	Centre-back
Team information
Current team	AEK Athens
Number	22
Youth career
	Sport Boys
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps	(Gls)
2010–2011	Sport Boys	30	(1)
2011–2015	Real Sociedad B	86	(5)
2014	Real Sociedad	0	(0)
2015–2017	Numancia	39	(3)
2017–2022	New York City	164	(11)
2023–2024	Girona	6	(0)
2023–2024	→ AEK Athens (loan)	25	(2)
2024–	AEK Athens	7	(0)
International career‡
2011	Peru U20	4	(1)
2013–	Peru	52	(2)
Medal record Men's football Representing  Peru Copa América Runner-up 2019 Brazil
* Club domestic league appearances and goals as of 23:00, 24 November 2024 (UTC) ‡ National team caps and goals as of 02:20, 20 November 2024 (UTC)

Club career

Sport Boys

Born in Callao, Callens played youth football with Sport Boys.^[3] He made his professional debut on 18 April 2010 in a 3–1 loss at León de Huánuco in the Peruvian Primera División,^[4] and scored his first goal on 19 June in another away defeat, 2–1 against Inti Gas Deportes.^[5]

Spain

Callens signed a two-year contract with Real Sociedad from Spain in August 2011, being assigned to the reserves.^[6] He went on to spend several Segunda División B seasons with the latter.^[7]

On 4 December 2014, Callens made his debut with the first team, featuring the entire second half of the 0–0 draw at Real Oviedo in the round of 32 of the Copa del Rey.^[8] On 6 June 2015, he was released.^[9]

On 10 August 2015, Callens joined Segunda División side CD Numancia on a one-year deal.^[10] He scored his first goal in the league the following 16 January, in a 2–0 away win over Albacete Balompié.^[11]

New York City

On 23 January 2017, Callens terminated his contract^[12] and joined New York City FC shortly after.^[13][14] He scored his first goal in the Major League Soccer on 3 June, helping the hosts to beat Philadelphia Union 2–1.^[15]

Callens converted his attempt in the penalty shootout victory against the Portland Timbers in the MLS Cup 2021 on 11 December, closing the 4–2 score at Providence Park.^[16] On 14 September 2022, he scored from open play to open an eventual 2–0 defeat of Atlas F.C. in the Campeones Cup.^[17]

Girona

Callens returned to Spain in the 2023 January transfer window, on a two-and-a-half-year deal at Girona FC.^[18] He played his first match in La Liga on 10 February, coming on as a 46th-minute substitute for Bernardo Espinosa in an eventual 2–0 away loss to Cádiz CF.^[19]

AEK Athens

On 8 September 2023, Callens was loaned to Super League Greece club AEK Athens FC.^[20] In June 2024, he signed a permanent two-year contract.^[21]

International career

Callens won his first cap for Peru on 17 April 2013, replacing Orlando Contreras in the 74th minute of a 0–0 friendly draw with Mexico held in San Francisco.^[22] He scored his first goal for his country on 9 September 2014 in another exhibition game, opening the 2–0 win over Qatar.^[23]

Callens was part of the squads at the 2019^[24] and 2021 Copa América tournaments,^[25] making five appearances in the latter for the fourth-placed team.^{[26][27][28][29][30]}

Personal life

In June 2018, Callens earned a U.S. green card, which qualified him as a domestic player for MLS roster purposes.^[31]

Career statistics

Club

As of match played 24 November 2024^[32]

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
Sport Boys	2010	Peruvian Primera División	24	1	0	0	—		—		24	1
	2011		6	0	1	0	—		—		7	0
	Total		30	1	1	0	0	0	0	0	31	1
Real Sociedad B	2011–12	Segunda División B	5	0	—		—		—		5	0
	2012–13		18	0	—		—		—		18	0
	2013–14		35	2	—		—		—		35	2
	2014–15		28	3	—		—		—		28	3
	Total		86	5	0	0	0	0	0	0	86	5
Real Sociedad	2013–14	La Liga	0	0	0	0	—		—		0	0
	2014–15		0	0	1	0	0	0	—		1	0
	Total		0	0	1	0	0	0	0	0	1	0
Numancia	2015–16	Segunda División	23	2	1	0	—		—		24	2
	2016–17		16	1	0	0	—		—		16	1
	Total		39	3	1	0	0	0	0	0	40	3
New York City	2017	Major League Soccer	34	2	1	0	—		1[b]	0	36	2
	2018		31	1	0	0	—		3[b]	0	34	1
	2019		24	0	0	0	—		1[b]	0	25	0
	2020		22	2	—		4[c]	2	3[d]	0	29	4
	2021		26	1	—		1[e]	0	4	1	31	2
	2022		27	5	1	0	6	0	4	1	38	6
	Total		164	11	2	0	11	2	16	2	193	15
Girona	2022–23	La Liga	6	0	—		—		—		6	0
AEK Athens (loan)	2023–24	Super League Greece	25	2	0	0	—		—		25	2
AEK Athens	2024–25		7	0	1	0	3[f]	0	—		11	0
	2025–26		0	0	0	0	0	0	—		0	0
	Total		32	2	1	0	3	0	—		36	2
Career total			357	22	6	0	14	2	16	2	393	26

1. Includes Copa del Rey, U.S. Open Cup
2. Appearances in MLS Cup playoffs
3. Appearances in CONCACAF Champions League
4. Two appearances in MLS is Back Tournament knockout stage, one appearance in MLS Cup playoffs
5. Appearance in Leagues Cup
6. Appearances in UEFA Conference League

International

As of match played on 19 November 2024^[33]

Appearances and goals by national team and year

National team	Year	Apps	Goals
Peru	2013	2	0
	2014	8	1
	2018	1	0
	2019	2	0
	2021	12	0
	2022	11	0
	2023	4	0
	2024	12	1
Total		52	2

As of match played on 6 September 2024

Scores and results list Peru's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Callens goal.^[23]

List of international goals scored by Alexander Callens

No.	Date	Venue	Opponent	Score	Result	Competition
1	9 September 2014	Abdullah bin Khalifa, Doha, Qatar	Qatar	1–0	2–0	Friendly
2	6 September 2024	Estadio Nacional, Lima, Peru	Colombia	1–0	1–1	2026 FIFA World Cup qualification

Honours

New York City FC

• MLS Cup: 2021^[16]
• Campeones Cup: 2022^[17]