Raúl Loaiza

Raúl Alberto Loaiza Morelos (born 8 June 1994) is a Colombian professional footballer who plays as a defensive midfielder for Lanús.^[1]

Raúl Loaiza

Personal information
Full name	Raúl Alberto Loaiza Morelos
Date of birth	(1994-06-08) 8 June 1994 (age 31)
Place of birth	Cartagena, Colombia
Height	1.80 m (5 ft 11 in)[1]
Position(s)	Defensive midfielder[2]
Team information
Current team	Lanús
Number	15
Youth career
	Academia Crespo
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps	(Gls)
2013–2017	Patriotas	105	(2)
2017–2019	Atlético Nacional	21	(0)
2019	→ San Lorenzo (loan)	8	(0)
2019–2022	Defensa y Justicia	60	(2)
2022–	Lanús	73	(2)
International career
	Colombia U23
* Club domestic league appearances and goals as of 15:55, 13 January 2025 (UTC)

Club career

Having spent part of his youth career with Academia Crespo, Loaiza began his senior career with Patriotas of Categoría Primera A.^[3] His professional debut came on 2 February 2013 during a 1–1 draw with Boyacá Chicó, which was the first of thirteen appearances in all competitions during the 2013 Categoría Primera A season.^[1][4] He scored two goals in the subsequent campaign, notably netting his first in a win against Atlético Huila in February 2014; the other came two months later in a 2–2 versus Envigado.^[1] He remained with Patriotas for the next three campaigns, taking his total appearance tally for them to one hundred and twenty-nine.^[1]

2017 saw Atlético Nacional complete the signing of Loaiza.^[1][5] Thirty-one appearances followed across 2017 and 2018.^[1] In December 2018, Loaiza agreed a loan move to San Lorenzo of the Argentine Primera División; effective from January 2019.^[6][7] He played seventeen times for them.^[1] On 25 July, Loaiza penned a permanent contract with fellow Argentine top-flight team Defensa y Justicia; signing for three years.^[8] Loaiza left Defense at the end of June 2022, to join fellow league club Lanús on a deal until the end of 2025.^[9]

International career

Loaiza represented the Colombia U23s at international level under manager Carlos Restrepo.^[3] He was part of the squad that won a 2015 international friendly tournament in China.^[10] In May 2019, Loaiza received his first call-up to the senior team from Carlos Queiroz ahead of the Copa América in Brazil.^[11]

Career statistics

As of 26 July 2019.^[1]

Club statistics

Club	Season	League			Cup		League Cup		Continental		Other		Total
		Division	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals
Patriotas	2013	Categoría Primera A	10	0	3	0	—		—		0	0	13	0
	2014		25	2	9	0	—		—		0	0	34	2
	2015		27	0	5	0	—		—		0	0	32	0
	2016		26	0	2	0	—		—		2[a]	0	30	0
	2017		17	0	1	0	—		2[b]	0	0	0	20	0
	Total		105	2	20	0	—		2	0	2	0	129	2
Atlético Nacional	2017	Categoría Primera A	8	0	2	0	—		0	0	1[a]	0	11	0
	2018		13	0	2	0	—		3[c]	0	2[d]	0	20	0
	2019		0	0	0	0	—		0	0	0	0	0	0
	Total		21	0	4	0	—		3	0	3	0	31	0
San Lorenzo (loan)	2018–19	Primera División	8	0	1	0	4	0	4[c]	0	0	0	17	0
Defensa y Justicia	2019–20		0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Career total			134	2	25	0	4	0	9	0	5	0	177	2

1. Appearance(s) in the Categoría Primera A play-offs
2. Appearance(s) in the Copa Sudamericana
3. Appearance(s) in the Copa Libertadores
4. Appearance(s) in the Categoría Primera A play-offs and Superliga Colombiana

Honours

Atlético Nacional^[1]

• Categoría Primera A: 2017 Apertura
• Copa Colombia: 2018

Defensa y Justicia

Copa Sudamericana: 2020