Robert Arboleda

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

Robert Abel Arboleda Escobar (born 22 October 1991) is an Ecuadorian professional footballer who plays as a centre-back for Campeonato Brasileiro Série A club São Paulo and the Ecuador national team.^[2]

Robert Arboleda

Arboleda with São Paulo in 2018
Personal information
Full name	Robert Abel Arboleda Escobar[1]
Date of birth	(1991-10-22) 22 October 1991 (age 33)[1]
Place of birth	Esmeraldas, Ecuador
Height	1.89 m (6 ft 2 in)[1]
Position(s)	Centre-back
Team information
Current team	São Paulo
Number	5
Youth career
2007–2009	Olmedo
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps	(Gls)
2010	Olmedo	0	(0)
2011	Municipal Cañar	6	(1)
2011–2012	Grecia	38	(2)
2013–2014	LDU Loja	61	(5)
2015–2017	Universidad Católica (ECU)	51	(11)
2017–	São Paulo	242	(14)
International career‡
2016–	Ecuador	39	(2)
* Club domestic league appearances and goals as of 3 February 2025 ‡ National team caps and goals as of 21 March 2024

Club career

São Paulo

On 21 June 2017, São Paulo signed Arboleda from Universidad Católica del Ecuador in a US$2 million transfer.^[3][4]

International career

Arboleda made his debut for Ecuador on 26 May 2016 in a match against the United States.^[5]

Arboleda was selected in the 23 player Ecuador squad for the Copa América Centenario.^[6]

Arboleda was selected in the 23-man Ecuador squad for the 2019 Copa América.^[7]

Arboleda was selected in the 28 player Ecuador squad for the 2021 Copa América.^[8]

Arboleda was named in the Ecuadorian squad for the 2022 FIFA World Cup.^[9]

Personal life

In his childhood days, Arboleda was fan of international Brazilian players Ronaldo, Ronaldinho, and Juninho Pernambucano. He almost became a policeman before he decided to pursue his football career.^[10]

Career statistics

Club

As of 3 February 2025^[11][12]

Appearances and goals by club, season and competition

Club	Season	League			National cup		Continental		State League		Other		Total
		Division	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals
Municipal Cañar	2011	Segunda Categoría	6	1	—		—		—		10[a]	4	16	5
Grecia	2011	Serie B	6	0	—		—		—		—		6	0
	2012		32	2	—		—		—		—		32	2
	Total		38	2	—		—		—		—		38	2
LDU Loja	2013	Serie A	20	4	—		5[b]	0	—		—		25	4
	2014		41	1	—		—		—		—		41	1
	Total		61	5	—		5	0	—		—		66	5
Universidad Católica del Ecuador	2015	Serie A	1	0	—		2[b]	0	—		—		3	0
	2016		33	7	—		2[b]	0	—		—		35	7
	2017		17	4	—		2[b]	0	—		—		19	4
	Total		51	11	—		6	0	—		—		57	11
São Paulo	2017	Série A	23	3	—		—		—		—		23	3
	2018		26	0	3	0	2[b]	0	9[c]	1	—		40	1
	2019		29	1	1	0	2[d]	0	13[c]	1	—		45	2
	2020		21	1	3	0	4[e]	1	11[c]	1	—		39	3
	2021		17	1	2	0	7[d]	0	13[c]	3	—		39	4
	2022		8	0	4	2	3[d]	2	9[c]	0	—		24	4
	2023		20	0	10	0	9[d]	1	3[c]	0	—		42	1
	2024		27	2	4	0	10[d]	0	9[c]	0	1[f]	0	57	2
	2025		0	0	0	0	0	0	4[c]	0	—		4	0
	Total		171	8	27	2	37	4	71	6	1	0	313	20
Career total			327	27	27	2	48	4	71	6	11	4	490	43

1. Appearance(s) in Campeonato Provincial de Cañar
2. Appearance(s) in Copa Sudamericana
3. Appearance(s) in Campeonato Paulista
4. Appearance(s) in Copa Libertadores
5. Three appearances in Copa Libertadores, one appearance in Copa Sudamericana
6. Appearance in Supercopa do Brasil

International

As of 21 March 2024^[13]

Ecuador
Year	Apps	Goals
2016	1	0
2017	6	1
2018	4	0
2019	5	0
2020	4	1
2021	10	0
2022	3	0
2023	5	0
2024	1	0
Total	39	2

List of international goals scored by Robert Arboleda

No.	Date	Venue	Opponent	Score	Result	Competition
1	22 February 2017	Estadio George Capwell, Guayaquil, Ecuador	Honduras	2–1	3–1	Friendly
2	17 November 2020	Estadio Rodrigo Paz Delgado, Quito, Ecuador	Colombia	1–0	6–1	2022 FIFA World Cup qualification

Honours

São Paulo

• Copa do Brasil: 2023
• Supercopa do Brasil: 2024
• Campeonato Paulista: 2021