Djai Essed

Djai Essed (born 25 April 1998) is a St. Maartener footballer who plays for the Sint Maarten national team.[1]

Djai Essed
Personal information
Date of birth (1998-04-25) 25 April 1998
Place of birth Amsterdam, Netherlands
Height 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)
Position(s) Centre-back, Forward
Youth career
MPC Stars FC
RISC Takers FC
College career
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2016 Feather River Golden Eagles 14 (3)
2017 Northeastern Plainsmen 0 (0)
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2015– Flames United SC
National team‡
2016– Sint Maarten 6 (0)
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 22:02, 25 May 2016 (UTC)
‡ National team caps and goals correct as of 00:50, 28 March 2019 (UTC)

Youth career

In 2009, Essed played in the School Division of the St. Maarten Soccer Educational Foundation (SMSEF) for Sister Magda '98. That year, the team defeated the Caribbean International Academy to win the top division championship. That season, Essed was the top division's top scorer with 11 goals.[2] Essed played for MPC Stars FC of the SMSEF youth league while attending Milton Peters College. In 2011, he attended training in the Netherlands organized by AFC Ajax while in 2014 he took part in a training camp on Sint Maarten held by the New York Red Bulls of Major League Soccer.[3] For his performances at the Red Bull camp, he was awarded the event's Excellence Award.[4]

In 2016, Essed took part in the 2016 West Virginia Tri-State Elite College Combine in hopes of securing a spot to play college soccer in the United States.[4] In 2016, he decided to join the Golden Eagles of Feather River College in Quincy, California.[5] During the season, he scored three goals in fourteen matches.[6] After one season with the team, Essed transferred to Northeastern Junior College in Sterling, Colorado.[7] Despite being announced as a transfer student, he never appeared on the team's roster.[8]

Club career

Essed played for RISC Takers FC of the SMSA Senior League until 2014.[3] By age 15, he was a starter for Flames United SC.[4] In Summer 2014 at age 16 he was invited to train with FC Dordrecht who were at the time in the Eredivisie, the top level of football in the Netherlands.[3] He has also had a trial with Dutch powerhouse AFC Ajax.[7]

In December 2017 it was announced that Essed would take part in the MLS Caribbean Combine The following month. The combine was organized by Major League Soccer to scout players from the Caribbean region with the potential to sign them to MLS or United Soccer League contracts.[9]

International career

Essed first represented Sint Maarten in the 2013 CONCACAF Under-15 Championship held in the Cayman Islands. It was at that tournament that his primary position became centre-back.[4]

Essed made his senior international debut for Sint Maarten in a friendly against Anguilla on 13 March 2016 at age 17.[10] He started the match and played the full 90 minutes.[11] The match was Sint Maarten's first senior international in 12 years and was played in preparation for each side's 2017 Caribbean Cup qualification campaigns which were set to begin the following week.[12] He played in both of Sint Maarten's Caribbean Cup qualifiers, Sint Maarten's first competitive matches in 19 years.[13]

In 2016, he was also called up to be part of Sint Maarten's U20 squad[4] and was called up again in June for 2017 CONCACAF U-20 Championship qualifying as Sint Maarten hosted their group.[14] The team suffered three defeats in the opening round of the tournament and were eliminated.[15] Essed served as captain of the team for the tournament.[16]

International career statistics
As of match played 24 March 2019.[10]
Sint Maarten national team
YearAppsGoals
201630
201700
201820
201910
Total60

References
  1. "FRC Profile". Feather River College Athletics. Retrieved 11 August 2016.
  2. "Primary and Secondary Schools Champions Crowned" (PDF). The Daily Herald. Retrieved 20 March 2016.
  3. "Young footballers ready for Red Bull training". The Daily Herald. Retrieved 20 March 2016.
  4. "DJAI ESSED '16 RECRUITING PROFILE". NCSA Sports. Retrieved 20 March 2016.
  5. "FRC Recruiting Profile". NCSA. Retrieved 31 July 2016.
  6. "CCCAA Profile". CCCAA. Retrieved 20 November 2017.
  7. "Men's Soccer Signs Plethora of Players". Northeastern Junior College Athletics. Retrieved 19 November 2017.
  8. "2017–18 Northeastern Men's Soccer Roster". Northeastern Athletics. Retrieved 20 December 2017.
  9. Stejskal, Sam. "MLS invites 22 players to 2018 Caribbean Combine". Major League Soccer. Retrieved 20 December 2017.
  10. "CFD profile". Caribbean Football Database. Retrieved 20 March 2016.
  11. "Sint Maarten vs. Anguilla". Caribbean Football Database. Retrieved 20 March 2016.
  12. "Sint Maarten and Martinique win friendlies". Caribbean Football Union. Retrieved 14 March 2016.
  13. "Sint Maarten FA President Sudesh Singh: 'We need more football pitches'". Caribbean Football Union. Retrieved 23 January 2017.
  14. "U20 Championship Squad". Sint Maarten Soccer Association. Retrieved 15 June 2016.
  15. "Antigua and Cuba advance in CFC U20 Qualifier". The Daily Herald. Retrieved 31 July 2016.
  16. "U20 coach upbeat about St. Maarten chances in Caribbean Football tourney". The Daily Herald. Retrieved 31 July 2016.
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