1. Personal Information
Jherson Vergara Amú is a professional footballer from Colombia. He was born on 26 May 1994, in Florida, Valle del Cauca, Colombia. He plays as a centre-back. He is 75 in (190 cm) tall and weighs 183 lb (83 kg).
2. Early Career
Vergara's early career began in Colombia, where he developed as a youth player before making his professional debut.
2.1. Youth career
Jherson Vergara began his football journey as a youth product of Boca Juniors de Cali, an amateur team in Colombia. He played for their youth team from 2009 to 2011. He also represented Colombia at the U-17 level in 2011, making 9 appearances.
2.2. Deportes Quindío
In 2011, Vergara signed his first official professional contract with Deportes Quindío, a Colombian club. He remained with the club until 2013, making 5 appearances.
2.3. Universitario Popayán (loan)
During his tenure with Deportes Quindío, Vergara was loaned to Universitario Popayán, another Colombian club. He played for Universitario Popayán from 2011 to 2013, where he gained significant experience, making 30 appearances.
3. Club Career
Vergara's club career has involved several transfers and loan spells across different European leagues, primarily in Italy.
3.1. AC Milan
In May 2013, Jherson Vergara signed for the Italian football giant AC Milan for a transfer fee of approximately 1.76 M GBP. Although his debut was unofficial, he played his first match for Milan in the 2013 Audi Cup against Manchester City, a game which Milan lost 3-5. During the pre-season, Vergara suffered a shoulder dislocation, which sidelined him for about a month. By late November 2013, reports indicated that Vergara would be sent out on loan during the upcoming January transfer window to secure first-team football. He remained a player for AC Milan until 2018, though he did not make any official appearances for the senior squad. For the 2017-18 season, Vergara was expected to go on another loan, but no deal materialized during either transfer window. Consequently, he stayed at Milan as a non-playing member of the senior squad, similar to other players like Hachim Mastour, Nnamdi Oduamadi, and Juan Mauri.
3.1.1. Loan to Parma
In January 2014, Vergara was loaned to Italian Serie A club Parma for the remainder of the 2013-14 season. He did not make any appearances during this loan spell.
3.1.2. Loan to Avellino
For the 2014-15 season, Vergara was loaned to U.S. Avellino 1912 in Serie B. During his time there, he scored one goal in a match against Latina. He made 14 league appearances and 1 national cup appearance for the club.
3.1.3. Loan to Livorno
Vergara continued his loan spells in Italy for the 2015-16 season, joining Livorno in Serie B. He made 22 league appearances and scored one goal during this period.
3.1.4. Loan to Arsenal Tula
After his loan spell at Livorno, Milan gave Vergara another opportunity during the 2016 summer pre-season. On 31 August 2016, he moved on loan to the Russian Premier League team FC Arsenal Tula for the 2016-17 season. He made 18 league appearances for the Russian club.
3.2. Cagliari
On 17 August 2018, Cagliari Calcio announced the signing of Vergara. However, he was immediately sent out on loan. He did not make any appearances for Cagliari.
3.2.1. Loan to Olbia
Upon signing with Cagliari, Vergara was loaned to Serie C club Olbia Calcio 1905 for the 2018-19 season. His loan was prematurely terminated on 31 January 2019, after he made only three appearances in the first half of the season.
3.3. Olbia
Vergara returned to Olbia Calcio 1905 on 9 June 2020, to play for the remainder of the 2019-20 season. The regular Serie C season was not resumed due to the COVID-19 pandemic in Italy. Vergara remained on the bench for the two relegation play-off games that Olbia played, and subsequently left the club once again.
3.4. Vibonese
On 10 March 2021, Vergara joined Serie C club Vibonese. He made 22 appearances for the club, scoring one goal. On 27 January 2022, his contract with Vibonese was terminated by mutual consent.
4. International Career
Jherson Vergara has represented Colombia at various youth levels, participating in significant international tournaments.
4.1. Youth career
Vergara was called up to represent the Colombia U-20 side during the 2013 South American Youth Championship. He played a crucial role in the tournament, making 18 appearances and scoring 3 goals. He notably scored a goal against Paraguay in the last match of the second stage. Colombia ultimately won the championship, and Vergara's performance attracted attention from many European clubs, most notably Italian giants AC Milan.
Vergara also participated in the Colombian squad that finished as runner-up in the 2013 Toulon Tournament. In this tournament, he scored two goals, both of which were equalizers against the United States and France. Colombia went on to win both of these games. He also participated in the 2013 FIFA U-20 World Cup.
5. Career Statistics
As of 20 October 2023, the following table details Jherson Vergara's appearances and goals by club, season, and competition.
| Club | Season | League | National Cup | Continental | Other | Total | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Milan | 2013-14 | Serie A | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | - | 0 | 0 | |
| Avellino (loan) | 2014-15 | Serie B | 14 | 1 | 1 | 0 | - | 1 | 0 | 16 | 1 | |
| Livorno (loan) | 2015-16 | 22 | 1 | 0 | 0 | - | - | 22 | 1 | |||
| Tula (loan) | 2016-17 | Premier League | 18 | 0 | 0 | 0 | - | - | 18 | 0 | ||
| Olbia (loan) | 2018-19 | Serie C | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | - | - | 3 | 0 | ||
| Vibonese | 2020-21 | Serie C | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | - | - | 7 | 0 | ||
| 2021-22 | 15 | 1 | 0 | 0 | - | - | 15 | 1 | ||||
| Total | 22 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 22 | 1 | ||
| Career total | 79 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 81 | 3 | ||
6. Honours
Jherson Vergara has achieved the following honours during his international youth career:
- South American Youth Football Championship: 2013 (with Colombia U-20)