Segundo Alejandro Castillo Nazareno (born 15 May 1982 in San Lorenzo, Esmeraldas) is an Ecuadorian international footballer who plays as a midfielder. He is currently on loan at English Premier League club Wolverhampton Wanderers from Serbian side Red Star Belgrade.

Club career

Castillo started his career with Quito's Club Deportivo Espoli spending 3 years with the team, scoring a decent 11 goals in 66 appearances. He then moved across the capital to one of Ecuador's most successful sides Club Deportivo El Nacional, with whom he won successive league titles in 2005 and 2006. He again scored 11 goals in 112 matches for the club.

In August 2006 he moved abroad, signing a two year deal with Serbian side Red Star Belgrade. He scored 8 goals during his first season at his new club and was a key player when the team won the double in 2007. In total he scored 18 goals in 72 games, an average of a goal every four games.

In August 2008 Castillo joined English Premier League club Everton on a year-long loan deal to become Everton's second signing of the summer transfer window. He made his league debut on 14 September 2008 against Stoke City. He scored his only goal for the Toffees on his home debut against Standard Liege on 18 September 2008 in a UEFA Cup tie with a powerful volley from 25 yards out.

However, although Castillo seemed to be a regular in David Moyes' side, as a defensive midfielder, toward the end of the season he found himself left out of the team, making rare appearances for Everton as Moyes adopted a new formation, which didn't include the Ecuadorian international. Towards the end of his loan deal Castillo found himself on the bench or not even making the squad. He was not offered a permanent contract by Everton at the conclusion of his loan spell; it was reported that Red Star were asking for around £4.5 million to make the deal permanent.

Castillo returned to the Premier League once again when he joined newly-promoted Wolverhampton Wanderers on a season-long loan on 31 August 2009. Castillo made his full debut against Fulham FC on 20 September 2009.

International career

Castillo broke into the Ecuadorian national team in 2005, making his international debut on 17 August as a substitute against Venezuela. He became a regular player after this and was included in their squad for the 2006 FIFA World Cup. He played every minute of their World Cup campaign, where Ecuador reached the second round for the first time in their history.

International goals

Goal	Date	Venue	Opponent	Score	Result	Competition
1	24 May 2006	Giants Stadium, East Rutherford, USA		1 – 0	1 – 1	Friendly match
2	26 March 2008	Estadio La Cocha, Latacunga, Ecuador		1 – 0	3 – 1	Friendly match

Personal Life

In March 2009, Castillo's wife Brenda gave birth to their first son, D’Alessandro.

References

1. Ailton i Kastiljo na "Marakani", Politika, 1 September 2006

External links