Nov. 9, 2011

After joining Oriente Petrolero in January, American defender/midfielder Alejandro Melean has enjoyed a breakout year with the club in both the Bolivian League and the Copa Libertadores.

After the first seven games of the season, Melean is off to a strong start as he has been a regular starter and has become an important part of the team's success. Oriente Petrolero currently has 14 points through the first seven games of the season which has them in second place.

Oriente has won their last three games including a 3-0 win over Aurora last Wednesday which drew a lot of press in Bolivia because a staggering five red cards were handed out between the two teams.

So far Melean is happy with the team's performance this season as they push for a Bolivian title.

"I feel good," Melean told YA from Bolivia. "We just had a big away win a couple of nights ago. It was a very heated matches but that win brought us from fourth place and into second. We're excited."

While Melean, 24, is now a rising star in the Bolivian league, his game was developed in the United States. He learned to play the sport in Miami where he was born and raised but occasionally during the summers he would travel to Bolivia to train.

It was playing NCAA soccer, however, where Melean felt he made his biggest strides as a player. During his time at Holy Cross in Massachusetts, he was named all-Patriot League Conference twice and all Mid-Atlantic his senior year.

For the complete article by Brian Sciaretta from Yanks Abroad click here