1. Nelson Antonio Haedo Valdez was born on 28 November 1983 and commonly known as Nelson Valdez or Nelson Haedo in Spanish speaking countries, is a Paraguayan professional football coach and a former player who played as a striker for clubs in Paraguay, Germany, Spain, Russia, the United Arab Emirates, Greece, the US and for the Paraguay national team between 2000 and 2021.
Nelson Valdez is an assistant coach with the German club Werder Bremen II.
Nelson Valdez finished his career with the club having scored 11 goals in 22 league appearances.
In 2003, Nelson Valdez was selected for the Paraguay under-20 national team where he scored one goal in four appearances at the 2003 FIFA World Youth Championship.
Nelson Valdez was later loaned out to Valencia and went on to enjoy stints with Al Jazira and Olympiacos.
In July 2014, Nelson Valdez returned to the Bundesliga and signed with Eintracht Frankfurt, being reunited with former Werder Bremen coach Thomas Schaaf.
Nelson Valdez played from 2015 to 2016 with American club Seattle Sounders FC in Major League Soccer, scoring in the playoffs and winning the MLS Cup in his final season.
Nelson Valdez has represented Paraguay at the 2006 and 2010 FIFA World Cup tournaments, he participated at the 2004,2011 and 2015 Copa America tournaments; in 2011 Paraguay finished runners-up.
Nelson Valdez confessed that he had an "excellent childhood" and had the joy of being from a loving family.
Nelson Valdez's father took his side and Valdez eventually managed to go to Asuncion to pursue his dream.
Nelson Valdez stated that before he left to Asuncion to join Atletico Tembetary, he endured depression after the death of his 13 year old cousin who was like a brother, and began consuming cane liquor, a whiskey which was 50 cents per liter, and confessing that he was once almost an alcoholic.
Aged 15, Nelson Valdez left his home and family to move to Ypane when he joined the Youth Academy of Atletico Tembetary, and eventually made his first-team debut in the Paraguayan Division Intermedia in 2000.
Nelson Valdez confessed the difficulty he faced when leaving his impoverished family and his home to begin playing with the club, for two years he lived under the wooden plank grandstands of the stadium in a stairwell, using a makeshift bed of blankets and cardboard which laid in the stairwell beneath the stand.
Nelson Valdez never told his parents, who were poor land workers.
Nelson Valdez worked night shifts in a sawmill to pay for food and drink.
Nelson Valdez bought Valdez a ticket to Germany and got on the phone to Werder Bremen.
In December 2001, Nelson Valdez flew over to Germany for a trial.
Nelson Valdez failed at first, not impressing in his trial but the club president's wife, who was a fellow Paraguayan, asked for Nelson Valdez to be given another trial.
Nelson Valdez scored four times in his first trial match and was offered a contract to join Werder Bremen II, the club's Regionalliga Nord team.
Nelson Valdez stated that his first months were very hard because of the cold weather and that he did not know how to order food properly.
Nelson Valdez played in Werder Bremen's youth teams before quickly winning space in the first-team.
Nelson Valdez's performances earned him a call-up to the Paraguay under-20 national team for the 2003 FIFA World Youth Championship.
Nelson Valdez had scored five goals in 21 league appearances, although his appearances were limited due to competition between teammates Ailton, Angelos Charisteas and Ivan Klasnic.
Nelson Valdez had again been substituted onto the field for Klose, who was favoured more often instead of Valdez.
Nelson Valdez had entered the field in the 61st minute for Christian Schulz.
Nelson Valdez had entered the field in the 75th minute for Ivan Klasnic.
Nelson Valdez had scored seven goals in 25 league appearances, where his appearances were restricted due to Miroslav Klose and Ivan Klasnic being the Bundesliga's top striking duo at the time.
Nelson Valdez was given the number 9 shirt after joining Borussia Dortmund on a four-year contract.
Nelson Valdez became a regular starter for Dortmund's first-team, though he struggled to score.
Nelson Valdez was substituted onto the field in the 86th minute for Sebastian Kehl.
Nelson Valdez had entered the field for Lucas Barrios in the 63rd minute before scoring Dortmund's third goal in the 77th minute.
Nelson Valdez had been substituted onto the field for Mohamed Zidan in the 29th minute and scored in the 57th minute to give Dortmund the lead.
The win meant that Nelson Valdez had claimed his second title at the club within just under 12-months since his arrival.
In October 2013, Nelson Valdez sounded as a possible signing for Barcelona, to which he responded would be a dream that Barcelona is the best club in the world.
Nelson Valdez's goals came in the sixth and tenth minutes of the first half, in a fixture which proved to be Valdez's last appearance for Al Jazira as he was ultimately sanctioned and fined for his celebration.
Nelson Valdez had received the suspension immediately after the match and could not justify his behaviour in an interview.
Moments after the match, Nelson Valdez wrote in English via his Twitter account that his objective was never to offend anyone instead to make understand that he uses his balls when he is on the field and due to the bad luck in his last games he could not score goals, he expressed it in this manner.
Finally, Nelson Valdez expressed that during the rumours of his exit from the club that his intention was to stay at the club.
On 30 January 2014, Nelson Valdez joined Superleague Greece side Olympiacos on loan from Al Jazira, being issued with the number 18 shirt.
Nelson Valdez concluded the Superleague Greece season with six league goals in ten appearances.
Nelson Valdez, who was issued with the number 11 shirt for the club, stated that his motivation for joining Frankfurt was because of being offered to join the club by coach Thomas Schaaf, who had coached Nelson Valdez during his years at Werder Bremen.
Nelson Valdez again was in the starting eleven and was substituted in the 70th minute of the match for Alexander Meier, who went on to score Frankfurt's second goal of the match.
Nelson Valdez received a hard knock in the second half of the match and was substituted off of the field in the 56th minute for Timothy Chandler.
In late December, German newspaper Bild reported that Nelson Valdez stated that despite the expectation of being sidelined for an estimated six months, his injury has healed outstandingly, just after three and a half months of the incident, and if the rehab continued well, Nelson Valdez would regress by January, much earlier than planned, and with hopes of making it in time for the 2015 Copa America.
Nelson Valdez signed with Seattle Sounders FC of Major League Soccer on 7 August 2015 as a Designated Player.
Nelson Valdez admitted that he maintains contact with club president Juan Jose Zapag and that what remained for him in his career to achieve is to play in the Copa Libertadores, but he indicated that the transfer seemed difficult to occur.
Sources stated that Nelson Valdez's price was too great whilst Nelson Valdez said that he desires to continue playing abroad.
Colombian Categoria Primera A clubs Independiente Medellin and Atletico Nacional showed interest in the player and reports suggested that Nelson Valdez was to depart Seattle Sounders.
Nelson Valdez revealed that he had received and rejected million-dollar offers from clubs in China, which he responded that he did not want to know anything about it.
On 4 January 2017, Nelson Valdez signed with Primera Division Paraguaya club Cerro Porteno.
Nelson Valdez was linked with Primera Division Argentina club Argentinos Juniors as a very close signing, which was reported in the Argentine press.
On 1 July 2021, Haedo Nelson Valdez announced his retirement through his social media channel.
In 2003, Nelson Valdez rejected the chance to play for the Germany national under-21 team in favour of Paraguay, having been invited to trial with Germany U21 by coach Jurgen Kohler, he was eventually selected to represent the Paraguay under-20 national team at the 2003 FIFA U-20 World Cup in the United Arab Emirates.
Nelson Valdez did not know the names of any of his teammates from the squad and eventually met them on the airplane.
Nelson Valdez was one of three players based outside of Paraguay, alongside Dante Lopez at Israel's Maccabi Haifa and Victor Hugo Mareco at Italian club Brescia.
Nelson Valdez was part of the Paraguay 22-man squad at the 2004 Copa America in Peru.
Nelson Valdez dutifully complied with his club's orders and subsequently missed out on the opportunity to claim a silver medal as Paraguay U23 finished in second place at the competition.
Nelson Valdez scored his first goal for the senior Paraguay squad in a game against El Salvador on 17 August 2005.
Paraguay finished fourth with 28 points as Nelson Valdez was selected for the final 23-man squad for the tournament, where he was handed the number 18 shirt.
Nelson Valdez was not included in Paraguay's squad for the 2007 Copa America in Venezuela, however a few months later, he took part in the 2010 World Cup qualifiers.
Paraguay finished the campaign in third spot, behind Brazil and Chile, with 33 points as Nelson Valdez had scored five times in 17 appearances.
Nelson Valdez was selected in the 23-man squad for the 2010 World Cup.
Paraguay were grouped with Slovakia, New Zealand and Italy; Nelson Valdez participated in all three matches as Paraguay finished top of its group with five points.
Nelson Valdez replaced Edgar Benitez after 60 minutes and played until extra-time had finished.
Nelson Valdez was selected in the squad for the 2011 Copa America where Paraguay had been drawn in Group B with Brazil, Ecuador and Venezuela.
Nelson Valdez played a big part in Paraguay's 2014 World Cup qualification campaign, featuring in 11 qualification fixtures as Paraguay failed to qualify for the competition.
Nelson Valdez referred to the new base of the national team of not capturing what the Albirroja represents and that there were players who were still immature and did not know what it meant to be there representing the national team.
In 2013, when new coach Victor Genes was appointed, Nelson Valdez was left out of Paraguay's team for a friendly against Germany and two World Cup qualifiers against Bolivia and Argentina.
On 28 May 2015, Nelson Valdez was included in Paraguay's 23-man squad for the 2015 Copa America by coach Ramon Diaz.
Nelson Valdez exited the field of play lifting his shirt to reveal for himself the mark that had been left from the player's studs and then applauding the crowd in appreciation for their attendance.
Nelson Valdez was in the starting XI in their opening fixture on 13 June 2015.
In June 2022, SV Werder Bremen announced that Nelson Valdez returned to the club as an assistant coach for their reserves squad SV Werder Bremen II.
In 2003, during an interview with Paraguayan newspaper ABC, it was reported that Nelson Valdez was an admirer of Ronaldo and Roque Santa Cruz.
Nelson Valdez stated that grew up being a fan of Primera Division Paraguaya club Cerro Porteno and that his idols were Francisco Arce and Carlos Gamarra, when the club were crowned champions via penalties in 1994.
Whilst playing for Dortmund, Valdez's cousin, Cesar Nelson, stayed in Dortmund and aided Valdez by regulating all matters affecting San Joaquin.
In February 2014, it was reported that Nelson Valdez insisted on ways to financial help former national teammate Salvador Cabanas, who had suffered economic issues since being shot in the head in January 2010, and it was ultimately decided that Nelson Valdez would organize a charity match scheduled for June 2014 which would feature the likes of David Trezeguet and Javier Saviola in order to raise funds for Cabanas.