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Giancarlo González

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In this Spanish name, the first or paternal surname is González and the second or maternal family name is Castro.

Giancarlo González
González with Costa Rica at the 2018 FIFA World Cup
Personal information
Full name Giancarlo González Castro[1]
Date of birth (1988-02-08) 8 February 1988 (age 36)
Place of birth Desamparados, San José, Costa Rica
Height 1.86 m (6 ft 1 in)[2]
Position(s) Centre-back
Team information
Current team
 Sporting San José
Number 26
Youth career
2004–2006 Alajuelense
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2009–2012 Alajuelense 91 (6)
2012–2013 Vålerenga 37 (2)
2014 Columbus Crew 17 (1)
2014–2017 Palermo 84 (4)
2017–2019 Bologna 34 (0)
2019–2021 LA Galaxy 30 (2)
2021 Alajuelense (loan) 17 (1)
2022–2023 → Alajuelense 12 (1)
2024– Sporting San José 9 (1)
International career‡
2007–2008 Costa Rica U20 2 (0)
2010– Costa Rica 90 (2)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 09:34, 21 March 2022 (UTC)
‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 20 November 2023

Giancarlo "Pipo" González Castro (born 8 February 1988) is a Costa Rican professional footballer who plays as a centre-back for Liga FPD club Sporting San José, which he captains, and the Costa Rica national team.

Club career

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Early career

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González spent his youth career with Alajuelense, apart from a stint with Saprissa when he was between 12 and 14 years of age.[3] He began his professional career with Alajuelense in 2007 and was a key player in helping his club win three league titles.

González joined Norwegian club Vålerenga after his contract expired on 31 July 2012.[4] During his time at Vålerenga, González appeared in 37 league matches and scored two goals.

Columbus Crew

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On 21 February 2014, González signed with Major League Soccer side Columbus Crew.[5] On 15 April 2014, the MLS Disciplinary Committee fined González an undisclosed amount for "embellishment" of an incident in the 92nd minute of the game against the San Jose Earthquakes on 13 April.[6][7] González was also nominated for the satirical "Fallon d'Floor" award for this effort.[8][9]

Palermo

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After his performances at the 2014 FIFA World Cup, González received interest from a number of European clubs, and on 26 August 2014 Palermo of Italy's Serie A confirmed they had signed him on a three-year deal.[10] The transfer fee was reported to be $5 million, with 5% of the fee being distributed among González's youth clubs Alajuelense and Saprissa as per the FIFA solidarity contribution rules.[3] He made his debut on 19 October 2014 in a home game against Cesena, playing the full 90 minutes and scoring the winning goal in the first minute of injury time.[11]

Palermo's 2016–17 season ended in relegation from Serie A, with González making 21 appearances.[12]

Bologna

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On 22 June 2017, Bologna announced the signing of González.[12][13]

LA Galaxy

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On 11 April 2019, González signed with the LA Galaxy.[14]

International career

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González played at the 2007 FIFA U-20 World Cup held in Canada.[15]

Nicknamed Pipo,[16] he made his senior international debut for Costa Rica in a friendly against Slovakia on 5 June 2010. In January 2013, he scored the lone goal in a 1–0 victory over Honduras in the 2013 Copa Centroamericana final.[15]

2014 World Cup

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In June 2014, González was named in Costa Rica's squad for the 2014 FIFA World Cup.[17] In the team's first two group matches, he and his central defensive colleagues Michael Umaña and Óscar Duarte allowed only one goal as Los Ticos beat Uruguay (3–1) and Italy (1–0) to qualify for the knockout stage.[18][19] Costa Rica completed the group stage unbeaten, recording a second consecutive shutout in a 0–0 draw with England in Belo Horizonte.[20] González's play at the back was listed by several as key to the team's progression from the group stage. His countless interceptions and tackles led to him being named to the ESPN Best XI of the group stage.[21] During the round of 16, González was the third of five Costa Rican players to successfully convert his kick in a 5–3 penalty shootout defeat of Greece.[22] He was included in the BBC's team of the tournament.[23]

2018 World Cup

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In May 2018 he was named in Costa Rica's 23 man squad for the 2018 FIFA World Cup in Russia.[24]

Personal life

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González is of Spanish origin.[25] He is a son of Roberto González and Elsa Castro and has a sister and brother. He has a son.[26]

Career statistics

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Club

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As of match played 5 November 2020
Appearances and goals by club, season and competition
Club Season League Cup Continental Playoffs Total
Division Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals
Alajuelense 2008–09[27] Costa Rican Primera División 2 0 2
2009–10[27] 28 3 28 3
2010–11[27] 34 0 0 0 0 0 34 0
2011–12[27] 29 3 6 0 0 0 35 3
Total 91 6 0 0 8 0 0 0 99 6
Vålerenga 2012[28] Tippeligaen 12 0 — — — 12 0
2013[28] 25 2 4 0 — — 29 2
Total 37 2 4 0 0 0 0 0 41 2
Columbus Crew 2014[27] Major League Soccer 17 1 — — — 17 1
Palermo 2014–15[27] Serie A 28 1 — — — 28 1
2015–16[27] 35 2 1 0 — — 36 1
2016–17[27] 21 1 0 0 — — 21 1
Total 84 4 1 0 0 0 0 0 85 4
Bologna 2017–18[27] Serie A 22 0 1 0 — — 23 0
2018–19[27] 12 0 1 0 — — 13 0
Total 34 0 2 0 0 0 0 0 36 0
LA Galaxy 2019[27] Major League Soccer 20 1 0 0 2 0 2 0 24 1
2020[27] 10 1 0 0 — 0 0 10 1
Total 30 2 0 0 2 0 2 0 34 2
Career total 293 15 7 0 10 0 2 0 312 15

International

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As of match played 20 November 2023[29]
Appearances and goals by national team and year
National team Year Apps Goals
Costa Rica 2010 3 0
2011 1 0
2012 9 1
2013 19 1
2014 9 0
2015 10 0
2016 3 0
2017 12 0
2018 11 0
2019 5 0
2020 1 0
2021 5 0
2022 0 0
2023 2 0
Total 90 2
Scores and results list Costa Rica's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each González goal.
List of international goals scored by Giancarlo González
No. Date Venue Opponent Score Result Competition
1 25 May 2012 Estadio Nacional, San José, Costa Rica  Guatemala 3–2 3–2 Friendly
2 27 January 2013 Estadio Nacional, San José, Costa Rica  Honduras 1–0 1–0 2013 Copa Centroamericana

Honours

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Alajuelense

Costa Rica

Individual

References

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  1. ^ "FIFA World Cup Russia 2018: List of Players: Costa Rica" (PDF). FIFA. 15 July 2018. p. 6. Archived from the original (PDF) on 11 June 2019.
  2. ^ "Giancarlo Gonzalez". Bologna FC 1909. Retrieved 13 August 2017.
  3. ^ a b Fuentes Alpízar, Ferlin (7 September 2014). "Giancarlo González repartirá millones a Alajuelense y Saprissa" [Giancarlo González divides millions between Alajuelense and Saprissa]. Al Día (in Spanish). Retrieved 13 December 2015.
  4. ^ "Martin Andresen forsterker med costaricansk landslagsspiller" (in Norwegian). TV2 Sporten. 6 March 2012. Retrieved 1 August 2012.
  5. ^ "Crew signs Costa Rican International Giancarlo Gonzalez". Columbus Crew. 21 February 2014. Archived from the original on 24 February 2014. Retrieved 21 February 2014.
  6. ^ "MLS fines Giancarlo Gonzalez for flop". ESPNFC. 15 April 2014. Retrieved 13 December 2015.
  7. ^ "Pepe over Reacting Vs Morocco (Reddit) GIF by fusir". Archived from the original on 8 October 2018. Retrieved 17 December 2014.
  8. ^ Hautmann, Thomas (17 December 2014). "Checking out the contestants for the first annual Fallon D'Floor". Fox Soccer Blogs. Retrieved 13 January 2016.
  9. ^ Brankovic, Maja (18 December 2014). "Wer erhält die Schwalbentrophäe "Fallon d'Floor"?". 11 Freunde (in German). Archived from the original on 12 June 2018. Retrieved 13 January 2016.
  10. ^ "GONZALEZ E' DEL PALERMO CONTRATTO TRIENNALE PER IL CENTRALE" (in Italian). US Città di Palermo. 26 August 2014. Archived from the original on 27 August 2014. Retrieved 26 August 2014.
  11. ^ Carci, Francesco (19 October 2014). "Palermo-Cesena 2-1, Gonzalez regala in extremis il primo successo ai rosanero". la Repubblica (in Italian). Retrieved 13 January 2016.
  12. ^ a b "Official: Bologna sign Gonzalez". Football Italia. 22 June 2017. Retrieved 22 June 2017.
  13. ^ "González joins Bologna in permanent deal". BolognaFC. 22 June 2017. Retrieved 22 June 2017.
  14. ^ "LA Galaxy sign defender Giancarlo Gonzalez". lagalaxy.com. Retrieved 11 April 2019.
  15. ^ a b Giancarlo González – FIFA competition record (archived)
  16. ^ Giancarlo 'Pipo' González es vital en el centro de la defensa de la Selección de Costa Rica - Nación (in Spanish)
  17. ^ "Costa Rica World Cup 2014 squad". The Telegraph. 2 June 2014. Retrieved 20 June 2014.
  18. ^ "Uruguay 1-3 Costa Rica". BBC. 14 June 2014. Retrieved 22 June 2014.
  19. ^ "Italy 0-1 Costa Rica". BBC. 20 June 2014. Retrieved 22 June 2014.
  20. ^ Taylor, Daniel (24 June 2014). "England end disappointing World Cup with barren draw against Costa Rica". The Guardian. Retrieved 25 June 2014.
  21. ^ Molyneux-Carter, Jon (27 June 2014). "Best XI of the group stage". ESPNFC. Retrieved 13 December 2015.
  22. ^ "Costa Rica 1-1 Greece". BBC. 29 June 2014. Retrieved 30 June 2014.
  23. ^ "World Cup 2014: BBC Sport pundits' team of the tournament". BBC Sport. 13 July 2014. Retrieved 13 December 2015.
  24. ^ "Costa Rica national team World Cup squad: Oscar Ramirez names 23-man roster featuring Keylor Navas, six MLS players | Goal.com".
  25. ^ "ESPAÑOL: No. 10. El Ascenso de Giancarlo González | Mes de la Herencia Hispana". MLSSoccer (in Spanish). 13 October 2014. Archived from the original on 5 March 2016. Retrieved 13 January 2016.
  26. ^ Giancarlo González: El soñador que emergió de sus lágrimas - Nación (in Spanish)
  27. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l "G. González". Soccerway. Retrieved 13 December 2015.
  28. ^ a b "NIFS - Norsk & Internasjonal Fotballstatistikk". Norsk internasjonal Fotballstatistikk (in Norwegian). Retrieved 13 December 2015.
  29. ^ "Giancarlo González". National Football Teams. Benjamin Strack-Zimmermann. Retrieved 24 June 2018.
  30. ^ "Javier Hernandez and Carli Lloyd Named 2015 CONCACAF Players of the Year". CONCACAF.com. 22 January 2016. Archived from the original on 19 August 2017. Retrieved 4 August 2021.
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