Nico Gonzalez: 10 things you probably didn’t know | OneFootball

Nico Gonzalez is the latest new man at Manchester City after completing a move from Porto.

The 23-year-old Spanish midfielder moves to the Etihad on a four-and-a-half-year deal and will join up with Pep Guardiola’s squad immediately.

Here are 10 things you may or may not already know about our new man…

How it began

Gonzalez was born in A Coruna in Galicia, in the north-west of Spain, on 3 January 2002. His full name is Nicolas Gonzalez Iglesias.

He began his footballing life at local club Montaneros before moving across the country to Barcelona’s famed La Masia academy shortly after his 11th birthday in 2013.

Runs in the family

Fran Gonzalez, Nico’s Dad, was a former professional himself.

A left midfielder known for his crossing ability, he totalled 700 appearances for Deportivo La Coruna between 1988 and 2005.

His career coincided with perhaps the best era in the club’s history with the Galician side regularly featuring in continental competition and reaching the Champions League semi-finals in 2003/04.

In 1999/00, Deportivo won their first and so far only La Liga title.

He came up against Pep Guardiola as a player 12 times, winning four times and losing out to Pep's Barca on seven occasions. The pair also played together seven times for Spain.

Gonzalez moved to Barcelona in support of his son when he signed for the giants as an 11-year-old, stating: "I am going to do now for my son, what I did not do in his day: emigrate. And I know that it will be difficult for me to leave A Coruna, because I have everything here. But I understand that it is time."

Nico will now follow his dad, who once coached as part of our Academy set-up.

La Masia upbringing

Barcelona’s Academy is well known around the world for the talents it produces, not least the footballing mind of Pep Guardiola.

Our boss learnt about the game there before a lengthy career in the first team of the Catalan giants.

Much like City’s Academy now, young players are encouraged to play a possession-based attacking style of football and tested in a number of ways throughout their progression, including playing in different positions.

It seems the CFA will be something of a home from home for Gonzalez.

Versatility

Guardiola was himself a midfielder schooled relentlessly in the Barcelona philosophy, so it’s likely he’ll have a lot to relate to when he sees Gonzalez.

Our new signing’s senior debut came as a late substitute for Sergio Busquets, one of the finest performers in that deep-lying role in the 21st century.

While he’s been deployed at the base of the midfield on occasion, he’s also capable of bursting forward and contributing in the final third.

In fact, he’s scored seven goals and provided six assists in 29 matches already this season.

Whether it's in or out of possession, Gonzalez has the ability to impact a game all across the pitch.

Youth international

Luis de la Fuente, the current boss of the Spanish national side that won Euro 2024 last summer, gave Gonzalez his Under-21 debut in October 2021 when our new man was just 19 years old.

He played six friendlies and five European Championship qualifiers for the team across three calendar years, with his most recent performance coming as recently as September 2024.

Gonzalez will be hoping that impressive performances for City could see de la Fuente give him a first cap in senior international football too.

Temporary Valencian

After 39 appearances across all competitions in his debut senior season, Gonzalez was sent out on loan to Valencia for the 2022/23 season.

There he played 26 La Liga games – mostly only missing out when injured – in a combative, all-action role.

As another big club with an expectant fanbase, Gonzalez’s year at Valencia will only supplement the learning he’s had at Champions League regulars Barcelona and Porto.

European experience

This season for Porto, Gonzalez has made seven appearances in the Europa League. He even scored their winner against Maccabi Tel Aviv last Thursday night.

He’s also impressed in their engine room with an 89.6% passing accuracy.

He offers a lot off the ball too. With 10 tackles and 19 balls recovered to compliment his 275 passes, Gonzalez works hard in various roles.

Our new man has also featured 10 times in the Champions League in previous seasons meaning he brings a wealth of experience despite his tender age.

Those campaigns have included matches against English sides, playing the full 90 minutes against Manchester United this season and in both legs of last term’s Champions League last-16 tie with Arsenal.

In-form

Gonzalez was voted the Midfielder of the Month in Liga Portugal in December 2024.

He played all five of Porto’s games in the month, scoring twice and providing an assist as Martin Anselmi’s team won four times.

Until the new year, he had been an ever-present in the league for Porto this season – only missing out on games in January through suspension.

Spanish speakers

With many of our coaching staff speaking Spanish as a first language, Gonzalez will get straight into training and working on what Pep Guardiola’s staff want from him.

First team coaches Juanma Lillo, Carlos Vicens and Lorenzo Buenaventura are just some of the backroom staff members who will be spending plenty of time with him on the training pitch in the weeks and months to come.

The lack of language barrier also means he and Rodri could strike up a strong working relationship when his compatriot returns from injury.

Namesake

Our new man is not to be confused with another Nico Gonzalez also plying his trade at the top table of European football.

The 23-year-old Spanish midfielder shares his name with a 26-year-old Argentinian winger at Juventus.

It could be interesting if the two meet when we face Juventus at this summer’s FIFA Club World Cup!