20-year-old Gonzalo García officially announced himself to the world when he sent Real Madrid to the Copa del Rey semifinals in just his third first-team appearance.
With injuries mounting and games coming every three days for Real Madrid, Carlo Ancelotti had to rely on his young bench against Leganes in the Copa del Rey quarterfinals. While Kylian Mbappé and Jude Bellingham remained in Madrid, players like Arda Güler and Endrick got the start at the Estadio Municipal de Butarque.
Los Blancos were struggling to get past the hosts, though, after they saw their two-goal lead vanish in the second half. Deadlocked at 2–2 and with extra time just eight minutes away, Ancelotti brought on Gonzalo García for Endrick.
The forward would go on to play hero for Real Madrid and head home the match winner in the 93rd minute. Suddenly, Madridistas across the globe found themselves wanting to know more about their new savior.
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Who Is Gonzalo Garcia? Meet the Real Madrid Castilla Forward
García is a 20-year-old forward currently playing for Real Madrid Castilla. He is a Madrid native who typically plays on the left wing. García's performance against Leganes proved he can fill in as a number nine as well.
The Spaniard is having a career-best season at Real Madrid Castilla in the Spanish third tier, Primera Federación. García has found the back of the net 19 times in 21 appearances. Last season, he only managed five goals in 27 appearances.
García translated his goalscoring to Real Madrid at the first chance he got this year. Although he featured in two of Los Blancos' matches last season, he failed to leave an impression in just 17 total minutes on the pitch. Fast forward to 2025, and it only took the 20-year-old 11 minutes to leave his mark.
Real Madrid legend and Real Madrid Castilla head coach Raúl had this to say about García last season: "If [García] is in the squad and performs at that level, he is more prepared than others as of today. You must follow his development. Both him and other teammates. Without a doubt, he was the best player for Castilla by far."
After such a ringing endorsement from Raúl, it is a surprise that it took this long for García to have his moment on the first team. He might not fully break into Real Madrid's star-studded squad on a weekly basis just yet, but the future is looking bright for the 20-year-old forward.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as Who Is Gonzalo Garcia? Meet the Real Madrid Castilla Forward.
