Lucho González

Early years

González was born in Buenos Aires to a mother from Chile and a father from Uruguay. He began his career at Huracán at the age of 14, making his Primera División debut on 29 April 1999 in a 1–2 home loss against Racing Club. Three years later, González transferred to another side in his hometown, River Plate, where he won consecutive Clausura tournaments in 2003 and 2004, contributing 23 goals in 120 games across all competitions.

Porto

González's performances at River earned him a deal with Portugal's Porto in 2005, signing a five-year contract. In his first season he scored ten goals in 30 matches, including braces against Académica de Coimbra (5–1), Penafiel (3–1) and Vitória de Guimarães (3–1), helping the northerners to the first of their four consecutive Primeira Liga titles. González eventually became team captain at Porto. In November 2006, he agreed to an improved five-year deal and, in August of the following year, the club paid €6.65 million to Global Soccer Agencies (later renamed Rio Football Services) to achieve full ownership of the player, activating the clause by rejecting an offer from Everton. On 22 March 2009, González netted against Estrela da Amadora in the first leg of the semi-finals of the Taça de Portugal (2–0 home win, 3–2 on aggregate). During the league campaign, he scored nine times in only 23 appearances to help the team to the fourth title in a row; the season ended with a double.

Marseille

In June 2009,…

Under the guidance of Marcelo Bielsa, González earned his first cap for the Argentina national team on 31 January 2003 against Honduras. He went on to represent the nation in the 2004 Copa América, scoring two goals during the tournament as the country lost the final on penalties to Brazil. González also played with the side that won the gold medal at the 2004 Summer Olympics. In 2006, he was selected for the 2006 FIFA World Cup in which Argentina, managed by José Pekerman, lost to hosts Germany in the quarter-finals on penalties. Subsequently, González was part of the Alfio Basile–led squad at 2007 Copa América, where the Albiceleste was again defeated by Brazil in the decisive match, now 3–0.

González returned to his final club Athletico in January 2022, as assistant to manager Alberto Valentim. In April, he was named as the latter's interim replacement, but chose to leave within 24 hours. On 24 August 2022, González signed his first coaching contract for fellow Campeonato Brasileiro Série A team Ceará, until the end of the season. He drew 1–1 at Flamengo on his debut on 4 September, and was dismissed on 28 October after only one win in ten matches. González joined Internacional in July 2023 as assistant to manager Eduardo Coudet, taking part in their run to the Copa Libertadores semi-finals and climbing up the Brazilian League standings. In December, the entire staff was renewed until December 2024. González departed following Coudet's dismissal in July 2024, and returned to Athletico Paranaense on 24 September, now as head coach. He was himself sacked on 10 December, after suffering relegation in the year of the club's 100th birthday. In July 2025, González returned to Porto, as part of newly appointed Francesco Farioli's staff.

Club

International