Daniel González Güiza

Early years

Having started playing on the streets of his hometown of Jerez de la Frontera in Cádiz, Güiza used to hide behind trees in an attempt to avoid the running, despite being then coached by boyhood idol Kiko, who begun his professional career with local Cádiz CF. He eventually made it into his local club Xerez CD and, after one season there, first showed his eye for goal at Segunda División B side Dos Hermanas CF, loaned immediately after RCD Mallorca bought him. Such performances saw him make his debut in La Liga for the latter at the age of 19, but he would fail to perform, being relegated to the reserves. Güiza was then loaned out to Recreativo de Huelva, but could not find a secure place in the team, and moved soon after to FC Barcelona B, also on loan. Subsequently, he joined Ciudad de Murcia of the Segunda División, where his career saw a turning point with two consecutive top-five finishes in the top scorers' list (runner-up in the 2004–05 season).

Getafe

This impressed Bernd Schuster enough to sign Güiza for Getafe CF in the summer of 2005. He was an instant first-choice at his new team and became recognised as a top flight striker, scoring 27 goals in 70 competitive games – seven in nine Copa del Rey appearances – while the team from the Madrid outskirts achieved back-to-back ninth-league places. The club's president, Ángel Torres, described him as "the best finisher in the first division after Ronaldo". On 10 May 2007, he was one of three…

Güiza was a late bloomer on the international stage, having been first called up by Spain on 8 November 2007 (aged 27) for UEFA Euro 2008 qualifiers against Sweden and Northern Ireland, as the national team was already qualified for the finals in Austria and Switzerland. He made his international debut against the latter on 21 November, in a 1–0 home win in Las Palmas. Güiza was subsequently selected to the final squad of 23 but, despite being the league's top scorer in that year, still doubted his chances of being picked: "I was really scared I'd miss out, because being the league's top scorer doesn't guarantee you a place". On 18 June 2008 he made his debut in the tournament, and scored Spain's winning goal against Greece during the dying moments of the last match group stage match. In the quarter-finals he came on as a substitute against Italy, missing the team's fourth attempt in an eventual penalty shootout win. In the semi-final match against Russia, Güiza netted his second international goal, in a 3–0 win: after receiving a pass from Cesc Fàbregas, he quickly side-flicked it over the goalkeeper. He played 15 minutes in the final against Germany after replacing Fernando Torres (who scored the game's only goal), and came very close to assisting Marcos Senna. On 15 October 2008, Güiza came on as a late substitute against Belgium, and soon after assisted David Villa who scored the winning goal in a close 2–1 contest for the 2010 FIFA World Cup qualifiers. After an article…

Club

As of 5 May 2024

International

Scores and results list Spain's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Güiza goal.

Güiza was born to a humble family. He spent his childhood in the working class neighbourhood of La Liberación, in the south side of Jerez de la Frontera. He is of Romani descent. Güiza suffered a divorce from his first wife Rocío with whom he had his first child, which gained a lot of publicity in the Spanish press. Furthermore, he admitted that "the night confuses me" and, after joining Getafe, he started to take advantage of the night life in Madrid, suffering a stomach infection as a result and subsequently being forced to go on a diet consisting of liquids alone. During his time at Getafe, Güiza met Nuria Bermúdez. She sat for the qualifications to become an official FIFA football agent, which she passed scoring 29 points, just five below the top and went on to become Güiza's agent. She also obtained the highest score for a female football agent in Spain. Speaking of his relationship with the model, Getafe coach Schuster said: "Ever since Dani's been with Nuria, he turns up to training and it doesn't look like he's slept under a bridge". On 1 December 2007, Bermúdez gave birth to Güiza's second son, also named Daniel, at Policlínica Miramar in Palma, Majorca. Before Euro 2008, Güiza promised the media that if he were to win the competition, he would then propose to Bermúdez. In January 2009, the Spanish media began to publicise problems between his family and Bermúdez, with his mother apparently threatening to slit Bermúdez's throat for being a "thief". Bermúdez then…