Gonzalo Castro (football player) is a Uruguayan central midfielder who plays for the Spanish club Malaga and the Uruguayan national football team. Champion of the Uruguayan Primera in 2002 and 2006, winner of the Uruguay Challenge Cup in 2005. The football player is most recognizable by his nickname "Chori", which was given to him by the Spanish fans and fans.
Gonzalo Castro Irizabal: biography, acquaintance with football
Born September 14, 1984 in Trinidad (capital of Flores Department), Uruguay. He grew up and was brought up in an ordinary family - his father was a foreman of an agricultural group on a farm, and his mother was a primary school teacher in a comprehensive school. From childhood, Gonzalo Castro fell in love with football early - at the age of three he was already a real fan of the local football club Nacional. Every weekend, Gonzalo and his father spent time in front of the TV, rooting for their favorite football club. Soon the guy signed up for the football section, where he had wanted to for so long. A six-year-old child amazed everyone with histalent and "football" understanding of the game. As a result, Gonzalo Castro quickly became a leader among his young teammates. It was here that the first cups, gold medals and other awards were won.
Professional career
In the summer of 2002, Gonzalo Castro became a player of his favorite club Nacional. In July of the same year, the footballer made his debut in a match against Senral Espanyol. The young 18-year-old Chori played the match superbly, significantly influencing its outcome - 3:1 in favor of Nacional. In the debut game, Gonzalo Castro showed the real qualities of an attacking midfielder and an overnight "playmaker". All game attacks and chances were built on the works of Chori, who has 2 assists (assist).
Gonzalo Castro's game satisfied absolutely everyone, both the club management and the players with the fans. Chori gradually increased his authority and became a key player in the base and starting lineup. The game of the “tricolors” began to gradually improve, which has not been seen for several seasons. As a result, the Uruguayan Primera 2002/2003 was won, and Gonzalo Castro (photo below) was awarded the title of "Best Young Player of the Season".
Sporting viability, first titles, scorer race
The next few seasons were without trophies, but the player consistently showed good statistics and was a real leader in the team. In 2005, Gonzalo and Nacional won the transition tournament of Uruguay, and also won gold medals in the 2005/2006 Example. As a midfield player,Gonzalo Castro scored an insane amount of goals, becoming one of the top scorers in the Uruguayan La Liga.
First transfer and move to Spain
In 2007, a real transfer hunt among European clubs began for Chori. One of these was the football club from Spain "Mallorca". Both sides managed to reach the desired consensus, which eventually led to a transfer - Chori goes to Mallorca for five years. The Uruguayan midfielder eagerly signed all the necessary paperwork and began to pack his bags for the flight to Spain. The amount of the deal was not disclosed, however, as well as the salary of a football player, which could not be a large amount.
In the Spanish club, Chori could not gain a foothold for a very long time - the footballer was very rarely released in the starting lineup, which significantly affected his quality of play. This went on for two whole seasons. Gonzalo Castro came out very rarely, there was relatively little game practice. However, the player did not lose morale and waited for his turn.
Since 2009, he really started playing football. He demonstrated in one of the games the excellent qualities of a “playmaker” and “assistant”, and they began to treat the Uruguayan in a completely different way. A few months later, he became a key player for the Islanders. In the 2009/2010 Spanish La Liga season, Gonzalo played 35 matches, scoring six goals and twelve assists. The next season was not too different from the previous one - in 33 matches 5 goals scored and 9 assists. The player's statistics were notthe coolest in La Liga, but within Mallorca, the player was one of the best. In the 2011-2012 Spanish Championship season, Chori repeated his own results of the 2009/2010 season.
Gonzalo Castro: Real Sociedad career
In June 2012, the Uruguayan's contract with Mallorca ended. At that time, the football club was experiencing some financial difficulties, so no one stuttered about renewing the contract with Castro. As a result, the football player ended up in the football world with the status of a “free agent”. Just a few weeks later, the Uruguayan midfielder received an offer from the Real Sociedad team, which he gladly accepted. “A new club, a new challenge, but also a good salary,” the Uruguayan thought to himself.
As part of the "blue and white" Castro played for almost four years. In Spain, everyone already knew about him, so no one was surprised when Chori scored another goal against an opponent. According to experts, he spent his best football years at Sociedad.
In December 2016, the Uruguayan midfielder signed a contract to move to Malaga.
Performances for the national team of Uruguay
Chori's debut game for Uruguay took place on August 17, 2005, when Celeste met in a match against Spain, the latter won 2-0. During the next season, Gonzalo Castro played for his national team a couple of times, but then he was not called up until 2012.
Gonzalo "Chori" has a sister, Juliana, who also playsfootball. Juliana Castro plays as a striker and plays for the Uruguay women's national football team.
