Iván González López (born 15 February 1988) is a Spanish former professional

footballer A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby le ...

who played mainly as a central defender.

Club career

Málaga

Born in Torremolinos,

Province of Málaga The province of Málaga ( es, Provincia de Málaga ) is located in Andalusia, Spain. It is bordered by the Mediterranean Sea to the south and by the provinces of Cádiz to the west, Seville to the northwest, Córdoba to the north, and Granada to ...

, González finished his football development at local

Málaga CF Málaga Club de Fútbol (, ''Málaga Football Club''), or simply Málaga, is a association football, football club based in Málaga, Andalusia, Spain, that competes in the Segunda División, the second tier of the Spanish football league system, ...

, and made his first-team – and La Liga – debut on 22 November 2009, at home against Real Zaragoza, making an immediate impact as he rescued the Andalusians from defeat by scoring with his

head A head is the part of an organism which usually includes the ears, brain, forehead, cheeks, chin, eyes, nose, and mouth, each of which aid in various sensory functions such as sight, hearing, smell, and taste. Some very simple animals may ...

in the 74th minute, in a 1–1 draw. From then onwards, González became a defensive mainstay in

Juan Ramón López Muñiz Juan Ramón López Muñiz (born 2 November 1968) is a Spanish former footballer who played as a central defender, currently a manager. Playing career Muñiz was born in Gijón, Asturias. During his playing days, he represented hometown club Spo ...

's side, soon attracting interest from the likes of

Real Madrid Real Madrid Club de Fútbol (, meaning ''Royal Madrid Football Club''), commonly referred to as Real Madrid, is a Spanish professional football club based in Madrid. Founded in 1902 as Madrid Football Club, the club has traditionally wor ...

Atlético Madrid Club Atlético de Madrid, Sociedad Anónima Deportiva, S.A.D. (; meaning "Athletic Club of Madrid"), known simply as Atleti in the Spanish-speaking world and commonly referred to at international level as Atlético Madrid, is a Spanish profess ...

, Liverpool and Hull City.

Castilla

After the arrival of manager

Manuel Pellegrini Manuel Lúis Pellegrini Ripamonti (; ; born 16 September 1953) is a Chilean professional football manager and former player who is the manager of Real Betis. As a coach, he has managed teams in Spain, England, Argentina, Chile, China and Ecuador. ...

, González appeared more as a defensive midfielder than in his natural position, but was also deemed surplus to requirements in December 2010 alongside five other players – he eventually stayed at the club. However, on 28 January 2011, he was loaned to

Real Madrid Castilla Real Madrid Castilla Club de Fútbol is a Spanish football team that plays in Primera Federación – Group 1 for the 2022–23 season. It is Real Madrid's reserve team. They play their home games at the Alfredo Di Stéfano Stadium with a cap ...

Segunda División B Segunda División B ( en, Second Division B) was the third tier of the Spanish football league system containing 102 teams divided into five groups, until it was replaced by the new structure in 2021. It was administered by the Royal Spanish Foot ...

for the rest of the season and the following, making his official debut on 6 February in a 2–0 win at

Pontevedra CF Pontevedra Club de Fútbol, S.A.D. is a List of football clubs in Spain, Spanish football team in Pontevedra, in the autonomous community of Galicia (Spain), Galicia. Founded on 16 October 1941 it currently plays in Primera División RFEF, Primera ...

. On 11 September 2011, in a match against Coruxo FC, Iván scored his first goal for Castilla, also being sent off in the 1–1 away draw. He again received his marching orders on 16 October, now in a 1–0 away loss to

Rayo Vallecano B Rayo Vallecano de Madrid B is the reserve team of Rayo Vallecano, a Spanish football club based in the Madrid neighbourhood of Vallecas. Founded in 1973 and plays in Tercera Federación – Group 7, holding home matches at ''Ciudad Deportiva Ray ...

. González returned to Málaga after his loan stint, but his remaining one-year contract was terminated and again signed with Castilla.

Erzgebirge Aue

On 20 September 2013, González joined German

2. Bundesliga The 2. Bundesliga ( ) is the second division of professional football in Germany. It was implemented 11 years after the founding of the Fußball-Bundesliga as the new second division for professional football. The 2. Bundesliga is ranked below ...

club

FC Erzgebirge Aue Fußball Club Erzgebirge Aue e.V., commonly known as simply FC Erzgebirge Aue or Erzgebirge Aue (), is a Football in Germany, German football club based in Aue-Bad Schlema, Saxony. The former East German side was a founding member of the 3. ...

, signing a two-year deal and being given the number 32 shirt. On 30 September 2014, his contract was terminated by mutual consent.

Later years

González moved clubs and countries again in February 2015, signing with ASA Târgu Mureș in Romania. In late June 2016 he agreed to a two-year contract at AD Alcorcón, but left the following 4 January by mutual consent. On 11 January 2017, González switched to the Ekstraklasa with Wisła Kraków. On 8 August, he scored twice through

penalties Penalty or The Penalty may refer to: Sports * Penalty (golf) * Penalty (gridiron football) * Penalty (ice hockey) * Penalty (rugby) * Penalty (rugby union) * Penalty kick (association football) * Penalty shoot-out (association football) * Penalty ...

to help the hosts defeat

Wisła Płock Wisła Płock Spółka Akcyjna (''Wisła Płock S.A.''), commonly referred to as Wisła Płock (), is a Polish professional football club, based in Płock, Masovian Voivodeship, which plays in the Ekstraklasa, the top tier of the national foot ...

2–1 in the

round of 32 A single-elimination, knockout, or sudden death tournament is a type of elimination tournament where the loser of each match-up is immediately eliminated from the tournament. Each winner will play another in the next round, until the final matc ...

of the Polish Cup. In May 2018, it was announced he would be leaving at the end of the next month. On 17 July 2018, González joined Recreativo de Huelva. In May 2020, he announced his retirement at the age of 32 due to injury problems.

International career

On 6 August 2010, González was called up by coach Luis Milla to the Spain under-21 team, for a 2011 UEFA European Championship qualifier against Finland. Four months earlier, he had already been summoned by the previous manager

Juan Ramón López Caro Juan Ramón López Caro (; born 23 March 1963) is a Spanish Association football, football Manager (association football), manager. He managed Real Madrid CF, Real Madrid and Levante UD, Levante in La Liga, as well as RC Celta de Vigo, Celta and ...

, but eventually did not make his debut.

Honours

Real Madrid Castilla *

: 2011–12

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Gonzalez, Ivan 1988 births Living people People from Torremolinos Spanish men's footballers Footballers from the Province of Málaga Men's association football central defenders La Liga players Segunda División players Segunda División B players Tercera División players Atlético Malagueño players Málaga CF players Real Madrid Castilla footballers AD Alcorcón footballers Recreativo de Huelva players 2. Bundesliga players FC Erzgebirge Aue players Liga I players ASA 2013 Târgu Mureș players Ekstraklasa players Wisła Kraków players Spanish expatriate men's footballers Expatriate men's footballers in Germany Expatriate men's footballers in Romania Expatriate men's footballers in Poland Spanish expatriate sportspeople in Germany Spanish expatriate sportspeople in Romania Spanish expatriate sportspeople in Poland