David González Giraldo (born 20 July 1982), known as David González, is a Colombian

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...

manager Management (or managing) is the administration of organizations, whether businesses, nonprofit organizations, or a government bodies through business administration, nonprofit management, or the political science sub-field of public administra ...

and former player who played as a

goalkeeper In many team sports that involve scoring goal (sport), goals, the goalkeeper (sometimes termed goaltender, netminder, GK, goalie, or keeper) is a designated player charged with directly preventing the opposing team from scoring by blocking or i ...

. He is the current manager of

Categoría Primera A The Categoría Primera A (), commonly referred to as Liga BetPlay Dimayor due to Sponsor (commercial), sponsorship by online betting company BetPlay, is a professional association football league in Colombia and the highest level of the Colombian ...

club

Millonarios Millonarios Fútbol Club, known simply as Millonarios, is a Colombian professional football club based in Bogotá, that competes in the Categoría Primera A, top flight of football in Colombia. It is one of the most successful and iconic clubs i ...

Playing career

Born in

Medellín Medellín ( ; or ), officially the Special District of Science, Technology and Innovation of Medellín (), is the List of cities in Colombia, second-largest city in Colombia after Bogotá, and the capital of the department of Antioquia Departme ...

, González began his career at his hometown club

Independiente Medellín Deportivo Independiente Medellín, also known as Independiente Medellín or DIM, is a Colombian professional football club (association football), football club based in Medellín that currently plays in the Categoría Primera A. They play their ...

. In 2002, at the age of 20, he became the youngest goalkeeping champion in the history of

Colombia Colombia, officially the Republic of Colombia, is a country primarily located in South America with Insular region of Colombia, insular regions in North America. The Colombian mainland is bordered by the Caribbean Sea to the north, Venezuel ...

n football. In 2006, he moved to

Deportivo Cali Asociación Deportivo Cali, best known as Deportivo Cali, is a Colombian sports club based in Cali, most notable for its football team, which currently competes in the Categoría Primera A. Deportivo Cali is one of the most successful football t ...

, before going to

Çaykur Rizespor Çaykur Rizespor Kulübü is a Turkish professional Association football, football club based in Rize, a city on the eastern Black Sea region, Black Sea coast. The team competes in the Süper Lig, the top tier of Football in Turkey, Turkish footba ...

, where he spent two seasons. In 2009, he spent a short time at

Club Atlético Huracán Club Atlético Huracán () is an Argentine sports club from the Parque Patricios neighbourhood of Buenos Aires. The club is notable for its association football, football team, that currently plays in the Argentine Primera División, Primera Divi ...

in Argentina before becoming a free agent. González has played over 300 professional club games in South America and Turkey along with the SPL and the English Championship.

Manchester City

At the end of 2009 he had a trial with

Manchester City Manchester City Football Club is a professional association football, football club based in Manchester, England, that competes in the Premier League, the English football league system, top flight of Football in England, English footbal ...

, which proved successful, and signed in January 2010. González was not named, in

's 25-man squad for the 2010–11 season but became the first choice reserve team goalkeeper, where he made some outstanding performances, alerting many Championship clubs to a potential loan move.

Leeds United loan

On 31 January 2011, on transfer deadline day, González signed a short-term loan with

Leeds United Leeds United Football Club is a professional football club based in Leeds, West Yorkshire, England. The team compete in the Premier League, the top tier of the English football league system. Leeds United have won the League Championship th ...

With injuries to

Shay Given Séamus John James Given (born 20 April 1976) is an Irish former professional Association football, footballer who played as a Goalkeeper (association football), goalkeeper. Widely regarded as one of the greatest Irish goalkeepers of all time ...

and Gunnar Nielsen, City manager Roberto Mancini had hinted he may recall González as third choice City keeper for the rest of the season. However, González remained at Leeds as cover for

Kasper Schmeichel Kasper Peter Schmeichel (born 5 November 1986) is a Danish professional Association football, footballer who plays as a Goalkeeper (association football), goalkeeper for Scottish Premiership club Celtic F.C., Celtic and the Denmark national footb ...

and Shane Higgs. On 9 May, González returned to City.

Aberdeen loan

On 21 June, it was announced that Manchester City were in talks with

Scottish Premier League The Scottish Premier League (SPL) was the Scottish football league system, top-level league competition for professional Association football, football clubs in Scotland. The league was founded in 1998, when it broke away from the Scottish Foo ...

side

Aberdeen Aberdeen ( ; ; ) is a port city in North East Scotland, and is the List of towns and cities in Scotland by population, third most populous Cities of Scotland, Scottish city. Historically, Aberdeen was within the historic county of Aberdeensh ...

in regards to a loan move for González. Aberdeen completed the signing of González on 29 June 2011 on a 6-month loan from Manchester City. González became first choice keeper for the Dons until October with regular starter Jamie Langfield sidelined after suffering a seizure in the 2010–11 season. González made his debut against

St Johnstone St Johnstone Football Club is a professional association football club in Perth, Scotland. The team competes in the , the second division of Scottish football. The club's name is derived from St John's Toun (or Saint Johnstoun)—an old name o ...

in the opening game of the season.

Brighton & Hove Albion

On 19 January 2012, González signed a five-month temporary contract as cover with

Brighton & Hove Albion Brighton & Hove Albion Football Club, commonly referred to as Brighton, is a professional football club based in Brighton and Hove, East Sussex, England. The club competes in the Premier League, the top tier of English football. Their home gr ...

after his contract with Manchester City was cancelled by mutual consent. González made his debut in the 2–2 draw against

Watford Watford () is a town and non-metropolitan district with Borough status in the United Kingdom, borough status in Hertfordshire, England, northwest of Central London, on the banks of the River Colne, Hertfordshire, River Colne. Initially a smal ...

on 17 April 2012 going on to play three more games including playing the last game of the season against Barnsley where he kept a clean sheet, Gonzalez left Brighton after the expiration of his contract at the end of April 2012.

Barnsley

At the beginning of the 2012–13 season González signed a one-month deal with

Barnsley Barnsley () is a market town in South Yorkshire, England. It is the main settlement of the Metropolitan Borough of Barnsley and the fourth largest settlement in South Yorkshire. The town's population was 71,422 in 2021, while the wider boroug ...

as cover, due to the injuries of the No.1 and No.2 goalkeepers, playing three games in the Championship. He then moved back to Colombia to sign for

Deportivo Pasto Asociación Deportivo Pasto, also known as Deportivo Pasto, is a Colombian professional football team based in the city of Pasto, that currently plays in the Categoría Primera A. They play their home games at the Estadio Departamental Libertad ...

in the Colombian first division for one season.

International career

In 2004, González was called up to take part of the

2004 CONMEBOL Men Pre-Olympic Tournament The 2004 CONMEBOL Pre-Olympic Tournament began on 7 January 2004, and is the 12th CONMEBOL Pre-Olympic Tournament. This was the 4th tournament is open to players under the age of 23 without any other restriction. There is no qualification stage and ...

disputed in Chile. He played for the senior team in a 2–1 win against

South Korea South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea (ROK), is a country in East Asia. It constitutes the southern half of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and borders North Korea along the Korean Demilitarized Zone, with the Yellow Sea to the west and t ...

on 15 January 2005.

Managerial career

On 28 June 2022, González was appointed as manager of

. He led Independiente Medellín to a runner-up finish in the 2022 Finalización tournament but left the club on a mutual agreement on 8 May 2023. On 18 September 2023, González was confirmed as the new manager of

Deportes Tolima Club Deportes Tolima S.A., commonly known as Deportes Tolima, or simply as Tolima, is a Colombian professional football club based in Ibagué, Tolima Department, that competes in the Categoría Primera A. Founded in 1954, the club has won the C ...

. With Tolima, González reached the finals of the 2024 Finalización tournament, which they lost to

Atlético Nacional Atlético Nacional S. A., best known as Atlético Nacional, is a Colombian professional football club based in Medellín. The club is one of only three clubs to have played in every first division tournament in the country's history, the other ...

, before resigning on 31 December 2024. Four days later, González was announced as manager of

References

External links

* * * * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Gonzalez, David 1982 births Living people Colombian men's footballers Footballers from Medellín Colombia men's international footballers Men's association football goalkeepers Atlético Nacional footballers Independiente Medellín footballers Deportivo Cali footballers Çaykur Rizespor footballers Club Atlético Huracán footballers Manchester City F.C. players Leeds United F.C. players Aberdeen F.C. players Brighton & Hove Albion F.C. players Barnsley F.C. players Deportivo Pasto footballers Águilas Doradas players 21st-century Colombian sportsmen Categoría Primera A players Süper Lig players Scottish Premier League players Colombian expatriate men's footballers Expatriate men's footballers in Turkey Colombian expatriate sportspeople in Turkey Expatriate men's footballers in Argentina Expatriate men's footballers in England Expatriate men's footballers in Scotland Categoría Primera A managers Independiente Medellín managers Deportes Tolima managers Millonarios F.C. managers English Football League players