Levi Samuel García (born 20 November 1997) is a Trinidadian 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 lea ...

who plays as a

forward Forward is a relative direction, the opposite of backward. Forward may also refer to: People *Forward (surname) Sports * Forward (association football) * Forward (basketball), including: ** Point forward ** Power forward (basketball) ** Smal ...

for

Russian Premier League The Russian Premier League (RPL; , ''Rossiyskaya premyer-liga''; РПЛ), also written as Russian Premier Liga, is a professional association football league in Russia and the highest level of the Russian football league system. It was establis ...

club

Spartak Moscow Spartak Moscow may refer to the following teams based or formerly based in Moscow, Russia: * FC Spartak Moscow, an association football club * HC Spartak Moscow, a professional ice hockey team * Spartak GM Moscow, a semi-professional rugby club * ...

and the

Trinidad and Tobago national team Trinidad is the larger, more populous island of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago, the country. The island lies off the northeastern coast of Venezuela and sits on the continental shelf of South America. It is the southernmost island in th ...

. García began his

professional A professional is a member of a profession or any person who work (human activity), works in a specified professional activity. The term also describes the standards of education and training that prepare members of the profession with the partic ...

football career in

2013 2013 was the first year since 1987 to contain four unique digits (a span of 26 years). 2013 was designated as: *International Year of Water Cooperation *International Year of Quinoa Events January * January 5 – 2013 Craig, Alask ...

, at the age of 15, with T&TEC in his native

Trinidad and Tobago Trinidad and Tobago, officially the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago, is the southernmost island country in the Caribbean, comprising the main islands of Trinidad and Tobago, along with several List of islands of Trinidad and Tobago, smaller i ...

. After one season with the ''Electricity Boys'', he completed a free transfer to fellow

TT Pro League The TT Premier Football League (formerly known as the TT Pro League) is the Trinidad and Tobago professional league for association football clubs. It is the country's primary football competition and serves as the top division in the Trinidad an ...

club

Central FC Central Football Club is a Trinidad and Tobago professional Association football, football club, based in California, Trinidad and Tobago, California, that plays in the TT Pro League. Founded in 2012, the ''Sharks'' were the 21st team to join th ...

. However, prior to making his first-team debut for the ''Couva Sharks'', Garcia signed with

AZ Alkmaar Alkmaar Zaanstreek (), better known internationally as AZ Alkmaar, or simply and most commonly as AZ () in the Netherlands, is a Dutch professional Association football, football club from Alkmaar and the Zaan#The Zaan district, Zaan district. ...

of the

Eredivisie The Eredivisie (; "Honour Division" or "Premier Division") is a professional association football league in the Netherlands and the highest level of the Dutch football league system. The league was founded in 1956, two years after the start o ...

in February 2015. After spending two years in

Israel Israel, officially the State of Israel, is a country in West Asia. It Borders of Israel, shares borders with Lebanon to the north, Syria to the north-east, Jordan to the east, Egypt to the south-west, and the Mediterranean Sea to the west. Isr ...

, García moved to AEK Athens in 2020. Considered one of the best footballers of the Greek league during his spell in

Greece Greece, officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. Located on the southern tip of the Balkan peninsula, it shares land borders with Albania to the northwest, North Macedonia and Bulgaria to the north, and Turkey to th ...

and able to play both as a winger and as a centre forward, García has been appraised for his muscle, his fitness, his dribbling, his tactical prowess and his exceptionally high jumping.

Early life

García was born on 20 November 1997 in

Santa Flora Santa Flora is a community in the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago. It is located in southern Trinidad, and is administered by the Siparia Regional Corporation. History After the discovery of light crude in the Palo Seco oilfield, the Trinidad Petro ...

, Trinidad and Tobago to parents Carl and Judith, and comes from a football family consisting of three brothers (Daniel,

Nathaniel Nathaniel is an English variant of the biblical Hebrew name A name is a term used for identification by an external observer. They can identify a class or category of things, or a single thing, either uniquely, or within a given context. ...

, and Judah) who have represented different local clubs and two sisters (Carla and Adanna) who are also fans of the

sport Sport is a physical activity or game, often Competition, competitive and organization, organized, that maintains or improves physical ability and skills. Sport may provide enjoyment to participants and entertainment to spectators. The numbe ...

. In fact, the three brothers would play football in their backyard for hours when younger. In particular, García credits his early football influence to his eldest brother Daniel after he encouraged Levi to become a better player and rented a car or ordered a taxi to ensure that he attended youth training and matches. His cousin Isaiah Garcia is also a footballer. At the age of 14, García attended Shiva Boys' Hindu College in

Penal Penal is a town in south Trinidad, Trinidad and Tobago. It lies south of San Fernando, Princes Town, and Debe, and north of Moruga, Morne Diablo and Siparia. Penal is noted as a heartland of Hindu and Indo-Trinidadian culture. History Up ...

, Trinidad and also enrolled in the youth program at former

club T&TEC. However, after one season with the ''Electricity Boys'', the club suspended its football operations citing financial difficulties. Over the next two years, Garcia played alternatively for Shiva Boys' Hindu College and local youth club Siparia Spurs. In 2012, playing as a striker, García led Shiva Boys to the Secondary Schools Football League (SSFL) South Zone title and qualified as one of four schools for the

FA Trophy The Football Association Challenge Trophy, also known as the Isuzu FA Trophy for sponsorship reasons, is a men's football knockout cup competition run by and named after The Football Association (the FA) and competed by mainly National League ...

. During the competition, Garcia scored one goal in three appearances to help the Shiva Boys progress in the competition before falling to

in the quarterfinals.

Club career

Early career

After spending the previous year in the club's youth program, García made his full professional debut for T&TEC of the

, at the age of 15, after making appearances during the club's run-in to close the

2012–13 1 (one, unit, unity) is a number, numeral, and glyph. It is the first and smallest positive integer of the infinite sequence of natural numbers. This fundamental property has led to its unique uses in other fields, ranging from science to sp ...

season. Due to the club's severe financial struggles and inability to pay its salaried players, ''Electricity Boys manager Dexter Cyrus decided to feature some of its younger players, which included the three Garcia brothers, in Pro League matches. In March 2014, García signed his first professional contract with

of the

on a two-year agreement. However, prior to his first appearance for the club, he was discovered in September 2014 while playing for

during

qualification Qualification may refer to: Processes * Qualifications-Based Selection (QBS), a competitive contract procurement process established by the United States Congress * Process qualification, ensures that manufacturing and production processes can ...

for the

2015 CONCACAF U-20 Championship The 2015 CONCACAF Under-20 Championship was an association football tournament that took place from 9 to 24 January 2015 in Jamaica. It determined the four CONCACAF teams that would participate at the 2015 FIFA U-20 World Cup in New Zealand. Q ...

Dutch Dutch or Nederlands commonly refers to: * Something of, from, or related to the Netherlands ** Dutch people as an ethnic group () ** Dutch nationality law, history and regulations of Dutch citizenship () ** Dutch language () * In specific terms, i ...

agent Humphry Nijman. After an initial struggle between Central and Nijman, the two parties came to an agreement through mediation involving the

Trinidad and Tobago Football Association The Trinidad and Tobago Football Association (TTFA) is the governing body of football in Trinidad and Tobago. It is based in Port of Spain, Trinidad. It is a member of FIFA and is responsible for governing amateur and professional football and i ...

to allow Garcia participate for a trial in the

Netherlands , Terminology of the Low Countries, informally Holland, is a country in Northwestern Europe, with Caribbean Netherlands, overseas territories in the Caribbean. It is the largest of the four constituent countries of the Kingdom of the Nether ...

AZ Alkmaar

On 20 February 2015, García signed a pre-contract agreement for three years with a club option for a two-year extension with

of the

following a successful trial with the club. However, he was unable to begin his professional career until his eighteenth birthday due to existing

European Union The European Union (EU) is a supranational union, supranational political union, political and economic union of Member state of the European Union, member states that are Geography of the European Union, located primarily in Europe. The u ...

labour laws Labour or labor may refer to: * Childbirth, the delivery of a baby * Labour (human activity), or work ** Manual labour, physical work ** Wage labour, a socioeconomic relationship between a worker and an employer ** Organized labour and the labou ...

. After several months of difficult negotiations, Garcia's former club

agreed upon an undisclosed transfer fee in June 2015 with AZ.

Rapid rise to the first team (2016–2018)

During the club's preparation for the 2015–16 season, García received training and special attention from former

international International is an adjective (also used as a noun) meaning "between nations". International may also refer to: Music Albums * ''International'' (Kevin Michael album), 2011 * ''International'' (New Order album), 2002 * ''International'' (The T ...

Marco Van Basten Marcel "Marco" Van Basten (; born 31 October 1964) is a Dutch former football manager and player who played as a striker for Ajax and AC Milan, as well as the Netherlands national team. Widely regarded as one of the greatest players of all t ...

who had served as an assistant manager for the club earlier in the year before stepping away for health reasons. On 24 January 2016, García made his professional and league debut for

against

Feyenoord Feyenoord Rotterdam () is a Netherlands, Dutch professional association football, football club based in Rotterdam, which plays in the Eredivisie, the top tier in Dutch football league system, Dutch football. Founded as Wilhelmina in 1908, the ...

after coming on for Dabney dos Santos in the 68th minute with his club leading 4–1. Aged just 18 years and 65 days, García became the youngest

Trinidadian Trinidadians and Tobagonians, colloquially known as Trinis or Trinbagonians, are the people who are identified with the country of Trinidad and Tobago. The population of Trinidad is notably diverse, with approximately 35% Indo-Trinidadian, 34% ...

footballer to make an appearance for a European club, beating a record previously held by former

Aston Villa Aston Villa Football Club (commonly referred to as simply Villa) is a professional football club based in Aston, Birmingham, England. The club, founded in 1874, compete in the Premier League, the top tier of English football. The team have p ...

striker

Dwight Yorke Dwight Eversley Yorke Chaconia Medal, CM (born 3 November 1971) is a Trinidadian and Tobagonian professional Association football, football coach and former player who is the head coach of Trinidad and Tobago national football team, Trinidad an ...

. One week later, he scored his first professional goal in less than a minute after coming on as a 71st-minute substitute in a 3–0 win over

NEC Nijmegen NEC Nijmegen (''Nijmegen Eendracht Combinatie''), commonly known as NEC (), is a professional Dutch association football club based in Nijmegen. The club currently competes in the Eredivisie, the top tier of Dutch football, following promotion ...

to become the club's second youngest ever scorer. In his first season at AZ, García made eight league appearances and nine in all competitions having scored one league goal and recording one assist to help AZ finish fourth in the

and qualify for the

2016–17 UEFA Europa League The 2016–17 UEFA Europa League was the 46th season of Europe's secondary club football tournament organised by UEFA, and the eighth season since it was renamed from the UEFA Cup to the UEFA Europa League. The final was played between Ajax and ...

Jong AZ and Excelsior (2018)

After having played for

Jong AZ Jong AZ is a Dutch association football team, based in Wijdewormer in the Zaanstreek. It is the reserve team of AZ, based in Alkmaar, and plays in the Eerste Divisie The Eerste Divisie (; ) is the second-highest tier of football in the Net ...

for most of the first half of the 2017–18 season, struggling to make first team appearances, García was sent out on loan to

Excelsior Rotterdam Excelsior Rotterdam, commonly known as Excelsior, is a Dutch professional football club based in Rotterdam. They play in the Eredivisie, the top tier of the Dutch football league system, following promotion from the Eerste Divisie in the 2024– ...

, another Eredivisie club, for the remainder of the season.

Ironi Kiryat Shmona

In May 2018, with his Alkmaar contract due to expire at the end of the season, it was announced García would join

Israeli Premier League The Israeli Premier League (, Ligat HaAl, ) is a professional association football league in Israel and the highest level of the Israeli football league system. The league is contested by 14 clubs, and operates on a system of promotion and rele ...

side

Ironi Kiryat Shmona Hapoel Ironi Kiryat Shmona Football Club () known as Ironi Kiryat Shmona is a professional football club based in Kiryat Shmona, in the northern district of Israel. The club is a current member of the Israeli Premier League, and plays at the Iro ...

for the 2018–19 season.

Beitar Jerusalem

On 30 May 2019, García signed to

Beitar Jerusalem Beitar Jerusalem Football Club (), commonly known as Beitar Jerusalem () or simply Beitar (), is an Israeli professional football club based in the city of Jerusalem, that plays in the Israeli Premier League, the top tier in Israeli football ...

AEK Athens

On 14 September 2020,

AEK Athens A.E.K. (; Athlitikí Énosis Konstantinoupόleos, ''Athletic Union of Constantinople'') is a major Greek multi-sport club based in Nea Filadelfeia, Attica. The club is more commonly known in European competitions as A.E.K. Athens. Establishe ...

signed the 22-year-old international by offering

€2.6 million to acquire 60% of García's rights, plus bonuses. On 27 September 2020, he scored the opening goal of the 3–0 win of AEK Athens against

Lamia Lamia (; ), in ancient Greek mythology, was a child-eating monster and, in later tradition, was regarded as a type of night-haunting spirit or "daimon". In the earliest myths, Lamia was a beautiful queen of ancient Libya who had an affair with ...

on his league debut. On 13 December 2020, García scored with a direct corner kick in a 4–3 away win against

Apollon Smyrnis Apollon Smyrnis Football Club () is a professional football club based in Athens, Greece, which competes in the Athens FCA first division. It is part of GS Apollon Smyrnis (Γυμναστικός Σύλλογος Απόλλων Σμύρνης), ...

. On 14 January 2021, García scored with a direct free-kick to give his team a 1–0 away win against

Aris Thessaloniki Athlitikos Syllogos Aris Thessalonikis, means Athletic Club Aris Thessaloniki (), is a major Greece, Greek multi-sport club founded on 25 March 1914 in Thessaloniki. Nicknamed ''God of War'', Aris was one of the strongest Greek clubs during t ...

. On 20 January 2021, he came in off the bench and sealed a 2–0 home win against

for the first leg of the Greek Cup round of 16. On 28 February 2021, he scored in a 1–1 away draw against

Panathinaikos Panathinaikos Athlitikos Omilos (, literally in English: "Panathenaic Athletic Club" or Panathinaikos A.C.), also known simply as Panathinaikós , is a major Greek multi-sport club based in the City of Athens. Panathinaikos is one of the mos ...

. His first two seasons in

weren't as productive as anticipated, but

Matías Almeyda Matías Jesús Almeyda (; born 21 December 1973) is an Argentine professional football manager and former player. He is the current head coach of La Liga club Sevilla. Nicknamed ''El Pelado'' ("bald one") despite his traditionally long hair, he ...

's appointment as the club's new coach at the start of 2022–23 season was crucial to his resurgence. Under the guidance of the Argentine, Levi transformed into a great striker, exploiting his speed and physical qualities. His adaptability and performances have been praised and as a result various clubs, including

Villarreal Villarreal (officially, in ) is a city and municipality in the province of Castellón which is part of the Valencian Community in the east of Spain. The town is located at 42 m above sea level, 7 km to the south of the province's capital ( ...

and

Celtic Celtic, Celtics or Keltic may refer to: Language and ethnicity *pertaining to Celts, a collection of Indo-European peoples in Europe and Anatolia **Celts (modern) *Celtic languages **Proto-Celtic language *Celtic music *Celtic nations Sports Foot ...

, are both keeping tabs on him, while

are not willing to accept anything less than €15,000,000. On 2 August 2023, García signed a new contract with

, running until the summer of 2028. His new contract will see him receive a fee of €1,2 million per year, thus ending the efforts of

Lens A lens is a transmissive optical device that focuses or disperses a light beam by means of refraction. A simple lens consists of a single piece of transparent material, while a compound lens consists of several simple lenses (''elements'') ...

to acquire him.

Spartak Moscow

On 7 February 2025, García signed a three-and-a-half-year contract with Russian club

International career

García has represented

on various levels of international competition, having been

capped In sport, a cap is a player's appearance in a game at international level. The term dates from the practice in the United Kingdom of awarding a cap to every player in an international match of rugby football and association football. In the e ...

for the under-17, under-20, and the senior team.

Youth teams

He made his international debut for the under-17 team after replacing Brent Sam in the second half of their final match to help the ''Soca Warriors'' earn

for the

2013 CONCACAF U-17 Championship The 2013 CONCACAF Under-17 Championship, CONCACAF U-17 Championship was a North American international association football tournament that determined the 2013 FIFA U-17 World Cup participants from the CONCACAF region. The 2013 edition of the com ...

. During the continental tournament, he made two consecutive starts in a loss to

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...

and in a 2–0 win against

Costa Rica Costa Rica, officially the Republic of Costa Rica, is a country in Central America. It borders Nicaragua to the north, the Caribbean Sea to the northeast, Panama to the southeast, and the Pacific Ocean to the southwest, as well as Maritime bo ...

to advance to the knockout round. However, following a 4–2 loss to hosts

Panama Panama, officially the Republic of Panama, is a country in Latin America at the southern end of Central America, bordering South America. It is bordered by Costa Rica to the west, Colombia to the southeast, the Caribbean Sea to the north, and ...

, the ''Soca Warriors'' fell one win short of qualifying for the

2013 FIFA U-17 World Cup The 2013 FIFA U-17 World Cup was the fifteenth tournament of the FIFA U-17 World Cup. The tournament was held in the United Arab Emirates from 17 October to 8 November. Nigeria won the tournament after defeating Mexico 3–0 in the final, claimin ...

. In September 2014, García represented the under-20 team in central midfield en route to winning the 2014 Caribbean Under-20 Championship and qualifying for the

. Although he made four appearances during the CONCACAF Championship and impressed several

Europe Europe is a continent located entirely in the Northern Hemisphere and mostly in the Eastern Hemisphere. It is bordered by the Arctic Ocean to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the west, the Mediterranean Sea to the south, and Asia to the east ...

an scouts, the ''Soca Warriors'' finished a disappointing fourth in their group with just one win and failed to qualify for the

2015 FIFA U-20 World Cup The 2015 FIFA U-20 World Cup was the twentieth edition of the FIFA U-20 World Cup since its inception in 1977 as the FIFA World Youth Championship. The competition took place for the first time in New Zealand, the third time on Oceanian soil after ...

Senior team

García made his full international debut for the

national team A national sports team (commonly known as a national team or a national side) is a team that represents a nation, rather than a particular club or region, in an international sport. The term is most commonly associated with team sports, for exa ...

on 25 March 2016 against

Saint Vincent and the Grenadines Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, sometimes known simply as Saint Vincent or SVG, is an island country in the eastern Caribbean. It is located in the southeast Windward Islands of the Lesser Antilles, which lie in the West Indies, at the south ...

during

for the

2018 FIFA World Cup The 2018 FIFA World Cup was the 21st FIFA World Cup, the quadrennial world championship for national association football, football teams organized by FIFA. It took place in Russia from 14 June to 15 July 2018, after the country was awarded t ...

. García marked his national team debut with a pair of goals in the second half to lead the ''Soca Warriors'' to a 3–2 win. Garcia's goals made him

's youngest ever scorer in a

FIFA World Cup The FIFA World Cup, often called the World Cup, is an international association football competition among the senior List of men's national association football teams, men's national teams of the members of the FIFA, Fédération Internatio ...

qualification match at 18 years and 127 days old. Two months later, he made an additional two appearances for the ''Soca Warriors'' in losses against

Peru Peru, officially the Republic of Peru, is a country in western South America. It is bordered in the north by Ecuador and Colombia, in the east by Brazil, in the southeast by Bolivia, in the south by Chile, and in the south and west by the Pac ...

and

Uruguay Uruguay, officially the Oriental Republic of Uruguay, is a country in South America. It shares borders with Argentina to its west and southwest and Brazil to its north and northeast, while bordering the Río de la Plata to the south and the A ...

Career statistics

Club

International

:''Scores and results list Trinidad and Tobago's goal tally first.''

Honours

Beitar Jerusalem *

Israeli Toto Cup The Israel Toto Cup (, ''Gvia Ha'Toto'') is an association football tournament that features clubs in the two highest divisions in Israel: the Israeli Premier League Ligat Ha'Al; and the Israeli 2nd division Liga Leumit. Both of these leagues a ...

: 2019–20 AEK Athens *

Super League Greece The Super League Greece 1 (), or Stoiximan Super League for sponsorship reasons, is a professional association football league in Greece and the highest level of the Greek football league system. The league was formed on 16 July 2006 and repla ...

2022–23 The dash is a punctuation mark consisting of a long horizontal line. It is similar in appearance to the hyphen but is longer and sometimes higher from the baseline. The most common versions are the endash , generally longer than the hyphen ...

Greek Cup The Greek Football Cup (), commonly known as the Greek Cup or Betsson Greek Cup for sponsorship reasons is a Greek football competition, run by the Hellenic Football Federation. The Greek Cup is the second-most important domestic men's footba ...

Trinidad and Tobago U20 *

CFU U-20 Tournament was The CFU U-20 Tournament was the Caribbean championship of football for male players under the age of 20 and was organized by the Caribbean Football Union (CFU). It acted as a qualifying tournament for the CONCACAF U-20 Championship The CONCAC ...

: 2014 Individual * Youngest

professional footballer in

: 18 years and 65 days * Youngest Trinidadian professional goalscorer in Europe: 18 years and 71 days * Youngest player to play for

in a

qualification match: 18 years and 127 days *

Player of the Season:

2020–21 The dash is a punctuation mark consisting of a long horizontal line. It is similar in appearance to the hyphen but is longer and sometimes higher from the baseline. The most common versions are the endash , generally longer than the hyphen ...

* Super League Greece Team of the Season:

References

External links