Manu García (footballer, born 1998)
Spanish footballer
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Manuel "Manu" García Alonso (Spanish pronunciation: [ˈmanu ɣaɾˈθi.a];[A] born 2 January 1998) is a Spanish professional footballer who plays as an attacking midfielder for Super League Greece club Aris.
|
| |||
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Manuel García Alonso[1] | ||
| Date of birth | 2 January 1998 | ||
| Place of birth | Oviedo, Spain | ||
| Height | 1.69 m (5 ft 7 in) | ||
| Positions | |||
| Team information | |||
Current team | Aris | ||
| Number | 5 | ||
| Youth career | |||
| 2005–2010 | Astur | ||
| 2010–2014 | Sporting Gijón | ||
| 2014–2016 | Manchester City | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2015–2019 | Manchester City | 1 | (0) |
| 2016–2017 | → Alavés (loan) | 0 | (0) |
| 2017–2019 | → NAC Breda (loan) | 53 | (3) |
| 2018–2019 | → Toulouse (loan) | 31 | (0) |
| 2019–2022 | Sporting Gijón | 75 | (4) |
| 2021–2022 | → Alavés (loan) | 24 | (0) |
| 2022–2025 | Aris | 51 | (9) |
| 2025–2026 | Sporting Kansas City | 45 | (4) |
| 2026– | Aris | 0 | (0) |
| International career | |||
| 2013 | Spain U16 | 2 | (0) |
| 2015 | Spain U17 | 1 | (0) |
| 2016–2017 | Spain U19 | 5 | (1) |
| 2019–2021 | Spain U21 | 10 | (2) |
| 2021 | Spain | 1 | (0) |
| * Club domestic league appearances and goals as of 17 August 2026 | |||
Club career
Early career
Born in Oviedo, Asturias, García joined Sporting Gijón's youth setup in 2010, aged 12, from Astur.[2] On 2 May 2013, he agreed to a move to Manchester City,[3] which paid €250,000 for his services in January, shortly after his 16th birthday.[4]
Manchester City
García was initially assigned to the club's under-18 squad.[5][6] In May 2015, shortly after being promoted to the under-21s,[7] he was called up to the main squad by manager Manuel Pellegrini ahead of the year's North America pre-season tour.[8]
On 27 May 2015, García made his senior debut for City, coming on as a late substitute for David Silva in a 1–0 friendly away win against Toronto FC.[9] He also took part of the club's pre-season friendlies against Melbourne City, Roma, Vietnam and Stuttgart.
García made his professional debut on 22 September 2015, coming on as a 74th-minute substitute for Sergio Agüero in a 4–1 Football League Cup away routing of Sunderland.[10] He went on to score the fifth goal in the 5–1 victory against Crystal Palace in the same competition.[11] He made his Premier League debut against Aston Villa on 5 March 2016, replacing Yaya Touré.
On 1 December 2016, García signed a contract extension with Manchester City, keeping him with the club until June 2020.[12]
Alavés (loan)
On 16 August 2016, García was loaned to Alavés, newly promoted to La Liga, for one year.[13] He only made his debut on 1 December, as a substitute in a 3–0 win over Gimnàstic de Tarragona in the Copa del Rey.[14]
NAC Breda (loan)
On 9 January 2017, García ended his season long loan short with Alavés and spent the rest of the season with Eerste Divisie side NAC Breda.[15] He made his debut immediately, starting in a 2–0 win over Jong Utrecht on 16 January.[16] García scored his first goal for the club on 6 February in a 1–0 win over Dordrecht.[17]
García was loaned back to NAC Breda for the 2017–18 season on 30 June 2017.[18]
Toulouse (loan)
Sporting Gijón
García rejoined his first club Sporting Gijón on 19 July 2019, signing a five-year contract[20] and becoming the highest transfer in the club's history, as they paid €4 million for his services.[21]
Return to Alavés (loan)
On 8 July 2021, García returned to Alavés, again in the top tier, also on loan.[22]
Aris
On 24 July 2022, García signed a four-year contract with Aris for a club record fee of €4 million.[23][24] He scored his first goal in a 3–0 home win against Asteras Tripolis, on 8 January 2023.[25]
On 21 January 2023, García scored his first career hat-trick in a comfortable 3–0 home win against Volos.[26]
International career
Due to the isolation of some national team players following the positive COVID-19 test of Sergio Busquets, Spain's under-21 squad were called up for the international friendly against Lithuania on 8 June 2021.[27] García made his senior debut in the match as Spain won 4–0.[28]
Career statistics
Club
- As of match played on 21 January 2025[29]
| Club | Season | League | National Cup | League Cup | Other | Total | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Manchester City | 2014–15[30] | Premier League | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2015–16[31] | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 1 | ||
| Total | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 1 | ||
| Alavés (loan) | 2016–17[32] | La Liga | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | — | 1 | 0 | ||
| NAC Breda (loan) | 2016–17 | Eerste Divisie | 23 | 2 | 0 | 0 | — | — | 23 | 2 | ||
| 2017–18 | Eredivisie | 34 | 1 | 1 | 0 | — | — | 35 | 1 | |||
| Total | 57 | 3 | 1 | 0 | — | — | 58 | 3 | ||||
| Toulouse (loan) | 2018–19[33] | Ligue 1 | 34 | 1 | 1 | 0 | — | — | 35 | 1 | ||
| Sporting Gijón | 2019–20[34] | Segunda División | 40 | 3 | 0 | 0 | — | — | 40 | 3 | ||
| 2020–21[35] | 35 | 1 | 1 | 0 | — | — | 36 | 1 | ||||
| Total | 75 | 4 | 1 | 0 | — | — | 76 | 4 | ||||
| Alavés (loan) | 2021–22 | La Liga | 24 | 0 | 2 | 0 | — | — | 26 | 0 | ||
| Aris | 2022–23 | Superleague Greece | 17 | 4 | 2 | 0 | — | 2 | 0 | 21 | 4 | |
| 2023–24 | 16 | 1 | 5 | 0 | — | — | 21 | 1 | ||||
| 2024–25 | 18 | 4 | 2 | 0 | — | — | 20 | 4 | ||||
| Total | 51 | 9 | 9 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 62 | 9 | ||
| Career total | 242 | 16 | 16 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 262 | 18 | ||
International
- As of 8 June 2021
| National team | Year | Apps | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|
| Spain | 2021 | 1 | 0 |
| Total | 1 | 0 | |
Honours
Individual
- Super League Greece Player of the Month: September 2024[36]
Notes
- In isolation, García is pronounced [ɡaɾˈθi.a].
