Centre-ForwardParaguay33 years oldPlays for Independiente del Valle
Photo: Philip.theiss, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons; resized and cropped.
Carlos Gabriel González Espinola is a Paraguayan centre-forward born on 1993-02-04. He plays for Independiente del Valle and leads the line in the 2026 Copa Libertadores. The club reached the quarter-finals for the first time in ten years, the first such run since 2016. González commanded the attack in the 25 August return leg against Deportes Tolima and is the competition’s second top scorer with six goals.
He is right-footed and listed at 183 cm. Sources do not detail his movement, build-up play or defensive contribution. The available coverage is limited to his role up front and goal production, with no tactical breakdown on record.
He came through Magallanes U21 and broke into senior football with Magallanes in January 2013. Chile provided the first steps, with moves to Santiago Wanderers in January 2015 and San Marcos de Arica in January 2016 before a transfer to Huachipato in October 2016. Mexico followed from January 2017, with Necaxa, then UNAM Pumas in January 2018, Tigres UANL in January 2021 for €4.5m, Deportivo Toluca in January 2022 for €3.3m and Club Tijuana in January 2023. After a spell at Newell’s Old Boys from October 2025, he joined the Ecuadorian side in September 2026.
The peak was 5000000 EUR on 2020-12-18, with a first recorded value of €300k in November 2016. The contract runs to 2027-12-31 and no release clause or formal interest is reported in the available sources.
Pasion Futbol reports that Carlos González, a Paraguayan centre-forward, wants a return to Pumas UNAM. His contract at Independiente del Valle runs to 31 December 2027.