Omar Gonzalez

Club

Chicago Fire II

Position

Defender

Nationality

United States

Date of birth

1988-10-11

Birthplace

Dallas, Texas, United States

Height

6 ft 5 in (1.96 m)

Weight

205 lbs

Shirt number

34

Omar Alejandro Gonzalez (born October 11, 1988) is an American professional soccer player who plays as a center-back for MLS Next Pro club Chicago Fire FC II.
A college soccer player for the Maryland Terrapins, he joined the LA Galaxy in the 2009 MLS SuperDraft, and went on to play 180 regular-season games for them, winning the MLS Cup in 2011, 2012 and 2014. He was named the MLS Rookie of the Year in 2009 and the MLS Defender of the Year in 2011.

A full international since 2010, he represented the United States at the 2014 FIFA World Cup and four CONCACAF Gold Cups, winning the 2013 and 2017 edition.

Club career
Early life and college
Gonzalez played youth soccer for the Dallas Texans Soccer Club, and played college soccer at the University of Maryland, College Park, where he won the 2008 College Cup championship, was named to the NCAA/Adidas All-American First Team and First Team All-ACC and was named the ACC Defensive Player of the Year as a sophomore in 2007.

LA Galaxy
Gonzalez was drafted in the first round (3rd overall) of the 2009 MLS SuperDraft by the Los Angeles Galaxy. Gonzalez began a regular feature in the Galaxy lineup from the start, and scored his first professional goal on April 4, 2009 against Colorado Rapids. He was named MLS Rookie of the Year for helping lead the Galaxy from a last-place finish in 2008.

In the 2010 season, Gonzalez scored a total of three goals including in the second leg of the Conference Semifinals.


Omar Gonzalez playing San Jose on August 21, 2010
In January 2012, Gonzalez was loaned to 1. FC Nürnberg of the Bundesliga until mid-February. During his first training session with his new club, Gonzalez suffered a torn anterior cruciate ligament to his left knee after a collision with national teammate Timothy Chandler. He immediately headed back to the U.S. to undergo surgery.

In August 2013, Gonzalez became Galaxy's third Designated Player after signing a new multi-year contract, rumored to be an annual average of more than $1.5 million. Gonzalez is the first pure center back to ever earn a Designated Player contract in Major League Soccer.

Pachuca
On December 22, 2015, Gonzalez was sold to Pachuca of Liga MX, ending his seven-season stay with the Galaxy. During their press conference with a Star Wars theme, Gonzalez was unveiled as Star Wars character Darth Vader in presentation.

Gonzalez made his league debut on January 8, 2016, in a 1–1 draw against Club Tijuana at Estadio Caliente.