28 Facts About Nery Castillo

Nery Alberto Castillo Confalonieri was born on 13 June 1984 and is a Mexican former professional footballer who played as a forward.

Nery Castillo was born in San Luis Potosi, Mexico, where his father, a Uruguayan professional footballer, had played for the local team of San Luis.

The family moved to South America while Castillo was still a small child.

Nery Castillo started playing for Uruguayan side Danubio's youth team.

Nery Castillo went on to trials with Manchester United, but failed to obtain a work permit and the transfer did not materialise.

Three years after he joined Olympiacos, Nery Castillo became a regular starter in both domestic and European competitions.

Nery Castillo became a fan favourite with the Gate 7 Ultras and was even given the number 7 shirt in deference to them.

Nery Castillo was part of the Olympiacos squad that won the next three consecutive league titles.

Nery Castillo finished the season second to Rivaldo in goals scored and assists for the club, with three goals scored in five Champions League games.

Nery Castillo scored his first goal for Shakhtar while playing against SV Salzburg in the Champions League.

Nery Castillo had only played in a few games for Shakhtar when, in a league match versus FC Naftovyk-Ukrnafta Okhtyrka, Shakhtar won a penalty kick.

Nery Castillo refused to give the ball to designated penalty kick-taker Cristiano Lucarelli and took the penalty himself, which was saved by the goalkeeper.

On 18 December 2007, it was announced that Nery Castillo had signed a one-year loan agreement with Manchester City, commencing on 1 January 2008.

Reportedly Nery Castillo was keen to make the move happen and, in a highly unusual move, paid half of the loan fee himself.

Nery Castillo played his first game for Manchester City on 5 January 2008 in the third round of the FA Cup, away to West Ham United.

Nery Castillo ended the season with nine appearances, seven of them coming in the Premier League.

Nery Castillo arrived on loan with Chicago holding the option to make the transfer from Shakhtar Donetsk permanent.

Nery Castillo joined Aris on a six-month loan on 19 January 2011.

Nery Castillo played his first game for Aris on 30 January 2011, against local rivals PAOK.

Nery Castillo terminated his contract with Shakhtar Donetsk and signed a two-year contract with Aris on 1 July 2011.

On 14 June 2012, Nery Castillo joined Liga MX club Pachuca on a three-year contract.

On 10 December 2012, Nery Castillo was loaned to Club Leon for six months, for whom he made seven appearances in total.

On 9 July 2013, Nery Castillo joined Spanish club Rayo Vallecano on a free transfer.

Nery Castillo was eligible for citizenship in four countries; Uruguay because his father is from there; Italy due to his maternal grandparents; Greece because he resided there for more than six years and Mexico where he was born.

Greece were reportedly willing to pay Nery Castillo $800,000, including fast-tracked citizenship as part of the offer.

Ultimately, Nery Castillo decided to play for the country of his birth and joined the Mexico national football team.

Nery Castillo scored again against Ecuador, as Mexico secured a place in the knockout stages, and scored a brace in the quarter-final against Paraguay, the first goal from the penalty spot.

Nery Castillo has a branch in fournoi island near Ikaria.