#17 Giovani Dos Santos Country: Mexico Height: 1.73 m5-8 Birthdate: 11/05/1989 Position: Forward Weight: 77 kg169 lbs Birthplace: Monterrey, Mexico Team: Galatasaray League: Turkey

Bio

It's hard to know what to make of Dos Santos, the older brother of fellow "El Tri" midfielder Jonathan Dos Santos. Once considered a star in the making after helping Mexico win the Under-17 World Cup in 2005, Giovani Dos Santos spent his early career in the famed youth system of FC Barcelona, making his debut for the Catalan club at the age of 18 in 2007 in a La Liga match against Athletic Club Bilbao. He was never able to find a place on a team full of superstars at every position despite a hat trick in his final appearance with the blaugrana in a 5-3 win over Murcia. A high-profile transfer to Tottenham Hotspur in the English Premier League quickly went south, and he was loaned out to second-division Ipswich Town. This past season, Dos Santos was loaned out to Turkish club Galatasaray to play for his coach at Barcelona, Dutch legend Frank Rijkaard. Known for his pace and skill, Dos Santos has scored five goals for Mexico at the senior level. His two most prominent goals came in a 5-0 rout of a makeshift United States squad in the 2009 Gold Cup championship as well as the go-ahead score in a key 3-0 win at Costa Rica in a World Cup qualifier last year. Mexican supporters have high expectations for Dos Santos, but those may have to be tempered with the youngster coming off a goalless campaign in Turkey.

Player Stats