Penarol’s Damian Garcia is a name European football fans can expect to hear more of in the not so distant future. Our new Uruguayan football expert Juan Lauz is here to explain why.
Although an anomaly for Uruguayan football fans, Garcia’s decision to stay and grow with the club has given him the experience required to progress.
Many young Uruguayans are transferred early on in their careers, but Garcia opted to not take that route.
The tenacious midfielder, who came up through Peñarol's youth system, is an undisputed starter for one of Uruguay's biggest teams and has been a key player for the Copa Libertadores semi-finalists.
To grasp his importance in the team – especially in a position that theoretically demands experience and leadership – the 21-year-old has only missed six of the 43 matches Peñarol have played this season, accumulating over 3,000 minutes on the pitch.
To put this into perspective, talents in his position such as Thiago Helguera at Nacional (now at Sporting Braga), never fully gained the trust of their coaches or secured a starting position. Thus, Damián García is a peculiar case.
The Uruguayan is not a player who captivates you with his passing, finesse, or physical presence. His talent lies in understanding the field and, based on his spatial awareness, being a useful midfielder to either drop back or hold the team up high on the pitch.
In short, Garcia’s a classic central midfielder.
Garcia's Rise with the National Team
García’s first notable appearance in professional football came during the U20 South American Championship in January - February 2023, held in Colombia.
He scored in Uruguay's debut match against Chile and played minutes in eight of the nine matches of his national team, only losing the final against Brazil.
The youth tournament served him well in gaining recognition at his club, where he went on to make his debut in the Primera División in early March.
Later, Uruguay would again require his services for the U20 World Cup, where he became one of the standout players for his country, which won the tournament for the first time in its history.
He formed a great partnership with Fabricio Díaz, another of Uruguay's top talents in recent times, although his controversial move to Qatar has taken him out of the spotlight.
Garcia’s excellent performances in both youth tournaments gave Peñarol little choice but to place him as a starter in the last two tournaments of the year: the Intermedio and the Clausura. In these, he performed at such a high level that, almost unanimously, he was considered one of the best players on the team from June to December 2023.
With Diego Aguirre taking over as coach of Peñarol in 2024, he has seen García as a foundational pillar within his starting eleven.
Aguirre is a coach who favours his playing style to be based on direct transitions and fewer prolonged possessions. His intuition for positioning allows Peñarol to be more free-flowing when on the attack.
García is someone who thrives in this kind of environment. Not one to dither on the ball, Aguirre can trust his central midfielder to transition the play forward when asking his team to break quickly.
In short, the head coach can rely on Garcia to steer the ship when others bomb forward, knowing there isn’t a gaping hole in the middle of the park if the opponent’s steal the ball back.
A "5" Who Isn’t Modern
Without the term "not modern" causing concern, as it is not a criticism, García is not the classic central midfielder who orchestrates play and behaves like a regista (as we noted earlier with Helguera).
He is a midfielder with a gift for performing well in transition moments, where his impeccable first touch allows him to activate attacks with an advantage, or his tactical skill set enables him to cover a lot of ground without generating a visual impact through extraordinary runs or cuts.
We could say that García defends and attacks simply.
There are parts to his game that still need to improve if he is to make it to the highest level. His biggest area for improvement since debuting in the Primera División is his management of the ball.
He struggles to give meaning to prolonged possessions, as well as pushing forward when his team are in the opponent's half. This flaw, however, is cleverly covered by the team's current style of play.
However, his passing technique stands out. He provides a level of calmness to his team; as he is capable of taking charge during build-ups and pushing forward from the backline, although it has to be said he tends to fall short in tight spaces.
However, the 21-year-old is one of the few players of his age that I can consider a defensive system by himself in recent years in Uruguay.
In addition to his off-the-ball qualities, his gestures and instructions on the field have allowed his teammates to shift better. And whenever he doesn’t play, his absence is felt.
Damian Garcia’s future
On August 1st 2023, the player signed a contract renewal, which was set to expire at the end of this year. The new deal ties him to Peñarol until December 2026.
Like all Uruguayan clubs, the sales policy is export-oriented. Therefore, we can expect that his future, in the medium term, will be elsewhere.
A youth world champion, a key player for a Copa Libertadores semi-finalist, and still in his early twenties, he has a tremendous development margin ahead of him.
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