Nicolás Castillo Facts for Kids

In this article, the first or paternal family name is Castillo and the second or maternal family name is Mora.

Quick facts for kids
Nicolás Castillo

Castillo with Chile in 2016

Personal information

Full name

Nicolás Ignacio Castillo Mora

Date of birth

14 February 1993 (age 31)

Place of birth

Santiago, Chile

Height

1.79 m

Playing position

Striker

Youth career

2005–2011

Universidad Católica

Senior career*

Years

Team

Apps^†

(Gls)^†

2011–2014

Universidad Católica

(17)

2014–2016

Club Brugge

(10)

2015

→ Mainz 05 (loan)

(0)

2015

→ Frosinone (loan)

(0)

2016

→ Universidad Católica (loan)

(24)

2017–2018

UNAM

(25)

2018–2019

Benfica

(0)

2019–2021

América

(9)

2021

→ Juventude (loan)

(0)

2022

Necaxa

(0)

National team^‡

2013

Chile U20

(9)

2013–

Chile

(4)

Honours


Representing Chile
Winner	Copa América Centenario	2016

Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 06:58, 15 January 2022 (UTC).

† Appearances (Goals).

‡ National team caps and goals correct as of 6 July 2019

Nicolás Ignacio Castillo Mora (born 14 February 1993) is a Chilean professional footballer who plays as a striker.

Club career
International career
Career statistics
Honours
See also

Club career

Universidad Católica

Castillo was born and raised in Renca, suburb of the capital Santiago. During his childhood, he was part of Universidad Católica's supporter groups and later joined the club's youth ranks when he was 12.

In 2010, Castillo made a goalscorer debut against San Pedro de Atacama football team for a cup game, sealing a 10–0 thrash of Católica after scoring the tenth and last goal of it.

In 2011, Castillo debuted professionally in a league match against Cobreloa, coming on as an 84th-minute substitute during a 2–0 win. On 2 March 2012, he scored his first competitive goal in a 2–0 win over Rangers, again for a league match.

As a result of his performance in the 2013 FIFA U-20 World Cup, Castillo was linked with Premier League side Manchester United, where his compatriot Ángelo Henríquez was playing at the time. Despite the rumours surrounding his move, the transfer never materialised.

Club Brugge

In January 2014, Universidad Católica reached an agreement to sell Castillo to Belgian Pro League side Club Brugge. The move became official as Castillo signed for a fee of €3 million on a deal until 2018. He scored in his debut for Club Brugge in a 3–1 win over Genk on 9 February 2014. He struggled to score again but did so during the play-offs in the last game of the season against Zulte Waregem, with Brugge winning 2–0.

On 9 November 2014, Castillo netted a hat-trick in Brugge's 5–0 home win over Westerlo. On 28 January 2015, he was loaned to 1. FSV Mainz 05 until the end of the season, with an option to buy. On 7 April, having only made one substitute appearance for the Bundesliga club, he was ruled out for the remainder of the season with damage to his right knee ligaments.

Later, on 28 August 2015, Castillo joined Italian side Frosinone on loan from Club Brugge until the end of the season.

Pumas

In 2017, Castillo joined Mexican club Pumas UNAM, where he played for a year.

Benfica

On 4 June 2018, he was sold to Portuguese side Benfica, signing a five-year contract.

América

On 1 February 2019, Castillo returned to Mexico, joining Club América on a €7 million transfer fee, potentially rising to €9 million. Nine days later, he made his league debut as a second-half substitute in América's 3–0 loss to León at the Estadio Azteca.

Esporte Clube Juventude

On 26 August 2021, Castillo joined Brazilian side Esporte Clube Juventude on loan from América until the end of the season.

International career

Castillo was listed in the 21-man squad for the 2013 FIFA U-20 World Cup. In the tournament, he scored four goals, including an opener against Egypt, and was the top-scorer for Chile.

Castillo made his debut for the Chile senior team on 23 March 2013 in a 1–0 2014 FIFA World Cup qualification (CONMEBOL) away loss to Peru, coming on as a 70th-minute substitute for Jean Beausejour.

In 2016, Castillo was nominated for the 2016 Copa América squad and was part of the Chilean victory in the tournament. He was subbed in the 104th minute of the final against Argentina, which Chile won 4–2 on penalties, where he converted the 2nd spot kick.

Career statistics

Club

Club statistics
Club	Season	League			Cup		Continental		Total
Club	Season	Division	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals
Universidad Católica	2011	Primera División of Chile	3	0	5	2	—		8	2
	2012		21	8	3	2	8	2	32	12
	2013		11	3	4	2	6	3	21	8
	2013–14		17	6	0	0	—		17	6
	Total		52	17	12	6	14	5	78	28
Club Brugge	2013–14	Belgian Pro League	12	2	0	0	—		12	2
	2014–15	Belgian Pro League	18	8	3	1	6	2	27	11
	Total		30	10	3	1	6	2	39	13
Mainz 05 (loan)	2014–15	Bundesliga	1	0	0	0	—		1	0
Frosinone (loan)	2015–16	Serie A	6	0	0	0	—		6	0
Universidad Católica (loan)	2015–16	Primera División of Chile	11	11	0	0	—		11	11
	2016–17	Primera División of Chile	12	13	7	5	1	0	20	18
	Total		23	24	7	5	1	0	31	29
Pumas UNAM	2016–17	Liga MX	11	8	0	0	2	0	13	8
	2017–18	Liga MX	28	17	4	1	—		32	18
	Total		39	25	4	1	2	0	45	26
Benfica	2018–19	Primeira Liga	4	0	4	0	3	0	11	0
Club América	2018–19	Liga MX	14	5	1	0	—		15	5
	2019–20	Liga MX	7	4	1	0	0	0	8	4
	Total		21	9	2	0	0	0	23	9
Career totals			176	85	32	13	26	7	234	105

International

National team	Year	Apps	Goals
Chile	2013	1	0
	2014	0	0
	2015	0	0
	2016	7	1
	2017	2	0
	2018	8	2
	2019	6	1
Total		24	4

International goals

Scores and results list Chile's goal tally first.

No.	Date	Venue	Opponent	Score	Result	Competition
1.	27 May 2016	Estadio Sausalito, Viña del Mar, Chile	Jamaica	1–2	1–2	Friendly
2.	16 October 2018	Estadio Corregidora, Querétaro City, Mexico	Mexico	1–0	1–0
3.	20 November 2018	Estadio Municipal Germán Becker, Temuco, Chile	Honduras	4–1	4–1
4.	22 March 2019	SDCCU Stadium, San Diego, United States	Mexico	1–3	1–3