Michael Dacosta
|
Dacosta with Crawley Town in 2024 | |||
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Michael Dacosta González | ||
| Date of birth | 5 March 2005 | ||
| Place of birth | Alicante, Spain | ||
| Height | 1.86 m (6 ft 1 in)[1] | ||
| Position | Winger | ||
| Team information | |||
Current team | Bournemouth | ||
| Number | 51 | ||
| Youth career | |||
| Alicante | |||
| Hércules | |||
| 2016–2024 | Bournemouth | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2024– | Bournemouth | 0 | (0) |
| 2024 | → Crawley Town (loan) | 0 | (0) |
| 2025 | → Hartlepool United (loan) | 2 | (0) |
| * Club domestic league appearances and goals as of 16:03, 4 October 2025 (UTC) | |||
Michael Dacosta González (born 5 March 2005) is a Spanish professional footballer who plays as a winger for Bournemouth.
Early life
Dacosta was born in Alicante, Spain, and began his career in the academy of local side Alicante.[2] At the age of six, he was involved in a traffic accident while riding on the back of his father's motorcycle, suffering a bad injury to his right foot.[3] As this was his stronger foot while playing football, he had to adapt his playing style, learning to favour his left foot instead.[3]
Club career
Following his departure from Alicante, Dacosta joined Hércules, before his parents decided to move to England.[2][3] They settled in London, and he played for a number of grassroots teams before his family moved again, to Portsmouth.[3] While playing for another grassroots team in Portsmouth, he was offered a trial at professional side Bournemouth, who signed him after four weeks, despite the trial being scheduled for six.[3]
Dacosta settled in to his new team well, notably scoring twice for Bournemouth's under-18s in a 2–0 win over Exeter City in the FA Youth Cup.[4] In the 2022–23 season, he scored fourteen goals for the youth team, earning him a spot on the bench for a Premier League match against Brentford, though he did not feature.[5][6]
On 10 July 2024, Dacosta joined League One club Crawley Town on a season-long loan deal.[7] His loan contract was terminated on 3 September 2024 after he withdrew from the Crawley Town squad due to injury.[8]
On 26 September 2025, Dacosta joined National League side Hartlepool United on a one-month loan.[9]
International career
Dacosta is eligible to represent Spain through birth, Ecuador and Equatorial Guinea through his mother and father, respectively, Colombia through his maternal grandfather, and England by virtue of living in the country since he was young.[2]
On 29 August 2023, Dacosta was called up to the Spain national under-19 football team.[10]
Personal life
Dacosta's younger brother, Malcom, is also a footballer, and currently also plays in the academy of Bournemouth and a sister called Makeyla dacosta who is interested in athletics .[2] His maternal uncle Máximo Banguera won 36 caps for Ecuador.[11]
References
- ^ "Michael Dacosta Gonzalez Bournemouth Forward, Profile & Stats". Premier League.
- ^ a b c d "Michael Dacosta Gonzalez". afcb.co.uk. Retrieved 8 March 2023.
- ^ a b c d e de Grado, Álvaro (10 January 2023). "Regatea como Mahrez, juega en el fútbol inglés... y nació en Alicante" [He dribbles like Mahrez, plays English football... and was born in Alicante]. relevo.com (in Spanish). Retrieved 8 March 2023.
- ^ Rose, Dan (3 December 2021). "Dacosta Gonzalez double earns Cherries FA Youth Cup progress". bournemouthecho.co.uk. Retrieved 9 March 2023.
- ^ "La promesa de la Premier League que era diestro y ahora es zurdo por un accidente que le cambió la vida" [The Premier League promise who was right-footed and is now left-footed due to a life-changing accident]. tycsports.com (in Spanish). 13 January 2023. Retrieved 9 March 2023.
- ^ "Brentford 2-0 Bournemouth: Pressure increases on Gary O'Neill". bbc.co.uk. 14 January 2023. Retrieved 9 March 2023.
- ^ "MICHAEL DACOSTA GONZÁLEZ JOINS ON LOAN". www.crawleytownfc.com. 10 July 2024. Retrieved 10 July 2024.
- ^ "Dacosta Gonzalez returns to Vitality Stadium". AFC Bournemouth. 3 September 2024. Retrieved 3 September 2024.
- ^ "Hartlepool loan in Bournemouth youngster". BBC. 26 September 2025. Retrieved 29 September 2025.
- ^ "La Fábrica vuelve a mandar en La Rojita".
- ^ "Malcom Dacosta Gonzalez". AFC Bournemouth.
External links
- Michael Dacosta at ESPN FC
- Michael Dacosta at FBref.com
- Michael Dacosta at Soccerway
- Michael Dacosta at WorldFootball.net