Julio Furch

Julio César Furch (born 29 July 1989) is an Argentine professional footballer who plays as a forward for Série B club Santos.

Early career
Born in Winifreda, La Pampa, Furch started his career with hometown Club Social y Deportivo Winifreda at the age of five. Aged ten, he moved to Club Deportivo Mac Allister, but returned to Deportivo Winifreda at the age of 15.

Furch was promoted to Winifreda's first team in 2006. In 2008, he moved to Club Atlético All Boys (Santa Rosa), scoring once in the year's Torneo Argentino C, but returned to Winifreda to study in a university; he scored ten goals in the year's Liga Cultural de Fútbol for the club, being the competition's top goalscorer.

Olimpo
In December 2008, Furch was invited on a trial at Olimpo, and signed a contract with the club shortly after. Initially assigned to the reserves which competed in the Liga del Sur (Bahía Blanca), he scored 16 goals in 24 matches before being promoted to the first team by manager Omar De Felippe in May 2010.

Furch made his first team debut for Olimpo on 9 May 2010, coming on as a late substitute for Alejandro Delorte in a 1–0 Primera B Nacional away loss against Independiente Rivadavia, as the club were already promoted. He made his Primera División debut on 8 August, replacing Diego Galván in a 2–1 loss at Banfield.

Furch scored his first professional goal on 24 October 2010, scoring Olimpo's first in a 3–2 away loss to Tigre. He subsequently started to feature regularly for the club, as they suffered relegation in 2012.

Loan to San Lorenzo
On 20 July 2012, Furch was loaned to San Lorenzo in the top tier. He made his debut for the club on 5 August, replacing Denis Stracqualursi late into a 2–1 home win over San Martín de San Juan, but only featured in nine matches before being deemed surplus to requirements by manager Juan Antonio Pizzi in December.

Loan to Arsenal de Sarandí
Furch left San Lorenzo in January 2013, and joined Arsenal de Sarandí on loan for six months. He featured more regularly at his new club, and subsequently renewed his loan for a further year in July.

Belgrano
On 9 August 2014, Furch signed a 18-month deal with Belgrano also in the first division. He immediately became a starter at his new side, scoring a hat-trick against Independiente on 7 December.

Veracruz
On 28 December 2014, Furch moved abroad for the first time in his career and joined Liga MX side Veracruz. He made his debut abroad the following 17 January, starting and scoring a brace in a 3–1 home win over Puebla.

Furch scored ten goals during his first six months at Veracruz, which included another braces against Atlas and Pumas UNAM. In the 2015–16 season, he played a key role by scoring 12 goals to help the club avoid relegation.

Santos Laguna
On 24 November 2016, Furch moved to fellow league team Santos Laguna, with Martín Bravo and Fredy Hinestroza moving in the opposite direction. He made his debut for the club the following 7 January, playing the full 90 minutes in a 0–0 away draw against Tigres UANL.

Furch scored his first goal for Santos on 5 February 2017, netting the opener in a 1–1 away draw against Guadalajara. He scored a career-best 18 league goals during the 2017–18 season, and repeated the feat in the following campaign.

On 13 June 2019, Furch renewed his contract with the Guerreros until 2022.

Atlas
On 8 December 2020, Furch signed for Atlas of the same league. After suffering a season long injury for the Clausura 2021 season, he became an undisputed starter in the 2021–22 season, scoring 16 goals.

On 14 July 2023, Furch left Atlas, ending an 8-year period in Mexico.

Santos
On 21 July 2023, Furch signed a two-year contract with Campeonato Brasileiro Série A side Santos. He made his debut for the club eight days later, replacing Lucas Lima late into a 1–0 away loss against Fluminense.

Furch scored his first goal for Peixe on 20 August 2023, netting a last-minute winner in a 2–1 home success over Grêmio.

International career
Born in Argentina, Furch expressed interest on representing the Mexico national team in October 2018, saying he would "like to wear" the nation's colours.

Personal life
Furch's great-grandparents fled Germany during the World War II and moved to Argentina in the 20th century. In 2012, he was nicknamed Emperador (the Emperor) by the supporters of Olimpo due to his name being the same as Julius Caesar.

Career statistics
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Honours
Olimpo
 * Primera B Nacional: 2009–10

Arsenal de Sarandi
 * Copa Argentina: 2012–13

Veracruz
 * Copa MX: Clausura 2016

Santos Laguna
 * Liga MX: Clausura 2018

Atlas
 * Liga MX: Apertura 2021, Clausura 2022
 * Campeón de Campeones: 2022

Individual
 * Liga MX Best XI: Clausura 2015, Clausura 2018, Apertura 2018, Apertura 2021
 * CONCACAF Champions League Team of the Tournament: 2019
 * Liga MX All-Star: 2022
 * Liga MX Player of the Month: September 2018