Gonzalo Montiel, the man who scored the deciding penalty at the Qatar 2022 final, is returning to River Plate, sources close to the negotiations confirmed to the Herald on Monday. The defender will join the Millonario from Spanish club Sevilla shortly, signing a contract until 2028.

Montiel will become the fourth 2022 World Cup winner to play for River Plate. Goalkeeper Franco Armani has been with the squad since 2018, while defenders Germán Pezzela and Marcos “Huevo” Acuña both joined the club in 2024, marking their returns to the Argentine First Division.

At the Qatar 2022 final, he went from villain to hero. He committed the 115th minute penalty that allowed France back in the game when the score was 3-2, but then scored the final kick of the penalty shootout to seal Argentina’s crowning.

“I thought of the sacrifices me and my family had to make growing up, but I was calm because I had the support of my teammates and coaches,” Montiel told AFA Estudio about that kick. “I was going to hit it hard down the middle, but changed my mind at the last minute.”

The 28-year-old defender came through the River Plate academy and first debuted for the club in 2016. He went on to play 139 times for the Millonario, becoming a key part of the Marcelo Gallardo-led team that won the 2018 Copa Libertadores against Superclásico rivals Boca Juniors. 

He also won the 2016 and 2019 Recopa Sudamericana, three Copa Argentinas (in 2016, 2017, and 2019), the 2017 and 2019 Supercopa Argentina and the 2021 Primera División title, all with River.

He moved to Spanish side Sevilla in August 2021 for 11 million euros (US$11.2 million), and spent a season on loan at English Premier League side Nottingham Forest in the 2023-24 season.

In December 2024, sexual assault charges filed against him in 2019 were dropped after judge Gustavo Banco ruled there was not enough evidence for the case to go to trial.