Nico Paz
Footballer (born 2004)

Nico Paz
Paz with Como in 2025
Personal information
Full name Nicolás Paz Martínez[1]
Date of birth (2004-09-08) 8 September 2004 (age 21)
Place of birth Santa Cruz de Tenerife, Spain[1]
Height 1.86 m (6 ft 1 in)[1]
Position Attacking midfielder
Team information
Current team
 Como
Number 10
Youth career
2011–2014 CD San Juan
2014–2016 Tenerife
2016–2022 Real Madrid
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2022–2024 Real Madrid B 49 (11)
2023–2024 Real Madrid 4 (0)
2024– Como 55 (12)
International career‡
2022 Argentina U20 8 (4)
2024– Argentina 6 (0)
* Club domestic league appearances and goals as of 23:28, 15 January 2026 (UTC)
‡ National team caps and goals as of 13:41, 15 October 2025 (UTC)

Nicolás Paz Martínez (born 8 September 2004) is a professional footballer who plays as an attacking midfielder for Serie A club Como. Born in Spain, he plays for the Argentina national team.

Club career

Real Madrid

Early career

A youth product of CD San Juan and Tenerife, Paz joined the Real Madrid's La Fábrica in 2016.[2]

Initially starting his career as a central defender, Paz moved further up the pitch as he developed. After playing as a centre forward, he switched to the wing, where he played for the under-19 side. He is also comfortable operating as a central midfielder or playmaker.[3][4]

He made his debut for Real Madrid's B-team in a 3–1 win over Andorra in January 2022, coming on as an 82nd-minute substitute for Iván Morante.[3]

2023–24: First-team debut

On 8 November 2023, Paz made his first-team and Champions League debut for Real Madrid in a group stage match against Braga as a substitute in the 77th minute to replace Federico Valverde at Santiago Bernabéu Stadium.[5][6] On 11 November 2023, Paz made his La Liga debut for Madrid in a 5–1 victory over Valencia, coming on as a substitute in the 82nd minute for Dani Carvajal.[7][8] On 29 November, he scored his first goal in the Champions League, securing a 4–2 win against Napoli.[9]

Como

On 25 August 2024, Paz signed for newly promoted Serie A club Como on a four-year deal for a reported €6 million fee.[10][11] The following day, he made his debut for the club, coming on as a substitute in a 1–1 draw against Cagliari.[12] On 19 October, he scored his first goal for Como in a 1–1 draw against Parma.[13]

After registering six goals and nine assists in his debut season in Italy, Paz was named Best Under-23 player at the 2024–25 Serie A Awards.[14] He was also included in the 23-man squad for Serie A Team of the Season.[15]

In August 2025, Sky Sport Italia reported that Como had rejected an offer of €50m for Paz from English Premier League club Tottenham Hotspur.[16]

Paz was assigned Como's #10 shirt ahead of the 2025–26 season. On 24 August, in the opening match of the Serie A season, Paz provided an assist and scored a goal from a free-kick to give Como a 2–0 win against Lazio.[17] He continued his strong start to the season by scoring in the next two home matches against Genoa[18] and Cremonese respectively,[19] as well as assisting both of the team's goals in a 2–1 win at Fiorentina.[20] This form saw him named Serie A's "Rising Star of the Month" for September 2025.[21] On 19 October, Paz assisted Marc-Oliver Kempf's opening goal and scored his team's second as Como defeated Juventus for the first time since 1952.[22]

International career

Born in Santa Cruz de Tenerife, Canary Islands, Paz was eligible to represent both Spain and Argentina at international level.[1] He was first called up to the senior Argentina national team in March 2022.[3][23]

Paz also was called up to the Argentina under-20 side for the 2022 Maurice Revello Tournament in France.[24] He was later named in Argentina's preliminary 48-man squad for the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar.[25]

On 15 October 2024, Paz made his senior debut for Argentina in a 6–0 win over Bolivia in a 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifying match, recording an assist for Lionel Messi.[citation needed]

Style of play

Nico Paz is widely recognized as a modern, elegant "Number 10" and known for his dribbling, playmaking and shooting abilities.[26]

Personal life

Paz is the son of former Argentine international Pablo Paz, who played at the 1998 FIFA World Cup in France.[3][27] His mother is Spanish.[28]

Career statistics

Club

As of match played 15 January 2026[29]
Appearances and goals by club, season and competition
Club Season League National cup[a] Europe Other Total
Division Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals
Real Madrid Castilla 2021–22 Primera División RFEF 6 0 — — — 6 0
2022–23 Primera Federación 14 1 — — 4[b] 1 18 2
2023–24 Primera Federación 29 10 — — — 29 10
Total 49 11 — — 4 1 53 12
Real Madrid 2023–24 La Liga 4 0 1 0 3[c] 1 0 0 8 1
Como 2024–25 Serie A 35 6 — — — 35 6
2025–26 Serie A 20 6 1 0 — — 21 6
Total 55 12 1 0 — — 56 12
Career total 108 23 2 0 3 1 4 1 117 25
  1. ^ Includes Copa del Rey, Coppa Italia
  2. ^ Appearances in Primera Federación play-offs
  3. ^ Appearances in UEFA Champions League

International

As of match played 14 October 2025[29]
Appearances and goals by national team and year
National team Year Apps Goals
Argentina 2024 1 0
2025 5 0
Total 6 0

Honours

Real Madrid

Individual

References

  1. ^ a b c d Nico Paz at WorldFootball.net
  2. ^ "Profile". Real Madrid CF. Archived from the original on 23 April 2022. Retrieved 17 April 2022.
  3. ^ a b c d Hall, Andy (7 March 2022). "Who is Nico Paz? From Real Madrid's youth academy to the Argentina senior side". en.as.com. Archived from the original on 4 November 2022. Retrieved 17 April 2022.
  4. ^ Valle, Tomás (7 March 2022). "¿Quién es Nico Paz y cuantos millones cuesta la gran promesa del Real Madrid?" [Who is Nico Paz and how many millions does the great promise of Real Madrid cost?]. elfutbolero.es (in Spanish). Archived from the original on 4 November 2022. Retrieved 17 April 2022.
  5. ^ "Nico Paz makes his Real Madrid debut". Real Madrid CF. 8 November 2023. Archived from the original on 9 November 2023. Retrieved 9 November 2023.
  6. ^ "Real Madrid-Braga: UEFA Champions League 2023/24 Group stage". UEFA. 8 November 2023. Archived from the original on 8 November 2023. Retrieved 9 November 2023.
  7. ^ "Real Madrid vs Valencia CF". La Liga. 11 November 2023. Archived from the original on 19 July 2023. Retrieved 12 November 2023.
  8. ^ "Real Madrid 5–1 Valencia: Player ratings as Los Blancos run riot". 90min. 11 November 2023. Archived from the original on 12 November 2023. Retrieved 12 November 2023.
  9. ^ "Nico Paz overwhelmed after scoring first Real Madrid goal in Napoli victory – "This is a dream"". Football España. 29 November 2023. Archived from the original on 29 November 2023. Retrieved 30 November 2023.
  10. ^ "Como 1907 annuncia l'astro nascente del Real Madrid e nazionale giovanile argentino Nico Paz" (in Italian). Como 1907. 25 August 2024. Archived from the original on 29 August 2024. Retrieved 25 August 2024.
  11. ^ "Official Announcement: Nico Paz". Real Madrid CF. 25 August 2024. Retrieved 25 August 2024.
  12. ^ "Serie A | Cagliari 1–1 Como: Match Report". Football Italia. 26 August 2024. Retrieved 26 August 2024.
  13. ^ "Serie A | Como 1–1 Parma: Paz replies to spectacular Bonny strike". Football Italia. Yahoo Sports. 19 October 2024. Retrieved 1 November 2024.
  14. ^ "Real Madrid 'Very Close' to Re-Signing Breakout Star for 2025 Club World Cup". Sports Illustrated. 27 May 2025. Retrieved 13 January 2026.
  15. ^ "Serie A Enilive Team of the Season". EA Sports. Retrieved 13 January 2026.
  16. ^ "Nico Paz, il Tottenham alza l'offerta a 50 milioni ma il Como dice no: le news di mercato". Sky Sport Italia. 24 August 2025. Retrieved 13 January 2026.
  17. ^ Fox Sports, foxsports.com (24 August 2025). "Official | Nico Paz shines as Como beats Lazio 2-0 in Serie A". Fox Sports.
  18. ^ "Golazo de Nico Paz en el empate de Como ante Genoa, por la Serie A". ESPN Deportes (in Spanish). 15 September 2025. Retrieved 13 January 2026.
  19. ^ "Il solito Nico Paz non basta al Como. La Cremonese strappa un punto con Baschirotto". Gazzetta dello Sport (in Italian). 27 September 2025. Retrieved 13 January 2026.
  20. ^ "Dos asistencias de Nico Paz y una de Matías Soulé para los triunfos de Como y Roma en Italia". La Nación (in Spanish). 21 September 2025. Retrieved 13 January 2026.
  21. ^ "Nico Paz "Rising Star Of The Month"". Lega Serie A. 8 October 2025. Retrieved 13 January 2026.
  22. ^ "Paz fires high-flying Como to historic win over Juve". France 24. 19 October 2025. Retrieved 13 January 2026.
  23. ^ Caballero, Jorge (7 March 2022). "¿Quiénes son Nico Paz y Alejandro Garnacho, los talentos españoles que sorprendieron a Scaloni?" [Who are Nico Paz and Alejandro Garnacho, the Spanish talents that surprised Scaloni?]. Marca (in Spanish). Archived from the original on 26 March 2022. Retrieved 17 April 2022.
  24. ^ "Convocados de la Sub 20 para el Torneo Maurice Revello" [Sub 20: all the information on the Maurice Revello Tournament]. afa.com.ar (in Spanish). Argentine Football Association. 20 May 2022. Archived from the original on 31 May 2022. Retrieved 30 May 2022.
  25. ^ Hancock, Greg Lea Contributions from Tom; published, Alasdair Mackenzie (2 November 2022). "Argentina World Cup 2022 squad: Lionel Scaloni announces 48-man longlist". fourfourtwo.com. Archived from the original on 18 December 2022. Retrieved 4 November 2022.
  26. ^ "Nico Paz at Como: The Rise of Serie A Young Midfield Maestro - Breaking The Lines". 4 November 2025. Retrieved 9 December 2025.
  27. ^ Sánchez, Borja (7 March 2022). "¿Quiénes son Nico Paz y Alejandro Garnacho, los talentos españoles que sorprendieron a Scaloni?" [Nico Paz, the promise of Real Madrid that falls in love with Scaloni: called up by Argentina at only 17 years old]. elespanol.com (in Spanish). Archived from the original on 17 April 2022. Retrieved 17 April 2022.
  28. ^ "Nico Paz padres, este es el origen del padre, madre y hermanas del futbolista del Real Madrid". December 2023.
  29. ^ a b Nico Paz at Soccerway
  30. ^ "Real Madrid crowned champions after Barca's defeat at Girona". BBC Sport. 4 May 2024. Retrieved 4 May 2024.
  31. ^ "El Real Madrid recupera su corona en la Supercopa (4–1)" (in Spanish). Royal Spanish Football Federation. 14 January 2024. Retrieved 15 January 2024.
  32. ^ "Real Madrid win Champions League: Carvajal and Vinícius Júnior see off Dortmund". UEFA. 1 June 2024. Archived from the original on 1 June 2024. Retrieved 2 June 2024.
  33. ^ Young, Peter (23 May 2025). "Official: All 2024-25 Serie A MVP award winners revealed". Football Italia. Retrieved 23 May 2025.
  34. ^ "EA Sports FC 25 – Serie A Team of the Season". Serie A. 24 May 2025. Retrieved 24 May 2025.
  35. ^ "The Athletic's end-of-season awards, 2024-25: Men's football". The Athletic’s. 28 May 2025.
  36. ^ "Nico Paz "Rising Star of the Month" for August" (Press release). Serie A. 10 September 2025. Retrieved 10 September 2025.
  37. ^ "Nico Paz "Rising Star of the Month" for September" (Press release). Serie A. 8 October 2025. Retrieved 8 October 2025.
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