Santiago Gabriel Montiel

Santiago Montiel spent seven years in River Plate's academy without ever making a first-team appearance for the club, leaving as a free agent in February 2022. The breakthrough came elsewhere: at Argentinos Juniors, where he made his professional debut in February 2023 and scored his first senior goal against Belgrano that same month, in his Primera División debut against Racing Club.

Montiel went on to play 65 matches for Argentinos Juniors before Independiente signed him in August 2024, in a deal worth around $1.5 million for half of his economic rights, with River Plate collecting a solidarity payment for his years in their youth ranks. He signed with Independiente until December 2027.

His name reached a wider audience in May 2025, when he scored an overhead kick from outside the penalty area against Independiente Rivadavia, a goal that sealed a 1-0 win and sent Independiente through to the quarterfinals of the Torneo Apertura. The strike later won him the 2025 FIFA Puskás Award.

Montiel, a left-footed forward primarily deployed on the right wing, is a cousin of Gonzalo Montiel, though he has not himself been capped by the senior Argentina side.