Esther González, the nine who rubs shoulders with Batman

The American city of Gotham doesn't exist on maps, only in comics. It's an imaginary place, created by DC's cartoonists and writers. It's Batman's homeland, a shadowy territory with dark streets, lots of rain, where corruption prevails and mafias rule. From there, from the same city of the masked batman, comes Esther González, the Spanish national team's top scorer who packed her bags and crossed the pond in 2023 to try her luck and join the ranks of Gotham FC of the NWSL.

A native of Granada and Huéscar, Esther is a true ardent defender in the penalty area. She has been all her life. Few balls escape her in the shooting zone. She has always been a specialist, a goal-scorer. But in 2025, her spider sense and sense of smell have sharpened, as if she had superpowers like her famous neighbor in Wayne Manor.

Since April Author of a brace in her debut, the Gotham FC forward has scored 17 goals in the last three months.

Spain's number nine is on a roll, having already scored 17 goals in the last three months, since April, between her club (11) and the Reds (6). It's no wonder it took her just a minute and a half to beat Portugal last Thursday in Bern . "Olga gave me a great pass, the control was like this, like this, but as a striker you know you have to finish no matter what," she explained, referring to how she stretched out her right leg to strike almost without looking and make it 1-0.

Before halftime, she made it 4-0 when Pina's shot hit the post with the goalkeeper beaten. Opportunism? Luck? Instinct? Positioning? Always having the ball ready? Simply Esther at her purest.

She's a killer in the area. She knows where she needs to be, and I know where she'll show up." Olga Carmona, Defense of Spain

“I have a lot of affection for Esther; she's the forward I talk to the most,” explains Olga Carmona, with whom she played at Real Madrid . “She's a killer in the box. She knows where she needs to be, and I know where she's going to appear. I hope these are the first of many goals, and I also hope there are more assists from me,” the full-back said.

With this brace, the player climbs to third place among the national team's all-time top scorers, tied with Alexia Putellas – both with 35 – and only behind Vero Boquete (38) and Jenni Hermoso (57). Esther is the one who has played the least of the four.

"I haven't had much time to see what Jenni Hermoso said. I've been informed, but I have nothing to say." Montse Tomé Spain Coach

Coach Montse Tomé declined to delve into any controversy surrounding the Tigres forward's latest statements , which left her out of the Euro Cup squad. "I haven't had much time to look into it. I've been informed, but I have nothing to say," she argued.

A hard worker without the ball, she doesn't compromise on effort and is very uncomfortable for defenders, but Esther is one of those who makes the locker room and is happy for her teammates. "I don't understand football any other way than to enjoy it. It's a privilege to be here in Switzerland with the Spanish national team. I feel lucky," she explained about her inclusion on the roster and in the starting eleven.

“I don’t understand football any other way than to enjoy it.” Priceless for her efforts by the coaches, uncomfortable for the defense and a good companion in the locker room, the Andalusian feels lucky

He also started the 2023 World Cup as a starter against Costa Rica, scoring a goal. He was the only player in that tournament (236 minutes), where his influence waned, and he played just one minute in the semifinal and none in the final. “I don't think Spain is a team that lacks goals. All players, even the center backs, score,” analyzes the number 9, who finds Belgium a good opponent. He scored twice in May in a Nations League match and another two in 2024 in another Euro qualifier, where he wants to continue advancing on the right foot. “I have a lot of goals saved. Favorites? We don't put that pressure on ourselves, but we don't want to relax.”

A former player for Real Madrid, Atlético Madrid (where she won three league titles), Levante (in two spells), among other teams, Esther, 32, seems to have found her place in the world at Gotham, based in New Jersey. She won her first championship in November 2023 and has renewed her contract until 2027. This has propelled her to prominence in Spain, which boasts a comic-book forward line.