Starts: 18
Minutes: 1,513
Age: 25
Key Stat: 1.73 points per match: What NYCFC gained from the 19 games Fernández Mercau played. Before Nico, team gained 1.45 points per match across 24 played.
Nico Fernández Mercau helped turn the New York City FC season around once he arrived in 2025, helping an inconsistent team become one that, at times down the stretch, looked good enough to fuel an unexpected MLS Cup run.
Fernández Mercau was the club's big splashy summer Designated Player signing made by New York City FC, arriving officially on July 7 for a club-record transfer fee from Elche CF in Spain's La Liga.
He didn't put up huge individual attacking numbers, scoring five goals and adding two assists in his 19 New York City appearances across all competitions in 2025, but Fernández Mercau bolstered the creative side of NYCFC's attack, saved his best and biggest goals for the MLS Cup Playoffs, and was a two-way contributor, adept at creating shots and chances for teammates while also making tackles and blocks.
Nico also unexpectedly became the team's starting center-forward after Alonso Martínez tore his ACL on international duty. The 25-year-old Argentine proved he could play on the right side of the attack, through the middle as a No 10, and even fill in as a center-forward, and early returns are that he looks well worth the big price tag.
Instant impact into a quiet start
He didn't start the first New York City FC match in which he was eligible to appear, but when Fernández Mercau came on for his debut as a second-half substitute against FC Dallas on July 25, he flipped the proceedings in NYCFC's favor.
