Liverpool European champions
Liverpool attempted to sign González on loan from
Albacete in the summer of 2005, but were unsuccessful as he was denied a work permit by British authorities. In October that year, a deal was struck between the two teams for a permanent transfer. In January 2006, while González awaited eligibility for a
Spanish passport so he could work freely in Britain, Liverpool loaned him to
Real Sociedad.
Real Sociedad (loan) González was presented on loan at
Real Sociedad on 30 January 2006, until 30 June, alongside
Jhon Viáfara, whom the club had loaned from
Portsmouth. González said that at Sociedad he would aim to improve his tactical play. He played 16 league games for Sociedad and scored five goals. Sociedad showed interest in taking him permanently, along with several other
La Liga clubs, but González is quoted to have said, "I am very thankful to Real Sociedad and their coach José Mari Bakero, but while they'd like me to stay I'm going to England to join Liverpool."
Return to Liverpool On 5 July 2006, González was granted a work permit, and was allowed to start his Liverpool career, wearing the number 11 shirt. His manager,
Rafael Benítez, said, "This is very good news for us and I am absolutely delighted to welcome Mark González to Liverpool as he is a player the supporters will like to see." González made his first appearance as a half-time substitute for fellow debutant
Fábio Aurélio in a pre-season friendly away against
Crewe Alexandra on 22 July. González made his competitive debut on 9 August 2006 against Israeli side
Maccabi Haifa, coming off the bench in the 85th minute for
Steven Gerrard and scoring an 88th-minute winner in Liverpool's Champions League 3rd round qualifier to seal a 2–1 win. He scored just once more for Liverpool, in a 4–0 win over
Fulham on 10 December. González was injured inside the first ten minutes of the quarter-finals of the
League Cup against
Arsenal on 9 January 2007 as a result of a challenge on
Theo Walcott. He was brought off on a stretcher for
Luis García, who was also taken off injured later in the match as Liverpool lost 3–6. He played his last game for Liverpool on 5 May 2007 against Fulham in a 1–0 defeat.
Real Betis On 24 May 2007, Rafael Benítez confirmed that Liverpool had almost reached an agreement with
Real Betis over the Chilean winger. On 12 June, González confirmed that he had signed a contract for £5 million with Betis, who presented him to the press and fans on 17 July 2007. He went on to score on his home debut with a penalty goal in the 1–0 victory over Champions League holders
Milan in the Centenary Match in front of 55,000 fans. González scored in a 2–1 victory over high-flying Real Madrid to steer Betis out of the relegation zone in La Liga. He ultimately scored ten goals in 44 first-team appearances for the club. Betis received an offer of €11 million from an unnamed club in July 2008.
CSKA Moscow in the Champions League in April 2010 In June 2009, following the relegation of Real Betis, Greek double holders
Olympiacos made an offer of €3 million to secure him a starting eleven position in their squad for the forthcoming
Champions League, but
CSKA Moscow offered €6.5 million and on 11 August 2009, he signed a five-year deal with the Russian club. He debuted for the club on 16 August 2009 in a
league match away to
Lokomotiv Moscow. On 6 December 2010, it was reported that he had been accused of rape in Moscow. However, later the same day the investigators announced that the accused was an unrelated Portuguese citizen named Mario Gonzalez, who is also allegedly a professional footballer. On 21 January 2014, CSKA announced that González had left them to join
Universidad Católica in Chile on loan. In December 2014, González had his CSKA contract terminated by mutual consent.
Universidad Católica Originally a loan, González joined his first professional club Universidad Católica in Chile in January 2015 after spending ten years abroad. After the mutual termination of his contract at CSKA, he joined Católica on a permanent move as a
free agent. He helped the team with nine goals in the campaign, which Católica won. It was also González's first
Primera División win after previously finishing second in the 2002 Clausura. González signed a new one-year deal with Católica for the 2015–16 season.
Sport Recife On 4 January 2016, González rescinded his contract at Universidad Católica and joined Brazilian club
Sport Recife for the next two years. He made his debut on the 31st, playing the full 90 minutes as they lost 1–0 at
Salgueiro Atlético Clube in the
2016 Campeonato Pernambucano first match of the year. He played only one more game before being sidelined for a month by a thigh injury, and totalled seven appearances as they finished runners-up to
Santa Cruz. González made his
Campeonato Brasileiro Série A debut on 14 May as his team began the season with a 1–0 loss at
Flamengo; he was substituted after 49 minutes for
Serginho.
Colo Colo On 30 December 2016, González signed for Chilean club
Colo Colo. ==International career==