Julio Enciso: Racing's key man ends the season with a flourish
In a season in which RC Strasbourg struggled with injuries and churn on the bench, Julio Enciso proved himself to be decisive in a new role. Learn more about his story and his sparkling form under Gary O'Neil in our latest One to Watch.
Flashes of brilliance in England
Born in Paraguay's interior, in the small city of Caaguazú, Julio Enciso came up with a local club before joining Libertad, in the capital of Asuncion. At one of the country's biggest clubs, he quickly made a name for himslef, winning a pair of league titles and scoring in the Copa Libertadores at just 16. It wasn't long until he received his first senior cap for his country, either, and the attentions of European clubs. He would join Brighton in the summer of 2022, aged 18, but his form on England's south coast was patchy.
He would score some truly wonderful goals, including a Puskas-nominated strike against Manchester City in 2023, but competition for places and injury (he missed much of his second season with Brighton with a torn meniscus) saw him go on loan to Ipswich in the second half of last season. Despite the East Anglian club's struggles and eventual relegation, Enciso sparkled as a regular, netting three goals and three assists in thirteen starts, and burnishing his reputation in the process. Still just 21, he would then make the leap to Alsace last summer, signing for Racing on a €9.5M deal on deadline day.
Hat-trick of assists. Signed La Joya Enciso 💎🇵🇾 pic.twitter.com/D1Lpk8NpSk
— Ligue 1 English (@Ligue1_ENG) May 17, 2026
Hitting top form with a new manager
Having arrived at Racing still carrying a knee injury, Enciso wouldn't make his first start for the club until October, and while he continued to feature somewhat infrequently, he would make vital contributions when called upon, including a fine strike against Hacken in the Conference League and a Man of the Match performance against Breidablik to help Racing seal top spot in the league phase.
It was the Coupe de France, though, that really saw Enciso hit top form. A regular in that competition, a flurry of goals (six in five matches) allowed him to prove his talent to Gary O'Neil, who had replaced Liam Rosenior on the bench. There's no doubt he's blossomed under the Englishman, starting nearly every match, despite shuttling among being a left winger, a number ten and even, with both Joaquín Panichelli and Emanuel Emegha absent through injury, a makeshift striker.
A hat trick of assists against AS Monaco was the icing on a second half of the season that saw him score eleven goals and set up a further nine -- only Panichelli and Martial Godo were involved in more goals in the squad, and no player had more assists.
That's not, of course, to say it was all smooth sailing for him. There have been tougher moments, including being whistled against Rijeka in the Round of 16 of the Conference League and an ugly disagreement between he and Godo against Rayo Vallecano in the semifinals, which saw him take and a miss a penalty late on. But on the back of this season, and with Panichelli still months away from fitness, if Racing are to make another charge for Europe next season, it will be down to the talents of "La Joya."
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