Ricardo Gomes (Cape Verdean footballer) explained

Ricardo Jorge Pires Gomes (born 18 December 1991) is a Cape Verdean professional footballer who plays as a forward for Qatar Stars League club Al-Wakrah.

Club career

Vitória Guimarães

Born in Santa Maria, Ilha do Sal, Gomes moved to Portugal at the age of 17, starting playing football with F.C. Vizela and going on to spend four seasons in the third division. In 2013 he signed with Vitória de Guimarães, being initially assigned to the reserves who also competed at that level.^[2]

Gomes made his Primeira Liga debut with the first team on 17 August 2013, coming on as a second-half substitute in a 2−0 home win against S.C. Olhanense.^[3] He scored his first goal in the competition on 4 January 2015, in the 4−0 victory over C.D. Nacional also at the Estádio D. Afonso Henriques.^[4]

Nacional

In mid-January 2016, Gomes was loaned to precisely Nacional, until June.^[5] On 8 August, he agreed to a two-year permanent deal with the Madeirans.^[6]

After no goals in 2016−17, which ended in relegation, the following campaign Gomes led the LigaPro scoring charts at 22 to help the team achieve immediate promotion as champions.^[7]

Partizan

On 8 June 2018, Gomes signed with Serbian club FK Partizan.^[8] On 26 August he scored his first SuperLiga goal for them, helping to a 3−1 away defeat of FK Mačva Šabac.^[9] He added another on 23 September in the 1−1 draw with Red Star Belgrade in the Eternal Derby, being subsequently voted by Mozzart Sport as his side's best player.^[10]

Gomes finished his only season with 26 goals in all competitions, which made him the joint-best foreigner in Partizan's history.^[11]

Sharjah

In August 2019, Gomes joined UAE Pro League champions Sharjah FC, helping to win the UAE Super Cup on penalties shortly after his arrival.^[12] The following February, he was loaned to fellow league club Al-Ittihad Kalba SC until the end of the season.^[13]

Return to Partizan

On 25 June 2021, Gomes returned to Partizan and signed a three-year contract.^[14] He scored six goals in his first seven competitive appearances, including braces in 4–0 away league wins against FK Proleter Novi Sad and FK Kolubara.^{[15] [16]} He totalled 38 for the campaign for the runners-up, being voted the league's best player and scorer while breaking Mateja Kežman's 2000 record.^[17]

International career

Gomes earned his first cap for Cape Verde on 31 March 2015, playing the last ten minutes of the 2–0 friendly win over Portugal in Estoril.^[18] On 4 June 2016 he netted his first goal, in the 2–1 away victory against São Tomé and Príncipe in the 2017 Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers.^[19]

Career statistics

International

Appearances and goals by national team and year^[20] !National team!!Year!!Apps!!Goals

Cape Verde	2015	1	0
	2016	4	1
	2017	1	0
	2018	4	3
	2019	2	0
	2020	2	0
Total		14	4

Cape Verde score listed first, score column indicates score after each Gomes goal.^[20]

International goals by date, venue, opponent, score, result and competition

scope=col	No.	scope=col data-sort-type=date	Date	scope=col	Venue	scope=col	Cap	scope=col	Opponent	scope=col	Score	scope=col	Result	scope=col	Competition
scope=row style="text-align: center"	1	4 June 2016	12 de Julho, São Tomé, São Tomé and Príncipe	align=center	3		align=center	1–0	align=center	2–1	2017 Africa Cup of Nations qualification
scope=row style="text-align: center"	2	1 June 2018	July 5, 1962 Stadium, Algiers, Algeria	align=center	7		align=center	1–1	align=center	3–2	Friendly
scope=row style="text-align: center"	3	12 October 2018	Estádio Nacional, Praia, Cape Verde	9		align=center	1–0	3–0	2019 Africa Cup of Nations qualification
scope=row style="text-align: center"	4			align=center		2–0

Honours

Vitória Guimarães

• Supertaça Cândido de Oliveira runner-up: 2013^[21]

Nacional

• LigaPro

2017–18^[22]

Partizan

• Serbian Cup

2018–19^[23]

Sharjah

• UAE Super Cup

2019^[12]

Individual

• LigaPro top scorer/MVP: 2017–18^[22]
• Serbian SuperLiga top scorer/MVP: 2021–22 (29 goals),^[17] 2022–23 (19 goals)^[24]
• Serbian SuperLiga Team of the Season: 2022–23^[25]
• Serbian SuperLiga Player of the Month: September 2022^[26]
• Serbian SuperLiga Player of the Week: 2021–22 (twice),^{[27] [28]} 2022–23 (twice)^{[29] [30]}

Notes and References

1. Web site: Ricardo Gomes. Mais Futebol. pt. 30 July 2020.
2. News: Ricardo Gomes: "Espero, um dia, conseguir representar meu país numa competição internacional". Ricardo Gomes: "Hopefully, I will represent my country in an international competition someday". A Semana. pt. 25 February 2021. 28 June 2023.
3. Web site: V. Guimarães bate Olhanense e entra a vencer no campeonato (vídeo). V. Guimarães beat Olhanense and have winning championship debut (video). TSF. pt. 17 August 2013. 8 May 2017.
4. Web site: V. Guimarães-Nacional, 4–0 (crónica). V. Guimarães-Nacional, 4–0 (match report). Mais Futebol. pt. 4 January 2015. 8 May 2017.
5. News: Ricardo Gomes chega por empréstimo do Vitória. Ricardo Gomes arrives on loan from Vitória. O Jogo. Tomaz. Andrade. pt. 15 January 2016. 8 May 2017.
6. News: Ricardo Gomes em definitivo. Ricardo Gomes permanently. Record. Emanuel. Pestana. pt. 8 August 2016. 8 May 2017.
7. Web site: Melhor marcador da II Liga ainda com futuro por definir. II League top scorer's future still unclear. Rádio Renascença. pt. 7 May 2018. 12 December 2019.
8. News: Gomeš: Imao sam mnogo ponuda, ali sam se odlučio za Partizan, imajući u vidu kakav je to klub!. Gomes: I had a lot of offers, but I chose Partizan, considering the kind of club it is!. Sportski žurnal. Nemanja. Lazić. sr. 8 June 2018. 8 June 2018.
9. Web site: RIKARDO NAKON TRIJUMFA: Srećan sam zbog gola, teren je bio težak za igru. RICARDO AFTER WIN: I'm happy for the goal, the pitch was difficult to play. Hot Sport. Nemanja. Lazić. sr. 27 August 2018. 23 September 2018.
10. Web site: OCENE – PARTIZAN: Bata preneo pelcer na igrače, ali crno-belima fali snage! Rikardo kao tenk, Šćekić gazda na sredini. Mozzart Sport. Marko. Protić. sr. 23 September 2018. 23 September 2018.
11. Web site: Rikardo Gomeš ili Leonardo? Napadač Partizana će imati ekstra motiv da postigne gol na Marakani!. Ricardo Gomes or Leonardo? Partizan striker will have an additional motive to score at the Maracanã!. Sportske. Darko. Mitrović. sr. 22 May 2019. 7 July 2019.
12. News: Video: Sharjah beat Shabab Al Ahli to win Arabian Gulf Super Cup. Gulf Today. Mohammad. Abdullah. 14 September 2019. 12 February 2020.
13. Web site: OFICIAL: Ricardo Gomes cedido pelo Al Sharjah de Caio Lucas. OFFICIAL: Ricardo Gomes loaned by Caio Lucas' Al Sharjah. TVI 24. pt. 4 February 2020. 12 February 2020.
14. Web site: Rikardo Gomes se vraća u Partizan. Ricardo Gomes returns to Partizan. Radio Television of Serbia. sr. 25 June 2021. 9 August 2021.
15. Web site: Rikardo blista, Partizan "ubitačan" na startu Superlige. Ricardo shines, Partizan are "lethal" at the start of the Super League. Nova. Miloš. Ljubisavljević. sr. 17 July 2021. 9 August 2021.
16. News: Ricardo Gomes bisa na vitória do Partizan Belgrado. Ricardo Gomes grabs brace in Partizan Belgrade win. O País. pt. 23 August 2021. 26 August 2021.
17. News: Ricardo Gomes bate recorde e é eleito melhor jogador/marcador da Superliga Sérvia. Ricardo Gomes breaks record and is voted best player/scorer in Serbian Superleague. A Nação. pt. 29 May 2022. 29 June 2022.
18. Web site: Portugal 0–2 Cape Verde Islands. BBC Sport. 31 March 2015. 8 May 2017.
19. Web site: Seleção de Cabo Verde vence São Tomé e Príncipe . Cape Verde national team beat São Tomé and Príncipe (2–1). SAPO. pt. 4 June 2016. 12 December 2019.
20. Web site: Ricardo Gomes – Matches. Soccerway. 8 May 2017.
21. News: FC Porto faz "penta" e ganha o 20.º troféu. FC Porto get "penta" and win 20th trophy. Diário de Notícias. Tiago. Silva Pires. pt. 10 August 2013. 12 December 2019.
22. News: Novi Partizanov špic je stigao!. Partizan's new star is here!. Mondo. sr. 7 June 2018. 7 June 2018.
23. News: Partizan de Ricardo Gomes conquista Taça pela quarta vez consecutiva. Ricardo Gomes' Partizan conquer Cup for fourth consecutive time. O País. pt. 24 May 2019. 12 December 2019.
24. Web site: Futebol Sérvia: Ricardo Gomes recebe prémio de melhor marcador do campeonato sérvio. Football Serbia: Ricardo Gomes gets top scorer award of Serbian championship. Criolo Sports. pt. 4 July 2023. 19 January 2024.
25. Web site: Idealni tim Mozzart Bet Superlige: Petorica iz Zvezde, trojica iz TSC-a. Mozzart Bet Superleague All-Star Team: Five from Star, three from TSC. Mozzart Sport. Vujadin. Tomković. sr. 2 June 2023. 28 December 2023.
26. Web site: Rikardo Gomeš igrač meseca Mozzart Bet Superlige. Ricardo Gomes Mozzart Bet Superleague Player of the Month. Mozzart Sport. sr. 3 October 2022. 28 December 2023.
27. Web site: Igrač kola: Sjajna partija Rikarda Gomeša za ubedljiv trijumf crno-belih. Player of the Round: brilliant match by Ricardo Gomes for convincing black-and-white win. Serbian SuperLiga. sr. 31 August 2021. 28 December 2023.
28. Web site: Igrač kola: Sjajna igra Rikarda Gomeša i novi rekord za istoriju kluba. Player of the Round: Great match by Ricardo Gomes and new record in club's history. Serbian SuperLiga. sr. 17 May 2022. 28 December 2023.
29. Web site: Najbolji igrač 10. kola Mozzart Bet Super lige Srbije – Rikardo Gomeš. Serbian Mozzart Bet Super Lig Player of the 10th Round – Ricardo Gomes. Serbian SuperLiga. sr. 6 September 2022. 28 December 2023.
30. Web site: Najbolji igrač 17. kola Mozzart Bet Super lige Srbije – Rikardo Gomeš. Serbian Mozzart Bet Super Lig Player of the 17th Round – Ricardo Gomes. Serbian SuperLiga. sr. 31 October 2022. 28 December 2023.