.jpg) Gomis playing forGalatasaray in 2018 | |||
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Bafétimbi Gomis[1] | ||
| Date of birth | (1985-08-06)6 August 1985 (age 39)[2] | ||
| Place of birth | La Seyne-sur-Mer, France | ||
| Height | 1.86 m (6 ft 1 in)[3] | ||
| Position(s) | Striker | ||
| Youth career | |||
| 1994–2000 | Toulon Var | ||
| 2000–2004 | Saint-Étienne | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2004–2009 | Saint-Étienne | 142 | (40) |
| 2005 | →Troyes (loan) | 13 | (6) |
| 2009–2014 | Lyon | 178 | (64) |
| 2014–2017 | Swansea City | 64 | (13) |
| 2016–2017 | →Marseille (loan) | 32 | (20) |
| 2017–2018 | Galatasaray | 34 | (29) |
| 2018–2022 | Al-Hilal | 106 | (81) |
| 2022–2023 | Galatasaray | 37 | (17) |
| 2023–2024 | Kawasaki Frontale | 17 | (3) |
| Total | 623 | (273) | |
| International career | |||
| 2001 | France U17 | 1 | (0) |
| 2008–2013 | France | 12 | (3) |
| *Club domestic league appearances and goals | |||
Bafétimbi Gomis (born 6 August 1985) is a French former professionalfootballer who played as astriker.
Gomis played youth football withSaint-Étienne before making his professional debut for the club in 2004, also spending time on loan atTroyes inLigue 2. In 2009, he joined Saint-Étienne'sDerby du Rhone rivalsLyon for a fee of €13 million. Over five seasons at theStade Gerland, he played 244 official matches and scored 95 goals, winning theCoupe de France and theTrophée des Champions in 2012. In 2014, he moved toPremier League clubSwansea City on a free transfer. After a loan back in France atMarseille, he signed forGalatasaray, where he wastop scorer as they won theSüper Lig in 2018. Gomis announced his professional retirement in 2024.
Gomis made twelve appearances for theFrance national team from 2008 to 2013, scoring three goals. He was a member of the squad forUEFA Euro 2008.
Born inLa Seyne-sur-Mer, Var,[4] Gomis made 13 appearances forSaint-Étienne in his first season with the club, scoring two league goals. In the next season, he made six goalless appearances for the club before going on loan toTroyes in a successful six-month loan deal, where he scored six goals in 13 matches. The 2005–06 season was not as successful as the previous season, as he made 24 league appearances for Saint-Étienne, scoring only two league goals.[citation needed]
The2006–07 season was when Gomis established himself with Saint-Étienne, scoring ten goals in 30 appearances. Gomis continued this form into the2007–08 season where he scored an impressive 16 goals in 34 appearances.[citation needed]
In the 2008 summer transfer window,Newcastle United under managerKevin Keegan reportedly offered a transfer fee of £10 million for Gomis' services.[5] However, a move did not materialise and Gomis remained at Saint-Étienne.[citation needed]
In an interview with French newspaperL'Équipe, Gomis stated he was attracted by a possible move to England, but revealedSerie A would be his preference. In the weeks leading up to the 2009 January transfer window, his name was again touted in speculation surrounding variousPremier League sides, though he moved to allay the rumours, stating his desire to see out the Ligue 1 season with his current club.[6]
Gomis' form in the2008–09 season was scrutinized more heavily than it was in the previous season. Despite this, Gomis successfully netted five times in 17 league appearances, and excelled with his performances in theUEFA Cup, scoring three times in four matches.[citation needed]
On 29 July 2009,Lyon announced that they had signed the striker for €13 million and the player had agreed to a five-year contract. With the move, Gomis became just the sixth player inFrench football history to transfer directly from Saint-Étienne toDerby du Rhône arch-rivals Lyon.[citation needed]
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On the first day of the2011–12 Ligue 1 campaign, Gomis scored the winning goal in a 3–1 victory overNice on 6 August 2011.[7] On 24 September, he scored a first-half brace againstBordeaux firing his side to a 3–1 away victory.[8]
Gomis bagged four goals in the last round of the2011–12 UEFA Champions League group stage, helping Lyon to a 7–1 victory overDinamo Zagreb and progression to the Round of 16 on goal difference.[9] He also created a new record for the fastestChampions League hat-trick ever scored, beating the record owned byMike Newell.[10][11] The record was later broken byMohamed Salah in the2022–23 UEFA Champions League group stage asLiverpool routedRangers 7–1.[12]
On 25 February 2012, Gomis scored on a volley to bring his side level with league leadersPSG 1–1;[13] the match finished in a dramatic 4–4 draw, after Lyon was winning 4–2.[14] He replacedAlexandre Lacazette in the 70th minute in a derby match against former clubSaint-Étienne on 17 March, and ten minutes later scored a 30-yard strike to earn his side a 1–0 victory.[15] He continued his rich vein of form against relegation-threatenedSochaux on 24 March when he converted anAnthony Réveillère cross to earn his side a 2–1 victory.[16]
On 27 June 2014, Gomis signed a four-year contract atSwansea City after leaving Lyon at the end of the2013–14 Ligue 1 season on a free transfer.[17] He made his competitive debut in the opening match of the season on 16 August, replacingWilfried Bony for the last 13 minutes of an eventual 2–1 win overManchester United atOld Trafford.[18] On 26 August he scored his first competitive goal for the club in a 1–0 victory overRotherham United in the Second Round of theLeague Cup.[19] Gomis scored his first Premier League goal on 9 November 2014 scoring the winner barely a minute after entering the field, as his side came from behind to beatArsenal 2–1.[20]
At the beginning of 2015, with Bony leaving to the2015 Africa Cup of Nations Gomis became the main forward for the Swans, starting the year with a brace atTranmere Rovers atPrenton Park in a 2–6 win in theFA Cup.[21] On 10 January, after equalising in a 1–1 home draw againstWest Ham United, he displayed aFrench flag in support of victims ofrecent shootings in Paris.[22] On 4 April 2015, Gomis scored in the 38th minute againstHull City with a volley and further sealed the victory by chipping the ball over the Hull City keeper giving him his firstPremier League brace andSwansea City a 3–1 victory.[23]
On 29 July 2016, Gomis signed on loan toMarseille for the 2016–17 season.[24][25] On 14 August, he made his debut in a 3–1 loss againstToulouse at theStade Vélodrome.[26] On 21 November, coachRudi Garcia made him the captain of the squad for the remainder of the season.[27]
Across all competitions, Gomis scored 21 goals in 33 matches forl'OM.[28] This included a hat-trick on 27 January 2017 in a 5–1 win over Montpellier.[29]
On 28 June 2017, Gomis joined the Turkish clubGalatasaray for an undisclosed fee. He was convinced to join by their former players and his friends,Didier Drogba andAurélien Chedjou.[28] He made his debut for theIstanbul-based club on 13 July in the first leg of the second qualifying round of the Europa League away toÖstersunds, a 2–0 loss.[30] On 14 August, he made hisSüper Lig debut as his team opened the season with a 4–1 win overKayserispor. Gomis scored twice and assistedYounès Belhanda.[31] In a game againstAkhisarspor on 9 December, Gomis equalised in a 4–2 comeback win at theTürk Telekom Stadium but was later given a red card.[32]
On 23 February 2018, Gomis scored his first hat-trick in Turkey, in a 5–0 home win overBursaspor.[33] He added four more goals on 3 March in a 7–0 victory atKardemir Karabükspor, between the 17th and 33rd minutes.[34] He finished the campaign with 29 goals from 33 games, including the sole goal away toGöztepe to win the league title on the last day, making him theGol Kralı (top scorer).[35]
On 24 August 2018, Gomis signed for Saudi championsAl-Hilal, on a two-year deal for a €7 million fee.[36] The club finished as runners-up toRiyadh rivalsAl-Nassr due to a dip of form in the final stretch of the season from Gomis and the rest of the team.[37] With 21 goals, he was joint second top scorer behind the rivals'Abderrazak Hamdallah.[38]
Gomis scored 11 goals in the2019 AFC Champions League, finishing the tournament as the top scorer, and contributing to winning the competition for Al-Hilal for the third time in 19 years.[39] In the second leg of the2019 AFC Champions League Final on 24 November, he scored the second goal in a 2–0 away win overUrawa Red Diamonds, which saw Al-Hilal win the title with a 3–0 aggregate victory; the title also allowed the team to qualify for the2019 FIFA Club World Cup.[40] Gomis was also awarded with the tournament MVP award for his role in delivering the title to Al-Hilal and became the first European player to be top scorer in the competition.[41]
On 14 December, Gomis led Al-Hilal into the semi-finals of2019 FIFA Club World Cup by scoring the only goal of the match against African championsEspérance de Tunis. On 21 December, he played in the second half of the third place game against CONCACAF championMonterrey and scored a goal in the 64th minute that leveled the match 2–2. He also scored in the penalty shoot-out, but his team still lost the shoot-out 4–3. Overall, Gomis played three games in the Club World Cup and scored two goals.
On 2 February 2022,Galatasaray announced the signing of Gomis on a one-and-a-half-year deal.[42] He finished the season by playing 16 matches and scoring nine goals.
Gomis became the champion in theSüper Lig in the2022–23 season with Galatasaray. DefeatingAnkaragücü 4–1 away in the match played in the 36th week on 30 May 2023, Galatasaray secured the lead with two weeks before the end and won the 23rd championship in its history.[43]
On 8 June 2023, it was announced that he left Galatasaray and a thank you message was published.[44]
On 8 August 2023, two days after his 38th birthday, Gomis was announced as the new player of four-timeJ1 League champions,Kawasaki Frontale.[45] Ten days later, he was assigned number 18 shirt, previously worn byChanathip Songkrasin.[46] This was also the number thatKaoru Mitoma once wore. He scored a hat-trick againstHokkaido Consadole Sapporo on 11 May 2024, which proved to be his only goals for the club.[47] After 13 months, he left Kawasaki Frontale by mutual consent.[48] He announced his retirement on 10 November 2024.[49]
Born in France, Gomis was also eligible to play forSenegal through his ancestry. On 8 May 2008, he said regarding his international future: "I don't have to choose between the French or Senegalese teams, as I have not been called yet. The French team? It would be pretentious to ask for it, but I am not adverse to the French team."[50]
On 18 May 2008, Gomis was called up for the provisional FrenchUEFA Euro 2008 squad, ahead of experienced strikerDavid Trezeguet, due to his particularly good form towards the end of Saint-Étienne's season. Gomis scored two goals in 26 minutes in a warm-up match againstEcuador on 27 May. He was the first player to score twice on his debut for the national team sinceZinedine Zidane. On 28 May, he was selected in the French squad ahead ofMarseille strikerDjibril Cissé. On 9 June, Gomis won his third cap by coming on as a substitute forNicolas Anelka in the scoreless draw againstRomania. On 7 October 2009, he collapsed in the training for the match against theFaroe Islands.[51]
In 2011, after a good start of the season with Lyon,Laurent Blanc called up Gomis forUEFA Euro 2012 qualification matches againstAlbania andBosnia and Herzegovina.[52]
Gomis has a medical condition, suspected to bereflex syncope, which means he is liable tofaint during times of stress. This has caused him to faint during a number of matches.[53]
He is the cousin of fellow footballersNampalys Mendy andAlexandre Mendy.[54]
Gomis' iconic goal celebration is inspired bySalif Keïta. It is nicknamed "The Black Panther" and features in the FIFA video game series, first appearing inFIFA 17. An image of Gomis after his goal againstManchester United on 14 August 2015, captured byGetty ImagesStuart Forster was nominated for football picture of the year at the Sports Journalism Awards.[55]
| Club | Season | League | National cup[a] | League cup[b] | Continental | Other | Total | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Saint-Étienne | 2003–04 | Ligue 2 | 11 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | — | — | 13 | 2 | ||
| 2004–05 | Ligue 1 | 6 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | 7 | 0 | |||
| 2005–06 | Ligue 1 | 24 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | — | 26 | 2 | |||
| 2006–07 | Ligue 1 | 30 | 10 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 3 | — | — | 34 | 13 | |||
| 2007–08 | Ligue 1 | 35 | 16 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | — | 37 | 16 | |||
| 2008–09 | Ligue 1 | 36 | 10 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 8[c] | 4 | — | 47 | 16 | ||
| Total | 142 | 40 | 6 | 1 | 8 | 4 | 8 | 4 | — | 164 | 49 | |||
| Troyes (loan) | 2004–05 | Ligue 2 | 13 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | 13 | 6 | ||
| Lyon | 2009–10 | Ligue 1 | 37 | 10 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 10[d] | 4 | — | 51 | 15 | |
| 2010–11 | Ligue 1 | 35 | 10 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 7[d] | 2 | — | 45 | 12 | ||
| 2011–12 | Ligue 1 | 36 | 14 | 6 | 4 | 3 | 1 | 9[d] | 6 | — | 54 | 25 | ||
| 2012–13 | Ligue 1 | 37 | 16 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 5[e] | 2 | 1[f] | 1 | 45 | 21 | |
| 2013–14 | Ligue 1 | 33 | 14 | 3 | 2 | 4 | 3 | 9[e] | 3 | — | 49 | 22 | ||
| Total | 178 | 64 | 14 | 8 | 11 | 5 | 40 | 17 | 1 | 1 | 244 | 95 | ||
| Swansea City | 2014–15 | Premier League | 31 | 7 | 2 | 2 | 3 | 1 | — | — | 36 | 10 | ||
| 2015–16 | Premier League | 33 | 6 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | — | — | 35 | 7 | |||
| Total | 64 | 13 | 3 | 3 | 4 | 1 | — | — | 71 | 17 | ||||
| Marseille (loan) | 2016–17 | Ligue 1 | 32 | 20 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | — | — | 34 | 21 | ||
| Galatasaray | 2017–18 | Süper Lig | 33 | 29 | 5 | 3 | — | 2[e] | 0 | — | 40 | 32 | ||
| 2018–19 | Süper Lig | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 | 0 | 1[g] | 0 | 2 | 0 | ||
| Total | 34 | 29 | 5 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 42 | 32 | ||
| Al-Hilal | 2018–19 | Saudi Pro League | 30 | 21 | 3 | 7 | 6 | 5 | 6[h] | 4 | 0 | 0 | 45 | 37 |
| 2019–20 | Saudi Pro League | 29 | 27 | 4 | 1 | — | 12[h] | 10 | 3[i] | 2 | 48 | 40 | ||
| 2020–21 | Saudi Pro League | 30 | 24 | 1 | 0 | — | 10[h] | 6 | 1[j] | 0 | 42 | 30 | ||
| 2021–22 | Saudi Pro League | 17 | 9 | 1 | 0 | — | — | 1[j] | 0 | 19 | 9 | |||
| Total | 106 | 81 | 9 | 8 | 6 | 5 | 28 | 20 | 5 | 2 | 154 | 116 | ||
| Galatasaray | 2021–22 | Süper Lig | 14 | 9 | — | — | 2[e] | 0 | — | 16 | 9 | |||
| 2022–23 | Süper Lig | 23 | 8 | 5 | 2 | — | — | — | 28 | 10 | ||||
| Total | 37 | 17 | 5 | 2 | — | 2 | 0 | — | 44 | 19 | ||||
| Kawasaki Frontale | 2023 | J1 League | 8 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | 5[h] | 0 | — | 14 | 0 | ||
| 2024 | J1 League | 9 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1[k] | 0 | 10 | 3 | |
| Total | 17 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 24 | 3 | ||
| Career total | 623 | 273 | 45 | 26 | 29 | 15 | 85 | 41 | 7 | 3 | 790 | 358 | ||
| National team | Year | Apps | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|
| France | 2008 | 4 | 2 |
| 2009 | 1 | 0 | |
| 2011 | 1 | 0 | |
| 2012 | 4 | 1 | |
| 2013 | 2 | 0 | |
| Total | 12 | 3 | |
| No. | Date | Venue | Cap | Opponent | Score | Result | Competition |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 27 May 2008 | Stade des Alpes,Grenoble, France | 1 |  Ecuador | 1–0 | 2–0 | Friendly |
| 2 | 2–0 | ||||||
| 3 | 14 November 2012 | Stadio Ennio Tardini,Parma, Italy | 10 |  Italy | 2–1 | 2–1 | Friendly |
Saint-Étienne
Lyon
Galatasaray
Al-Hilal
Kawasaki Frontale
Individual
 | ||