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Ricardo Goulart
Ricardo Goulart.jpg
Goulart with Guangzhou in 2016
Personal information
Full name Ricardo Goulart Pereira
Date of birth (1991-06-05) 5 June 1991 (age 33)
Place of birth São José dos Campos, Brazil
Height 1.80 m
Playing position Attacking midfielder
Youth career
1998–2005 Moreira's Sport
2006–2009 Santo André
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2009–2011 Santo André 34 (6)
2010–2011 Internacional (loan) 17 (5)
2012 Goiás 55 (21)
2013–2014 Cruzeiro 79 (29)
2015–2021 Guangzhou FC 117 (78)
2019 Palmeiras (loan) 9 (3)
2020 → Hebei China Fortune (loan) 18 (4)
2022 Santos 20 (3)
2022–2023 Bahia 22 (5)
Total 371 (154)
National team
2014 Brazil 1 (0)
  • Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only.
† Appearances (Goals).

Ricardo Goulart Pereira (Brazilian Portuguese: [ʁiˈkaʁdu ɡuˈlaʁ]; born 5 June 1991), known as Ricardo Goulart, is a Brazilian former footballer who played as an attacking midfielder.

Goulart started his career with Santo André in 2009, and remained at the club until 2011, with a loan to Internacional. He played the 2012 season Goiás in the second tier, before joining Cruzeiro the following year.

At Cruzeiro, Goulart cemented a place in the first team, and during his two-year stint, he made a total of 99 appearances and scored 34 times, winning the 2014 Brasileiro with the club. His personal awards include the 2014 Bola de Ouro, besides featuring in the team of the season. In 2015, he entered Asian football by signing for Chinese club Guangzhou Evergrande, where he won the Chinese Super League and AFC Champions League in his first season.

Goulart made his international debut for the Brazil national football team against Colombia in 2014.

Club career

Santo André

Born in São José dos Campos, São Paulo, Goulart joined Santo André's youth setup in 2006, after failed trials at São Paulo, São Caetano, Taubaté and Paulista. In the 2009 season, after being the under-20's top scorer in the Copa São Paulo de Futebol Júnior, he was then promoted to the first team.

Goulart made his first team debut for Ramalhão on 25 February 2009, coming on as a second-half substitute and scoring the equalizer in a 2–1 Campeonato Paulista home win over Ituano. He scored four times in 12 appearances in the competition, as the club finished sixth.

Goulart made his Série A debut on 24 May 2009, replacing Antônio Flávio in a 1–2 home loss against Flamengo. He scored his first goal in the category on 25 July, but in a 2–3 loss at Grêmio, and featured sparingly in the league as his side suffered relegation.

Loan to Internacional

On 19 May 2010, Goulart was loaned to Internacional for one year, and was initially assigned to the B-team.

After winning the 2010 Copa FGF with the B's, Goulart was included in the main squad ahead of the 2011 campaign, and started the season as a starter. However, after the arrival of Dorival Júnior as manager, he lost space in the main squad and returned to his parent club when his loan expired in December 2011; Santo André also refused to keep him, and he was subsequently released.

Goiás

On 28 December 2011, Goulart agreed to a contract with Série B Goiás for the ensuing campaign. He made his debut for the club on 22 January, starting in a 5–0 Campeonato Goiano home routing of Aparecidense, and scored his first goal three days later in a 4–2 win at Morrinhos.

An immediate starter, Goulart won the 2012 Campeonato Goiano and the 2012 Série B with the side, scoring 25 goals overall and providing 14 assists as the club returned to the top tier. He notably scored three braces in the campaign, against Goianésia (2–1 home win), Ipatinga (6–0 away win) and Guaratinguetá (3–0 away win).

Cruzeiro

On 5 January 2013, Goulart was announced at Cruzeiro in the top tier. He made his debut for the club on 3 February, starting in a 2–1 Campeonato Mineiro home win over rivals Atlético Mineiro, and scored his first goal on 24 March in a 2–1 home win over Caldense.

Goulart was the league top scorer of Cruzeiro in his first season (along with Borges), scoring 10 goals as the club lifted the trophy. In August 2014, after winning the 2014 Mineiro, he was targeted by French club Monaco, but the offer was refused by Cruzeiro.

In the 2014 Copa Libertadores, Goulart was again the club's top goalscorer (along with Bruno Rodrigo), scoring four goals (including a hat-trick in a 5–1 home routing of Universidad de Chile) as his side was knocked out in the quarterfinals. In the year's Série A, he scored 15 goals and was the club's top goalscorer as they lifted a second consecutive league title. He was also named in the team of the season by CBF, and won the Bola de Ouro and Bola de Prata awards by Placar.

Guangzhou Evergrande

First seasons

In early January 2015, Goulart was linked to a move away from Cruzeiro to China and Mexico. On 13 January, he signed for Chinese Super League club Guangzhou Evergrande for 15 million, on a four-year contract, being handed the no 11 jersey. It was the highest transfer fee paid by a Chinese club.

Goulart made his debut on 14 February 2015, replacing countryman Renê Júnior in a match against Shandong Luneng in Chinese Super Cup. He scored his first goal for his club on 25 February, in an AFC Champions League match against FC Seoul. He then scored a hat-trick in the same competition, against the defending champions Western Sydney Wanderers on 4 March. For his performance he was praised by manager Fabio Cannavaro who said "Goulart is undoubtedly a great player. As an individual player or as a team player he is helping us significantly".

Goulart's goal scoring form continued, as he again found the net by scoring a brace against Japanese club Kashima Antlers on 18 March 2015. In the league, he scored 19 goals as the club won their fifth title in a row.

On 22 February 2016, Goulart extended his contract with Guangzhou Evergrande to 31 January 2020. He again scored 19 league goals in that year, as the club won their sixth consecutive title. In 2017, he scored a career-best 20 goals, with Guangzhou winning another title.

Loan to Palmeiras and return

On 15 January 2019, Goulart moved to Palmeiras on a one-year deal, with a buyout clause. On 23 May, after struggling with injuries and only 12 matches, his loan was cut short and he returned to his parent club.

Goulart struggled with knee injuries for the remainder of the 2019 season, and did not play a single minute as the club had four foreign players registered.

Loan to Hebei China Fortune

On 19 July 2020, Goulart joined Hebei China Fortune on loan for the remainder of the year. He contributed with 18 appearances for the side, as they were knocked out of the league by his parent club.

2021 season

Back to Guangzhou for the 2021 campaign, Goulart featured sparingly before terminating his contract in November 2021 in a mutual consent. It was reported that due to the financial difficulties of the club, the club failed to pay his wage.

Santos

On 11 January 2022, free agent Goulart was announced at Santos back in his home country, after agreeing to a two-year contract. He made his debut for the club on 2 February, starting in a 2–1 away win over rivals Corinthians.

Goulart scored his first goal for Peixe on 13 February 2022, netting the winner in a 2–1 home success over Ituano. However, he struggled to establish himself as a regular starter, and terminated his contract with the club on 12 July.

Bahia

On 2 August 2022, Goulart joined Bahia.

Retirement

At a press conference on 24 April 2023, Goulart announced his retirement from football at the age of 31.

International career

On 19 August 2014, Goulart was called up to the Brazil national team for two matches against Colombia and Ecuador by new manager Dunga. After being an unused substitute against the former, he made his full international debut on 9 September, in a 1–0 victory against the latter.

Having only played a friendly match for Brazil, Goulart was subsequently naturalized as a Chinese citizen, being one of the six football players at the time who had no Chinese ancestry to have been naturalized as Chinese citizens, with another notable player being Elkeson, another former Brazilian. However, it became unclear whether he would be able to represent the national team, as he did not complete the five-year residency rules after leaving the country between October 2018 and May 2019.

Style of play

A versatile, tenacious, and physically strong attacking midfielder, with an eye for goal, Goulart is also capable of playing as a forward, through the centre, or as a winger, on either flank. He is known in particular for his powerful ball striking, and his ability to make attacking runs into the area.

Personal life

In 2009, Goulart married Diane. His brother Juninho is also a footballer, best known for his tenure with MLS club LA Galaxy.

Goulart became a naturalised Chinese citizen on 17 July 2019. After leaving Guangzhou in November 2021, Chinese media reported that he gave up on his Chinese nationality as he returned to Brazil, but he was still registered as a foreigner in the 2022 season, as he did not start the documentation process to get back his Brazilian nationality.

Career statistics

Club

.

Appearances and goals by club, season and competition
Club Season League State league National cup Continental Other Total
Division Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals
Santo André 2009 Série A 14 1 12 4 26 5
2010 Série A 0 0 8 1 8 1
Total 14 1 20 5 34 6
Internacional (loan) 2010 Série A 0 0 13 6 13 6
2011 Série A 10 1 7 4 1 0 18 5
Total 10 1 7 4 1 0 13 6 31 11
Goiás 2012 Série B 34 12 21 9 8 4 63 25
Cruzeiro 2013 Série A 33 10 10 3 6 1 49 14
2014 Série A 26 15 10 1 5 0 9 4 50 20
Total 59 25 20 4 11 1 9 4 99 34
Guangzhou Evergrande 2015 Chinese Super League 27 19 0 0 14 8 4 0 45 27
2016 Chinese Super League 29 19 7 4 6 3 1 2 43 28
2017 Chinese Super League 29 20 1 0 10 7 1 0 41 27
2018 Chinese Super League 19 13 0 0 8 7 1 1 28 21
2020 Chinese Super League 0 0 0 0 4 0 4 0
2021 Chinese Super League 13 7 0 0 0 0 13 7
Total 117 78 8 4 42 25 7 3 174 110
Palmeiras (loan) 2019 Série A 1 0 8 3 0 0 3 1 12 4
Hebei China Fortune (loan) 2020 Chinese Super League 18 4 0 0 18 4
Santos 2022 Série A 11 0 9 3 4 1 6 0 30 4
Bahia 2022 Série B 16 2 16 2
2023 Série A 0 0 10 3 1 0 5 0 16 3
Total 16 2 10 3 1 0 5 0 32 5
Career total 280 123 95 31 32 10 61 30 25 9 493 203

International

Brazil
Year Apps Goals
2014 1 0
Total 1 0

Honours

Club

Internacional

  • Copa FGF: 2010

Cruzeiro

Guangzhou Evergrande

Bahia

  • Campeonato Baiano: 2023

Individual

See also

Kids robot.svg In Spanish: Ricardo Goulart para niños

  • List of Chinese naturalized footballers
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