Bafetimbi Gomis

At 38 years old, Bafetimbi Gomis has this physical status:

Club career

Var, Gomis, a native of La Seyne-sur-Mer, made 13 appearances for Saint-Étienne in his first season with the club, scoring two league goals. He made six goalless appearances for the club before going on loan to Troyes AC in a lucrative six-month loan contract, where he scored six goals in 13 matches. The 2005–06 season was not as fruitful as the previous one, as he made 24 league appearances for Saint-Étienne, scoring only two league goals.

Gomis made his Saint-Étienne debut in 2006, scoring ten goals in 30 appearances. Gomis maintained his form into the 2007–08 season, scoring an astounding 16 goals in 34 appearances.

Newcastle United manager Kevin Keegan allegedly charged Gomis' services for $10 million during the 2008 summer transfer window. However, a change didn't materialize, and Gomis remained at Saint-Étienne.

Gomis said he was attracted by a potential move to England in a French newspaper L'Équipe, but that Serie A would be his preferred. His name was repeatedly mentioned in rumors surrounding various Premier League clubs in the weeks leading up to his 2009 January transfer window, but he denied it, insisting that he wanted to see out the Ligue 1 season with his new club.

Gomis' performance in the 2008-09 season was scrutinized more closely than it was in the previous year. Despite this, Gomis scored five times in 17 league appearances and impressed with his results in the UEFA Cup, scoring three times in four matches.

Olympique Lyonnais reported on July 29, 2009, that they had signed the striker for €13 million, despite the player's agreement for a five-year deal. Gomis was the sixth player in French football to move from Saint-Étienne to Lyon du Rhône, Lyon's arch-rivals.

Gomis scored the winning goal in a 3–1 victory over Nice on the first day of the 2011–12 Ligue 1 campaign. He scored a first-half brace against Girondins de Bordeaux on September 24, leading his team to a 3–1 away win.

In the last round of the 2011-12 UEFA Champions League group stage, Gomis scored four goals, leading Lyon to a 7-1 win over Zagreb and progressing to the Round of 16 on goal difference. He also set a new record for the fastest Champions League hat-trick ever scored, beating Mike Newell's record of a new record. As Liverpool defeated Rangers 7-1, Mohamed Salah broke the record in the 2022-23 UEFA Champions League group stage.

Gomis scored on a volley on February 25 to bring his team up to par with league leaders PSG 1–1; the match ended in a thrilling 4–2 draw after Lyon was winning 4–2. Alexandre Lacazette was substituted in the 70th minute of a derby match against former club Saint-Étienne on March 17, and ten minutes later, his side gained a 1–0 win after a 30-yard kick. On March 24, he regained his youthful form against Sochaux, relegation-threatened Sochaux, where he converted an Anthony Réveillère cross, earning his side a 2–1 victory.

After leaving Lyon at the end of the 2013-14 Ligue 1 season on a free transfer, Gomis signed a four-year contract at Swansea City on June 27. On August 16, he made his competitive debut in the season's opener, defeating Wilfried Bony for the final 13 minutes of an eventual 2–1 victory over Manchester United at Old Trafford. In a 1–0 victory over Rotherham United in the Second Round of the League Cup on August 26, he scored his first competitive goal for the club. On September 9, 2014, Gomis scored his first Premier League goal after being sent just over a minute after arriving on the field, defeating Arsenal 2–1.

Gomis, the Swans' main forward, started the year with a brace at Tranmere Rovers in a 2-6 victory in the FA Cup at the start of this year, with Bony moving to the 2015 Africa Cup of Nations Gomis. After equalizing in a 1–1 home draw against West Ham United, he waved a French flag in favour of victims of the latest Paris massacres. Gomis scored in the 38th minute against Hull City with a volley and a second goal, then claiming the victory by chipping the ball over the Hull City keeper's first Premier League brace and Swansea City a 3–1 win.

Gomis signed a loan to Marseille for the 2016-2017 season on July 29, 2016. He made his debut against Toulouse at the Stade Vélodrome on August 14 in a 3–1 loss. Rudi Garcia, the team's coach, named him captain for the remainder of the season on November 21.

Gomis scored 21 goals in 33 games for l'OM in all competitions. In a 5–1 win over Montpellier on January 27, 2017, there was a hat-trick.

Gomis joined Galatasaray in Turkey on June 28, 2017 for an undisclosed fee. Didier Drogba and Aurélien Chedjou were compelled to join him by his fellow players and their allies. He made his debut for the Istanbul-based club in the first leg of the Europa League's second qualifying round, away from sunds FK, a 2–0 loss. He made his Süper Lig debut on August 14th as his team opened the season with a 4–1 win over Kayserispor. Gomis scored twice and assisted Younès Belhanda. Gomis equalized in a 4–2 win at the Türk Telekom Stadium on December 9th, but was later given a red card.

Gomis scored his first hat-trick in Turkey on February 23, 2018 in a 5–0 home win over Bursaspor. In a 7–0 victory over Kardemir Karabükspor between the 17th and the 33rd minutes, he scored four more goals on March 3rd. He finished the year with 29 goals from 33 games, including the sole goal away from Göztepe to win the league championship on the last day, making him the Gol Kral (top scorer).

Gomis signed Al-Hilal, the Saudi champions, to a two-year contract for a €7 million fee. Due to a lack of form from Gomis and the remainder of the team in the final stretch of the season, the team finished runners-up to Riyadh rivals Al-Nassr. With 21 goals, he was joint second top scorer behind the rivals' Abderrazak Hamdallah.

Gomis scored 11 goals in the 2019 AFC Champions League, ending the tournament as the top scorer and contributing to Al-Hilal's winning the tournament for the third time in 19 years. He scored his second goal in a 2–0 away victory over Urawa Red Diamonds on November 24th, giving Al-Hilal victory by a 3–0 aggregate victory; the team also qualified for the 2019 FIFA Club World Cup. Gomis was also given the tournament MVP award for his part in Al-Hilal's triumph and becoming the first European player to play in the tournament.

Gomis led Al-Hilal into the semi-finals of the 2019 FIFA Club World Cup by scoring the only goal of the match against African champions Espérance de Tunis on December 14th. He appeared in the second half of the third place game against CONCACAF champion Montery on December 21 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 lost the shoot-out 4–3. Overall, Gomis played three games in the Club World Cup and scored two goals.

International career

The French team?

Gomis was called up for the provisional French UEFA Euro 2008 squad on May 18, 2008, ahead of veteran striker David Trezeguet's return to Saint-Étienne's season. In a warm-up match against Ecuador on May 27, Gomis scored two goals in 26 minutes. On his debut for the national team after Zinedine Zidane, he was the first player to score twice. On May 28, he was selected in the French squad ahead of Olympique de Marseille striker Djibril Cissé, who was on display in Olympique. Gomis earned his third cap by appearing as a substitute for Nicolas Anelka in the scoreless draw against Romania on June 9th. He collapsed in the preparations for the match against the Faroe Islands on October 7, 2009.

Laurent Blanc, a Lyon-based performer, called Gomis up for UEFA Euro 2012 qualification matches against Albania and Bosnia Herzegovina.

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