Rikelme

Rikelme Hernandes Amorim Rocha (born 16 July 2003), simply known as Rikelme, is a Brazilian professional footballer who plays as a left-back for Série A club Cuiabá.

Born in Cuiabá, Mato Grosso, Rikelme joined Cuiabá's youth setup in 2018, aged 14. After impressing with the under-15 squad, he signed a professional contract in 2019, and was subsequently loaned to Cruzeiro.

Upon returning in December 2020, Rikelme made his first team debut for Dourado on 6 February 2021, coming on as a late substitute for Elvis in a 1–0 home win over Vila Nova, for the 2020 Copa Verde. In 2021, he only appeared with the main squad in the Campeonato Mato-Grossense and in the Copa FMF, as the club opted to field an under-23 team in the latter tournament.

Rikelme was loaned to Dom Bosco for the 2022 Mato-Grossense, being unable to play in the semifinals against his parent club. Upon returning, he featured in two Copa Sudamericana matches before making his Série A debut on 23 October 2022, replacing André Luis in a 2–1 home loss against Goiás.

Converted into a left back during the 2023 season, Rikelme established himself as a regular starter under head coach António Oliveira and scored his first top tier goal on 2 July of that year, netting his team's third in a 3–0 home win over Santos; he also became the youngest player to score for the club in the Série A.

On 6 April 2023, Rikelme was called up to the Brazil under-20s for friendlies in Spain, becoming the first ever player of Cuiabá to be called up to any category of the national side.

Rikelme's older brother Matheus Ernandes is also a footballer. A central defender, he was also groomed at Cuiabá.

As of match played 26 November 2023