Quick Facts
Biography
Rónald Gómez Gómez (born 24 January 1975 in Puntarenas) is a retired Costa Rican football forward.
An important player on the Costa Rican national team during the 1990s and 2000s, Gómez is one of Costa Rica's best forwards, known for his rocket shots and top dribbling.
Club career
Early years
Born in Puntarenas as the 12th child of Francisca Gómez, he was raised in the village Pilas de Canjel in Guanacaste Province.
Nicknamed La Bala (The Bullit), Gómez started his career at Carmelita and scored his first league goal on 20 September 1992 against Saprissa. He then scored 45 goals for Alajuelense before moving abroad.
Years abroad
He has played in 6 different countries: in Spain with Sporting Gijón and Hercules of Alicante, in Guatemala with Municipal, in Greece with OFI Crete, in Kuwait with Al Qadsia, in Mexico with Irapuato and in Cyprus with APOEL where he won the Cypriot First Division.
Saprissa
With Saprissa, he has won 4 national championship; and 1 CONCACAF Champions Cup, and was part of the team that played the 2005 FIFA Club World Championship Toyota Cup where Saprissa finished third behind São Paulo and Liverpool. He scored the winning goal in the final minutes of the game that Saprissa won in order to achieve the third place of the tournament against Al-Ittihad. His goal was considered among the best of the cup.
Return from retirement
In June 2009, Gómez came out of playing retirement for a final season at Santos after he was relegated to the second division as manager of Carmelita. After the season he became manager of Santos.
International career
Gómez made his debut for Costa Rica in a February 1993 UNCAF Nations Cup qualification match against Nicaragua and earned a total of 93 caps, scoring 26 goals. He represented his country in 27 FIFA World Cup qualification matches and figured at the 2002 and 2006 World Cups. He also played at the 1993 and 2001 UNCAF Nations Cups as well as at the 1993, 2000 and 2002 CONCACAF Gold Cup and the 1997, 2001, and 2004 Copa América.
His final international was a March 2008 friendly match against Peru.
International goals
- Scores and results list. Costa Rica's goal tally first.
| Goal | Date | Venue | Opponent | Result | Competition |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 16 February 1993 | Estadio Nacional de Costa Rica, San José, Costa Rica |  Nicaragua | 6 - 0 | UNCAF Nations Cup qualifier |
| 2 | 16 February 1993 | Estadio Nacional de Costa Rica, San José, Costa Rica | Nicaragua | 6 - 0 | UNCAF Nations Cup qualifier |
| 3 | 5 March 1993 | Estadio Tiburcio Carías Andino, Tegucigalpa |  El Salvador | 1 - 0 | UNCAF Nations Cup |
| 23 June 1993 | Estadio Nacional de Costa Rica, San José, Costa Rica |  Panama | 3 - 1 | Friendly match, Not official | |
| 4 | 27 September 1993 | Prince Mohamed bin Fahd Stadium, Dammam, Saudi Arabia |  Saudi Arabia | 2 - 3 | Friendly match |
| 5 | 17 December 1994 | King Fahd International Stadium, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia | Saudi Arabia | 3 - 1 | Friendly match |
| 6 | 17 December 1994 | King Fahd International Stadium, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia | Saudi Arabia | 3 - 1 | Friendly match |
| 7 | 17 December 1994 | King Fahd International Stadium, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia | Saudi Arabia | 3 - 1 | Friendly match |
| 8 | 5 June 1996 | Varsity Stadium, Toronto, Canada |  Canada | 1 - 0 | Friendly match |
| 9 | 1 September 1996 | Queen's Park Oval, Port of Spain , Trinidad and Tobago |  Trinidad and Tobago | 1 - 0 | 1998 FIFA World Cup qualification (CONCACAF) |
| 10 | 14 December 1996 | Stanford Stadium, Stanford, United States |  United States | 1 - 2 | 1998 FIFA World Cup qualification (CONCACAF) |
| 11 | 23 March 1997 | Estadio Ricardo Saprissa Aymá, San José, Costa Rica | United States | 3 - 2 | 1998 FIFA World Cup qualification (CONCACAF) |
| 12 | 17 July 1999 | Titan Stadium, Fullerton, United States | Saudi Arabia | 1 - 0 | Friendly |
| 13 | 18 August 1999 | Estadio Centenario, Montevideo, Uruguay |  Uruguay | 4 - 5 | Friendly |
| 14 | 18 August 1999 | Estadio Centenario, Montevideo, Uruguay | Uruguay | 4 - 5 | Friendly |
| 15 | 30 May 2001 | Estadio Olimpico Metropolitano, San Pedro Sula, Honduras | Panama | 2 - 1 | UNCAF Nations Cup |
| 16 | 1 September 2001 | Hasely Crawford Stadium , Port of Spain, Trinidad and Tobago | Trinidad and Tobago | 2 - 0 | World Cup qualifier |
| 17 | 1 September 2001 | Hasely Crawford Stadium , Port of Spain, Trinidad and Tobago | Trinidad and Tobago | 2 - 0 | World Cup qualifier |
| 18 | 26 January 2002 | Orange Bowl, Miami, United States |  Haiti | 2 - 1 | 2002 CONCACAF Gold Cup |
| 19 | 30 January 2002 | Rose Bowl, Pasadena, United States |  South Korea | 3 - 1 | 2002 CONCACAF Gold Cup |
| 20 | 4 June 2002 | Gwangju World Cup Stadium, Gwangju, South Korea |  China PR | 2 - 0 | 2002 FIFA World Cup |
| 21 | 13 June 2002 | Suwon World Cup Stadium, Suwon, South Korea |  Brazil | 2 - 5 | 2002 FIFA World Cup |
| 22 | 20 June 2004 | Estadio Alejandro Morera Soto, Alajuela, Costa Rica |  Cuba | 1 - 1 | World Cup qualifier |
| 23 | 8 June 2005 | Estadio Ricardo Saprissa Aymá, San José, Costa Rica |  Guatemala | 3 - 2 | World Cup qualifier |
| 24 | 19 June 2005 | Helong Stadium, Changsha, China | Panama | 2 - 2 | Friendly |
| 25 | 3 September 2005 | Estadio Rommel Fernández, Panama City, Panama | Panama | 3 - 1 | World Cup qualifier |
| 26 | 20 June 2006 | AWD-Arena, Hannover, Germany |  Poland | 1 - 2 | 2006 FIFA World Cup |
Managerial career
He made his debut as manager of Carmelita in January 2009. In October 2010 he was dismissed by Santos de Guápiles and he later managed second division sides Deportivo Cartagena and Juventud Escazuceña. In September 2013, he took charge of Guatemalan side Halcones and in May 2014 he returned to Costa Rica to take charge at Limón.
Personal life
He is married to Gina Soto and they have two sons, Esteban and Daniel.
Honours
- Primera División de Costa Rica (3):
- 1995-96, 2005–06, 2007–08
- Copa Interclubes UNCAF (1):
- 1996
- CONCACAF Champions' Cup (1):
- 2005
- Cypriot First Division (1):
- 2006–07