Alain Goma
Encyclopedia
Alain Goma is a retired French
footballer who played as a right or central defender.
In a 16-year professional career, he played in 196 Ligue 1
games, almost all for Auxerre
, adding 147 in the Premier League, namely with Fulham
.
-suburb team RC Versailles, joining AJ Auxerre
's famed youth academy in 1988, aged 15. Three years later, he made his Ligue 1
debut for the side led by legendary Guy Roux.
In 1992–93, Goma took part in Auxerre's unprecedented UEFA Cup semifinal run, where the French only bowed out in the semifinals to Ajax Amsterdam in a penalty shootout. At the end of the season, he signed his very first professional contract, going to be instrumental in the side's 1996 double, while also helping it to the 1996–97 UEFA Champions League
quarterfinals - losing to eventual winners Borussia Dortmund
- after winning the group stage over Ajax.
After ten years, Goma moved to Paris Saint-Germain FC, where he immediately claimed the French Super Cup
. After that single season, he joined Newcastle United
for £
4.7 million. He became an important player at the start of the 2000–01 season, scoring in the 3–1 win against Middlesbrough
in October 2000 but, following a dispute with the Magpies, eventually moved on in April 2001.
First Division
promotion certainties Fulham
paid £4million for Goma's services. On 21 April 2001, he made his debut in a 1–1 draw against Portsmouth
, at Fratton Park
, and became a vital player for Fulham in its debut season in the Premier League, eventually serving as captain under countryman Jean Tigana
.
His form earned him a new contract during 2003–04, to keep him at the club until the summer of 2006. Despite missing two months due to injury, he made his 100th appearance that season. After the emergence of younger players such as Zat Knight
, his importance and role gradually diminished, and Goma left the squad after 2005–06, initially retiring aged 33. However, in 2007, he came out of retirement, joining Qatar
's Al-Wakrah Sports Club, and retiring for good at the end of the season.
, with the first arriving on 9 October 1996, a 4–0 friendly win with Turkey
, and the last one two years later.
|1990–91||rowspan="8"|Auxerre
||rowspan="8"|French League
||1||0||||||||||||||||
|-
|1991–92||1||0||||||||||||||||
|-
|1992–93||15||1||||||||||||||||
|-
|1993–94||33||0||||||||||||||||
|-
|1994–95||28||0||||||||||||||||
|-
|1995–96||32||0||||||||||||||||
|-
|1996–97||34||2||||||||||||||||
|-
|1997–98||22||1||||||||||||||||
|-
|1998–99||Paris SG||French League
||30||0||||||||||||||||
|-
|1999–00||rowspan="2"|Newcastle
||rowspan="2"|Premier League||14||0||||||||||||||||
|-
|2000–01||19||1||||||||||||||||
|-
|2000–01||rowspan="6"|Fulham
||First Division
||3||0||||||||||||||||
|-
|2001–02||rowspan="5"|Premier League||33||0||||||||||||||||
|-
|2002–03||29||0||||||||||||||||
|-
|2003–04||23||0||||||||||||||||
|-
|2004–05||16||0||||||||||||||||
|-
|2005–06||13||0||||||||||||||||
|-
|2007–08||Al-Wakrah||Qatari League||?||?||||||||||||||||
196||4||||||||||||||||
150||1||||||||||||||||
?||?||||||||||||||||
346||5||||||||||||||||
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
footballer who played as a right or central defender.
In a 16-year professional career, he played in 196 Ligue 1
Ligue 1
Ligue 1 , is the French professional league for association football clubs. It is the country's primary football competition and serves as the top division of the French football league system. Ligue 1 is one of two divisions making up the Ligue de Football Professionnel, the other being Ligue 2....
games, almost all for Auxerre
AJ Auxerre
Association de la Jeunesse Auxerroise is a French association football club based in the commune of Auxerre in Burgundy. The club was founded in 1905 and currently play in Ligue 1, the top division of French football. Auxerre plays its home matches at the Stade l'Abbé-Deschamps on the banks of the...
, adding 147 in the Premier League, namely with Fulham
Fulham F.C.
Fulham Football Club is a professional English Premier League club based in southwest London Fulham, in the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham. Founded in 1879, they play in the Premier League, their 11th current season...
.
Club career
Born in Sault, Vaucluse, Goma started his football career playing for ParisParis
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
-suburb team RC Versailles, joining AJ Auxerre
AJ Auxerre
Association de la Jeunesse Auxerroise is a French association football club based in the commune of Auxerre in Burgundy. The club was founded in 1905 and currently play in Ligue 1, the top division of French football. Auxerre plays its home matches at the Stade l'Abbé-Deschamps on the banks of the...
's famed youth academy in 1988, aged 15. Three years later, he made his Ligue 1
Ligue 1
Ligue 1 , is the French professional league for association football clubs. It is the country's primary football competition and serves as the top division of the French football league system. Ligue 1 is one of two divisions making up the Ligue de Football Professionnel, the other being Ligue 2....
debut for the side led by legendary Guy Roux.
In 1992–93, Goma took part in Auxerre's unprecedented UEFA Cup semifinal run, where the French only bowed out in the semifinals to Ajax Amsterdam in a penalty shootout. At the end of the season, he signed his very first professional contract, going to be instrumental in the side's 1996 double, while also helping it to the 1996–97 UEFA Champions League
UEFA Champions League
The UEFA Champions League, known simply the Champions League and originally known as the European Champion Clubs' Cup or European Cup, is an annual international club football competition organised by the Union of European Football Associations since 1955 for the top football clubs in Europe. It...
quarterfinals - losing to eventual winners Borussia Dortmund
Borussia Dortmund
Ballspielverein Borussia Dortmund, commonly BVB, are a German sports club based in Dortmund, North Rhine-Westphalia. Dortmund are one of the most successful clubs in German football history. Borussia Dortmund play in the Bundesliga, the top league of German football...
- after winning the group stage over Ajax.
After ten years, Goma moved to Paris Saint-Germain FC, where he immediately claimed the French Super Cup
Trophée des champions
The Trophée des champions , is a French association football trophy contested in an annual match between the champions of Ligue 1 and the winners of the Coupe de France. It is equivalent to the Super Cups found in many countries...
. After that single season, he joined Newcastle United
Newcastle United F.C.
Newcastle United Football Club is an English professional association football club based in Newcastle upon Tyne, Tyne and Wear. The club was founded in 1892 by the merger of Newcastle East End and Newcastle West End, and has played at its current home ground, St James' Park, since the merger...
for £
Pound sterling
The pound sterling , commonly called the pound, is the official currency of the United Kingdom, its Crown Dependencies and the British Overseas Territories of South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands, British Antarctic Territory and Tristan da Cunha. It is subdivided into 100 pence...
4.7 million. He became an important player at the start of the 2000–01 season, scoring in the 3–1 win against Middlesbrough
Middlesbrough F.C.
Middlesbrough Football Club , also known as Boro, are an English football club based in Middlesbrough, who play in the Football League Championship. Formed in 1876, they have played at the Riverside Stadium since August 1995, their third ground since turning professional in 1889...
in October 2000 but, following a dispute with the Magpies, eventually moved on in April 2001.
First Division
Football League First Division
The First Division was a division of The Football League between 1888 and 2004 and the highest division in English football until the creation of the Premier League in 1992. The secondary tier in English football has since become known as the Championship....
promotion certainties Fulham
Fulham F.C.
Fulham Football Club is a professional English Premier League club based in southwest London Fulham, in the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham. Founded in 1879, they play in the Premier League, their 11th current season...
paid £4million for Goma's services. On 21 April 2001, he made his debut in a 1–1 draw against Portsmouth
Portsmouth F.C.
Portsmouth Football Club is an English football club based in the city of Portsmouth. The club is nicknamed Pompey. Portsmouth's home matches have been played at Fratton Park since the club's formation in 1898. The team currently play in the Football League Championship after being relegated from...
, at Fratton Park
Fratton Park
Fratton Park is a football stadium in the English city-port of Portsmouth. It has been the home of professional club Portsmouth F.C. since its construction in 1898.-Description:...
, and became a vital player for Fulham in its debut season in the Premier League, eventually serving as captain under countryman Jean Tigana
Jean Tigana
Jean Amadou Tigana is a manager and former French international footballer, having played in midfield and managed professional football extensively throughout France, including 52 appearances and 1 goal for the France national football team during the 1980s.-Playing career:Tigana started his...
.
His form earned him a new contract during 2003–04, to keep him at the club until the summer of 2006. Despite missing two months due to injury, he made his 100th appearance that season. After the emergence of younger players such as Zat Knight
Zat Knight
Zatyiah "Zat" Knight is an English footballer who plays for Bolton Wanderers in the Premier League. Knight has two caps for England.-Club career:-Fulham:Fulham signed Knight from Rushall Olympic on a free transfer in 1999...
, his importance and role gradually diminished, and Goma left the squad after 2005–06, initially retiring aged 33. However, in 2007, he came out of retirement, joining Qatar
Qatar
Qatar , also known as the State of Qatar or locally Dawlat Qaṭar, is a sovereign Arab state, located in the Middle East, occupying the small Qatar Peninsula on the northeasterly coast of the much larger Arabian Peninsula. Its sole land border is with Saudi Arabia to the south, with the rest of its...
's Al-Wakrah Sports Club, and retiring for good at the end of the season.
International career
After starting representing the French under-21 in 1992, Goma would go on to earn two caps for the senior sideFrance national football team
The France national football team represents the nation of France in international football. It is fielded by the French Football Federation , the governing body of football in France, and competes as a member of UEFA, which encompasses the countries of Europe...
, with the first arriving on 9 October 1996, a 4–0 friendly win with Turkey
Turkey national football team
The Turkey national football team represents Turkey in association football and is controlled by the Turkish Football Federation, the governing body for football in Turkey. They are affiliated with UEFA...
, and the last one two years later.
Honours
- French LeagueLigue 1Ligue 1 , is the French professional league for association football clubs. It is the country's primary football competition and serves as the top division of the French football league system. Ligue 1 is one of two divisions making up the Ligue de Football Professionnel, the other being Ligue 2....
: 1995–96 - French CupCoupe de FranceThe Coupe Charles Simon, commonly known as the Coupe de France , is the premier knockout cup competition in French football organized by the French Football Federation...
: 1993–94, 1995–96 - French SupercupTrophée des championsThe Trophée des champions , is a French association football trophy contested in an annual match between the champions of Ligue 1 and the winners of the Coupe de France. It is equivalent to the Super Cups found in many countries...
: 1998
Club statistics
|-|1990–91||rowspan="8"|Auxerre
AJ Auxerre
Association de la Jeunesse Auxerroise is a French association football club based in the commune of Auxerre in Burgundy. The club was founded in 1905 and currently play in Ligue 1, the top division of French football. Auxerre plays its home matches at the Stade l'Abbé-Deschamps on the banks of the...
||rowspan="8"|French League
Ligue 1
Ligue 1 , is the French professional league for association football clubs. It is the country's primary football competition and serves as the top division of the French football league system. Ligue 1 is one of two divisions making up the Ligue de Football Professionnel, the other being Ligue 2....
||1||0||||||||||||||||
|-
|1991–92||1||0||||||||||||||||
|-
|1992–93||15||1||||||||||||||||
|-
|1993–94||33||0||||||||||||||||
|-
|1994–95||28||0||||||||||||||||
|-
|1995–96||32||0||||||||||||||||
|-
|1996–97||34||2||||||||||||||||
|-
|1997–98||22||1||||||||||||||||
|-
|1998–99||Paris SG||French League
Ligue 1
Ligue 1 , is the French professional league for association football clubs. It is the country's primary football competition and serves as the top division of the French football league system. Ligue 1 is one of two divisions making up the Ligue de Football Professionnel, the other being Ligue 2....
||30||0||||||||||||||||
|-
|1999–00||rowspan="2"|Newcastle
Newcastle United F.C.
Newcastle United Football Club is an English professional association football club based in Newcastle upon Tyne, Tyne and Wear. The club was founded in 1892 by the merger of Newcastle East End and Newcastle West End, and has played at its current home ground, St James' Park, since the merger...
||rowspan="2"|Premier League||14||0||||||||||||||||
|-
|2000–01||19||1||||||||||||||||
|-
|2000–01||rowspan="6"|Fulham
Fulham F.C.
Fulham Football Club is a professional English Premier League club based in southwest London Fulham, in the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham. Founded in 1879, they play in the Premier League, their 11th current season...
||First Division
Football League First Division
The First Division was a division of The Football League between 1888 and 2004 and the highest division in English football until the creation of the Premier League in 1992. The secondary tier in English football has since become known as the Championship....
||3||0||||||||||||||||
|-
|2001–02||rowspan="5"|Premier League||33||0||||||||||||||||
|-
|2002–03||29||0||||||||||||||||
|-
|2003–04||23||0||||||||||||||||
|-
|2004–05||16||0||||||||||||||||
|-
|2005–06||13||0||||||||||||||||
|-
|2007–08||Al-Wakrah||Qatari League||?||?||||||||||||||||
196||4||||||||||||||||
150||1||||||||||||||||
?||?||||||||||||||||
346||5||||||||||||||||