Igor Gomes is one of the latest players from the Brazilian Serie A to be linked with a move to Europe. The 23-year-old plays for Sao Paulo in the Brazilian top flight and has reportedly come to the attention of West Ham, Nottingham Forest, and Liga Portugal club Sporting CP. A product of the Sao Paulo youth system, fans compared him to the iconic Kaka after making his professional debut in 2018. Since then, Igor Gomes has made 130 league appearances for Sao Paulo, scoring seven goals. Let’s now look at some stats that have brought Igor Gomes to the attention of several European teams.
Igor Gomes played 33 matches for Sao Paulo in the Brazilian Serie A in 2022. Averaging 63 minutes per game, he started in 22 games and came on as a sub in the rest. The above viz shows the player’s stats in comparison to the other players featured as right-centre midfielders. We can observe that Igor Gomes has a high rank in indicators like penalty area touches, expected goal contribution, dangerous passes, and dribbles. Meanwhile, he holds above-average stats in progressive passing, accurate passing, and aerial duels competitions.
Creative passing and playmaking capability
In the 33 league appearances he made, Igor Gomes contributed six assists for Sao Paulo. It is the joint-highest number of assists by a Sao Paulo player in the Brazilian top tier. The benchmarking graphic above shows the comparison of right-centre midfielders in terms of expected assists (xA). With an xA per 90 value of 0.15, Igor Gomes possesses a high ranking against other players concerning the metric.
A right-footed player, Gomes offers his contribution in the final and the middle third from the right side of the field. As shown in the heat map, the player performs more intense actions on the right flank and in some central areas. He averages a total of 52 touches per match, with 27 touches in the middle third, 19 in the final third, and around 2.3 in the opposition’s penalty area per match. 
Although primarily an attacking midfielder, Igor Gomes drops into his own half to set up attacking plays. He possesses a range of passing options and can also drive the ball forward into dangerous areas. The pass map viz above highlights the player’s role in controlling and setting the tempo of the game from the right midfield position. Igor Gomes completes 37 passes and 6.6 progressive passes on average per game. Additionally, he makes around 2 key passes and 2.6 passes into the opposition’s penalty area per match.
Igor Gomes, who possesses the characteristics of a playmaker, has far more technical attributes to his game than passing and creativity. He likes to contribute with crosses and dribbles from wide right positions in the attacking third. This season, the midfielder clocked 1.9 dribbles and 2.8 crosses per 90 minutes. Furthermore, Gomes can exploit spaces between opposing lines, which is highlighted by the 70 penetrating carries he has made into the penalty area.
Who could be Igor Gomes’ role at Sporting?
Sporting CP is currently fourth in the Liga Portugal table and will want to improve on their position to challenge Benfica for the title. They have shown some inconsistencies this season but will want to make it a successful campaign by winning silverware and qualifying for the UEFA Champions League. Therefore, Sporting could be willing to bring in reinforcements for additional depth in their squad.
The addition of Igor Gomes could bring more spark to Sporting’s midfield. He could replace or provide cover for midfielder Sotiris Alexandropoulos. The viz above compares the performance of the two players in their respective leagues. It can be observed that Gomes has the upper hand in some stats over his counterpart, namely goal contributions, dangerous passes, aerial duels, and penalty area touches. Interestingly, the Brazilian midfielder will have plenty of time to evolve into his true potential at a decorated club like Sporting.
Igor Gomes could move to a European club from the Brazilian top flight. He is a technically sound player with creative passing and playmaking capabilities. The 23-year-old could evolve into a regular member of the Sporting CP team and a prospect if the club decides to sign him.
Visuals via TFA data viz engine
