title: Gaúcho (footballer, born 1972)
text: # Gaúcho (footballer, born 1972)
  
  Eric Freire Gomes (born 22 September 1972), known as Gaúcho, is a Brazilian retired footballer who played as a striker.
  
  He amassed Primeira Liga totals of 278 matches and 103 goals during ten seasons, mainly at the service of Estrela da Amadora.
  
  ## Football career
  
  Born in Barreiros, Pernambuco, Gaúcho spent most of his career as a prolific goalscorer in Portugal, mainly with C.F. Estrela da Amadora for whom he played in five Primeira Liga seasons. In 1999–2000, his 21 league goals – third-best in the competition – propelled the Lisbon outskirts team to a final eighth place.
  
  Gaúcho, who represented five other clubs in the country, also had brief spells in South Korea and Spain. In the 1998–99 campaign, loaned by Estrela, he only scored twice as CD Ourense suffered second level relegation; he played almost until his 40s, retiring after a stint in amateur football in his country.
  
  