Carlos Mendes Gomes
Bissau-Guinean footballer (born 1998)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Carlos Mendes Gomes (born 14 November 1998) is a professional footballer who last played as a left winger or attacking midfielder for EFL Championship club Bolton Wanderers. Born in Senegal, he plays for the Guinea-Bissau national team.
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Carlos Mendes Gomes[1] | ||
| Date of birth | 14 November 1998 | ||
| Place of birth | Yeumbeul, Senegal | ||
| Height | 1.78 m (5 ft 10 in)[2] | ||
| Positions | |||
| Youth career | |||
| Lanzarote | |||
| Getafe | |||
| Atlético Madrid | |||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2016–2018 | West Didsbury & Chorlton | ||
| 2018–2021 | Morecambe | 74 | (17) |
| 2021–2023 | Luton Town | 9 | (0) |
| 2022–2023 | → Fleetwood Town (loan) | 32 | (7) |
| 2023–2026 | Bolton Wanderers | 28 | (2) |
| 2025–2026 | → Exeter City (loan) | 21 | (1) |
| International career‡ | |||
| 2023– | Guinea-Bissau | 5 | (0) |
|
* Club domestic league appearances and goals as of 17:28, 2 May 2026 (UTC) ‡ National team caps and goals as of 22:15, 19 February 2025 (UTC) | |||
Early life
Born in Yeumbeul, Dakar Region,[3] to a family of Bissau-Guinean and Gambian descent,[4][5] Mendes Gomes and his family moved to Spain when he was a child,[6] after his father Carlos sought work in construction.[7] The family moved to Lanzarote.[6] He is the cousin of the Gambian footballer Jacob Mendy.[8] He was naturalized as a Spanish citizen.[5]
Club career
Early career
After spending 10 years at UD Lanzarote,[5] Mendes Gomes moved on his own to Madrid aged 15, where he began playing for Getafe.[6] A season later he signed for Atlético Madrid's youth teams.[3][6][9]
His family then moved to England, after his father thought it was better for the children's education,[6] with the family relocating to Salford.[7] Mendes Gomes could not speak any English and did not play football for a year.[6] He then began playing for West Didsbury & Chorlton, scoring seven league goals in 50 games in all competitions during his two-season spell.[10]
Morecambe
In May 2018, Mendes Gomes signed for Morecambe alongside Lamin Jagne, after being scouted whilst studying at The Manchester College and playing for their football academy.[11] He made his professional debut on 14 August 2018, replacing Rhys Oates in a 3–1 EFL Cup away loss against Preston North End.[12] He made 19 appearances for the club across the 2018–19 season, with 15 appearances coming in League Two.[12] A one-year contract option was exercised by Morecambe at the end of the 2018–19 season.[13]
Mendes Gomes scored his first goal for Morecambe in a 2–1 defeat at home to Oldham Athletic on 26 December 2019.[14][15] He was offered a new contract at the end of the 2019–20 season.[16]
In April 2021 he was linked with a transfer away from the club following a series of strong performances, which attracted praise from Morecambe manager Derek Adams.[17] In May 2021 he was voted the Supporters' Player Of The Season.[18] On 31 May 2021, he scored a 107th-minute penalty in the League Two play-off final, securing a 1–0 win against Newport County and Morecambe's first ever promotion to the third tier of English football.[19] In June 2021 the club activated an extension to his contract.[20] He was the club's top scorer in the 2020–21 season, with 15 goals.[21]
Luton Town
On 26 June 2021, Mendes Gomes signed for Championship side Luton Town for an undisclosed fee.[22][23] In January 2022 he assisted Luton teammate Dion Pereira secure a loan move to Bradford City, who were managed by Derek Adams, who had managed Mendes Gomes at Morecambe.[21]
He moved on loan to Fleetwood Town in August 2022.[24]
Bolton Wanderers
On 24 July 2023 he signed for Bolton Wanderers for an undisclosed fee.[25] The transfer was reported to be around £300,000 by The Bolton News.[26]
On 1 September 2025 he joined Exeter City on loan.[27] On 26 May 2026, Bolton confirmed that Mendes Gomes would leave at the end of his contract.[28]
International career
Mendes Gomes was born in Senegal and is of Bissau-Guinean and Gambian descent, and raised in Spain. On 3 November 2023, he was called up to the Guinea-Bissau national football team.[29] He debuted with Guinea-Bissau in a 1–0 win over Djibouti on 20 November 2023.[30]
Career statistics
Club
- As of match played 2 May 2026
| Club | Season | League | FA Cup | League Cup | Other | Total | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Morecambe | 2018–19[12] | League Two | 15 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 3[a] | 0 | 19 | 0 |
| 2019–20[31] | League Two | 16 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2[a] | 0 | 18 | 2 | |
| 2020–21[32] | League Two | 43 | 15 | 3 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 5[b] | 1 | 54 | 16 | |
| Total | 74 | 17 | 3 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 10 | 1 | 91 | 18 | ||
| Luton Town | 2021–22[33] | Championship | 9 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 14 | 1 |
| 2022–23[34] | Championship | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | |
| Total | 9 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 15 | 2 | ||
| Fleetwood Town (loan) | 2022–23[34] | League One | 32 | 7 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2[a] | 1 | 37 | 9 |
| Bolton Wanderers | 2023–24[35] | League One | 16 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 3[a] | 2 | 23 | 4 |
| 2024–25[36] | League One | 11 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1[a] | 0 | 12 | 0 | |
| 2025–26[37] | League One | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | |
| Total | 28 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 4 | 2 | 37 | 4 | ||
| Exeter City (loan) | 2025–26[37] | League One | 21 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 22 | 1 |
| Career Total | 164 | 27 | 12 | 2 | 9 | 1 | 17 | 4 | 202 | 34 | ||
- Appearance(s) in the EFL Trophy.
- 2 appearances in the EFL Trophy; 3 appearances and 1 goal in the Play-Offs.
International
- As of match played 22 January 2024[38]
| National team | Year | Apps | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|
| Guinea-Bissau | 2023 | 1 | 0 |
| 2024 | 4 | 0 | |
| Total | 5 | 0 | |
Honours
Morecambe
