Ryan Stewart Gauld was born on 16 December 1995 and is a Scottish professional footballer who plays as an attacking midfielder for Major League Soccer club Vancouver Whitecaps FC.
25 Facts About Ryan Gauld
1.
2.
Ryan Gauld began his professional career at Dundee United, where he helped them reach the 2014 Scottish Cup Final, and his abilities on the ball earned comparisons to Lionel Messi from the Scottish media.
3.
In July 2019, Ryan Gauld moved to Farense on a permanent basis.
4.
Ryan Gauld was called up to the senior squad for the first time in September 2014.
5.
Ryan Gauld grew up in Laurencekirk, Aberdeenshire, where he attended Laurencekirk Primary before becoming a pupil at Mearns Academy.
6.
In 2002, Ryan Gauld began to play for Brechin City Boys Club, where he was part of a successful team alongside John Souttar and Euan Spark.
7.
Ryan Gauld can go past people as if they're not there.
8.
On 24 January 2013, Ryan Gauld signed an extended contract keeping him at the club until January 2016.
9.
On 15 December 2013, the Daily Record reported that Manchester United's Scottish manager David Moyes wanted to personally "scout" Ryan Gauld, and take the opportunity to run the rule over the potential of other young Dundee United players such as defenders John Souttar and Andrew Robertson.
10.
However, the following day, his 18th birthday, Ryan Gauld's contract was further extended until May 2017.
11.
Ryan Gauld made the run into the penalty area from which Stuart Armstrong scored the opening goal, and assisted the second from Gary Mackay-Steven.
12.
Ryan Gauld's season ended with eight goals in 38 games across all competitions, of which six were scored in his 31 league matches.
13.
Ryan Gauld credited Sporting's track record of developing players such as Luis Figo, Cristiano Ronaldo and Nani for his decision to join them.
14.
On 20 July 2016, amidst interest from England's Sheffield Wednesday, Ryan Gauld was loaned to Portuguese top-flight team Vitoria de Setubal for the upcoming season, alongside his teammate Andre Geraldes.
15.
Ryan Gauld made his league debut three days later, coming on as a late substitute for Nene Bonilha in a scoreless draw at home to FC Porto, his first game in Primeira Liga for 20 months.
16.
On 5 January 2017, it was reported that Ryan Gauld had been recalled from loan to train with Sporting CP B, due to Sporting CP being eliminated from the Taca da Liga by Vitoria in controversial circumstances.
17.
On 31 August 2018, Ryan Gauld joined LigaPro side Farense on a season-long loan.
18.
Ryan Gauld suffered a hamstring injury and consequently only collected 371 minutes of game time from six first team games in his half season loan at Hibernian.
19.
Ryan Gauld finished the season as the team's top scorer and was voted as the top player in the Portuguese second tier.
20.
On 31 July 2021, Ryan Gauld signed with Major League Soccer side Vancouver Whitecaps FC on a three-and-a-half-year deal.
21.
Ryan Gauld scored his first goal for the Whitecaps on 21 August 2021 against Los Angeles FC, an 89th-minute winner.
22.
Ryan Gauld was capped 10 times for Scotland at under-19 level, scoring two goals.
23.
Ryan Gauld scored two goals in 11 appearances for the under-21 team.
24.
On 30 September 2014, Ryan Gauld was called up to the senior Scotland national football team for Euro 2016 Group D qualifying matches against Georgia and Poland, but did not play.
25.
Ryan Gauld himself has spoken of his preference for Portuguese football over its Scottish equivalent, and expressed relief at the lower media interest in him at Sporting, opining that comparisons with Messi were exaggerated and premature.