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Kaspars Gorkšs
Gorkšs playing for Latvia in 2011
Personal information
Full name Kaspars Gorkšs
Date of birth (1981-11-06) 6 November 1981 (age 43)
Place of birth Riga, Latvia
Height 1.92 m (6 ft 4 in)
Position(s) Defender
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
1997–2002 Auda Rīga 77 (9)
2002–2004 Öster 32 (1)
2005 Assyriska Föreningen 23 (0)
2005–2006 Ventspils 28 (5)
2006–2008 Blackpool 50 (6)
2008–2011 Queens Park Rangers 114 (6)
2011–2014 Reading 81 (7)
2013 → Wolves (loan) 15 (0)
2014–2015 Colchester United 7 (1)
2015 Ergotelis 13 (2)
2015–2016 Dukla Prague 23 (3)
2016–2017 Liepāja 13 (0)
2017 Riga 20 (3)
2018 Auda Rīga 1 (0)
Total 497 (43)
International career
2001–2003 Latvia U21 12 (0)
2005–2017 Latvia 89 (5)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals

Kaspars Gorkšs (born 6 November 1981) is a Latvian former professional footballer who played as a defender.[1] Gorkšs was also the captain of the Latvia national team. From 2018 to 2019 Gorkšs served as president of the Latvian Football Federation.

Gorkšs firstly established himself in his native Latvia before moving to English football in 2006 with Blackpool. He has twice won promotion to the Premier League, with Queens Park Rangers and Reading.

Club career

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Early career

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Born in Riga, Gorkšs began his career at FK Auda, scoring nine goals in 77 appearances. After a week-long trial, he joined Swedish club, Östers IF in December 2002, playing in the Allsvenskan, the Swedish top flight.[2] He moved to Assyriska Föreningen in 2005, who were then in the Allsvenskan.[3] He moved back to Latvia in 2006, signing for FK Ventspils,[4] and he scored five goals for Ventspils in the clubs Championship winning 2006 Virslīga season.[5] He also played for Ventspils in the second qualifying round of the 2006–07 UEFA Cup, against English Premier League club Newcastle United.[6]

Blackpool

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Gorkšs moved to Championship side Blackpool on 1 January 2007 having already agreed the transfer during December.[7] On 20 August 2007, Gorkšs was named in the Press Association's Championship "Team of the Week".[8] Eight days later, Gorkšs scored his first goals for Blackpool in a League Cup second-round tie at Derby County. The Latvian's two goals were both equalisers – one in normal time and one in extra time – in a game that went to a penalty-shootout, won by Blackpool 7–6.[9] On 1 October, Gorkšs was again named in the Press Association's The Championship "Team of the Week".[10]

Gorkšs scored his first league goal for Blackpool, in their 1–0 victory over Scunthorpe United at Bloomfield Road on 10 November 2007.[11][12] On 29 December 2007, he was named as runner-up in the annual Latvian Player of the Year Awards by the Latvian Football Federation behind the winner, Vitālijs Astafjevs of Skonto.[13] He was named in The Championship "Team of the Week" for a third time on 25 February 2008, alongside teammate Stephen McPhee,[14] and again on 10 March.[15] He was named as the Yorkshire Seasiders Player of the Year on 6 May.[16] The following day, Blackpool activated an option to extend his contract with the club by one year.[17]

Following the season, his first full season in English football, in which he had become a regular in the Blackpool side and scored seven goals, Gorkšs was linked with moves to various clubs, including Scottish Premier League club Rangers, as well as fellow Championship clubs Burnley, Crystal Palace, Norwich City, Preston North End and Watford; however, he dismissed the moves as just rumours, stating, "From my point of view it's just a case of carrying on and seeing what happens, that's all I can really do."[18] On 29 May, both he and fellow Blackpool player Wes Hoolahan were linked with a move to Norwich City.[19]

Queens Park Rangers

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Gorkšs playing for Queens Park Rangers in 2011

On 12 June 2008, Queens Park Rangers confirmed that they had made an official bid to sign Gorkšs.[20] However, on 17 June, Blackpool issued a brief statement, stating that they had reported QPR to the Football Association, and the Football League, for what they claimed was an illegal approach for Gorkšs.[21] Blackpool manager Simon Grayson stated, "we've got to protect the interests of our club and we're led to believe there's been an illegal approach."[22] On 18 June, the Football League, who would be adjudicating on the matter, confirmed that they could block the move, if QPR were found to have "tapped up the player",[23] and that the matter could be referred to a disciplinary commission.[24]

On 4 July, it was incorrectly reported in the Latvian media that Gorkšs had signed a contract with QPR.[25] QPR announced on their official website that they had been given permission to speak with the player, and that he had agreed personal terms. However, this was strongly denied by Blackpool, whose club chairman, Karl Oyston stated, "We definitely have not given them permission to speak to him. I'm disappointed once again with the way they've gone about their business."[26] The statement on the QPR official website was later removed.

On 28 July, Gorkšs completed his move to Loftus Road for a fee of £250,000, with Daniel Nardiello (permanent) and Zesh Rehman (loan) going the other way as part of the deal.[27] He scored his first goal on 7 November 2009 in their 2–1 away win against Sheffield Wednesday.[28]

In September 2010, he signed a two-year extension with the club.[29]

Reading

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On 24 August 2011, Gorkšs signed for Reading on a three-year contract.[30] In his first season with the club he made 42 appearances in all competitions,[31] scoring three goals and helping Reading win the 2011–12 Football League Championship. This was the second time he had won the trophy having won it the previous year with QPR. He scored his first goal in the Premier League on 4 November 2012 in a 1–1 draw against his former side QPR.[32]

On 12 February 2013, Gorkšs joined Championship club Wolverhampton Wanderers on an emergency loan that ran until the end of the season, with a view to a permanent move at its conclusion.[33] He made fifteen appearances for the club as they suffered relegation to League One.

Gorkšs was released by Reading at the end of the 2013–14 season having played 87 games for the club, scoring eight times.[34]

Colchester United

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Gorkšs signed a short-term contract with League One club Colchester United during the first week of December 2014, and went straight in to their first-team squad to face Peterborough United in the second round of the FA Cup on 7 December.[35][36] He made an important block from an Aaron McLean attempt in the fixture, playing the full 90 minutes as the U's came out 1–0 victors and into the third round of the cup.[37] Gorkšs signed an extension to his short-term deal with the U's on 10 January, following doubt that he would remain with the club following his previous contracts expiry.[38]

Gorkšs scored his first goal for Colchester on 24 January in a crunch relegation battle game against Leyton Orient at the Colchester Community Stadium. He headed the ball home from a David Fox corner two minutes after the interval in the 2–0 victory.[39]

Ergotelis

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On 29 January 2015, Gorkšs signed an 18-month contract with the Superleague Greece club Ergotelis.[40] Gorkšs scored his first goal for Ergotelis in his second match for the club, securing a 3–2 victory in the Cretan derby over OFI Crete.[41]

Dukla

[edit]

Gorkšs joined Czech First League side FK Dukla Prague in September 2015, signing a one-year contract.[42]

International career

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Gorkšs has played for the Latvian Under-21 team[2] and he made his debut for Latvia on 24 December 2005 against Thailand in the 36th annual King's Cup in Phang Nga, Thailand.[43] On 11 October 2006, in a Euro 2008 qualifier against Northern Ireland, Gorkšs started the second half in place of Māris Smirnovs.[44] In February 2007 he played for Latvia in the annual Cyprus International Football Tournament. On 6 February, he played the full 90 minutes of Latvia's 2–0 defeat by Bulgaria in the semi-finals of the tournament. And the following day he played in the third place play-off match against Hungary which they also lost 2–0.[45][46] On 28 March 2007, Gorkšs played for Latvia in their 2008 UEFA European Football Championship qualifier 1–0 defeat by Liechtenstein.[47] On 22 August 2007, Gorkšs played for Latvia in their friendly 2–1 defeat in Riga by Moldova.[48] He scored his first goal for Latvia on 17 October 2007, against Denmark.[49]

Gorkšs announced his retirement from the Latvia national football team on 31 October 2017.[50]

Personal life

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Gorkšs has two children.[12] His first child, a daughter Luīze, was born in 2005 and his second child, a son, Patriks, was born in Riga on 16 October 2007.[12][49] His two brothers, Jorens Gorkšs and Rihards Gorkšs, both play for his former club FK Auda, whilst his father, Juris Gorkšs, is the club's chairman. In July 2012 Gorkšs opened a restaurant Koya, located in the Andrejsala district, Riga, Latvia.[51]

Career statistics

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Club

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Appearances and goals by club, season and competition[52][53][54][55]
Club Season League Cup League Cup Continental Total
Division Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals
FK Auda 1997 Latvian Second League ? ? ? ? — — ? ?
1998 Latvian First League ? ? ? ? — — ? ?
1999 21 4 ? ? — — 21 4
2000 28 5 ? ? — — 28 5
2001 0 0 ? ? — — 0 0
2002 Latvian Higher League 28 0 ? ? — — 28 0
Total 77 9 ? ? — — 77 9
Öster 2003 Allsvenskan 8 0 ? ? — — 8 0
2004 Superettan 24 1 ? ? — 4[a] 0 28 1
Total 32 1 ? ? — 4 0 36 1
Assyriska Föreningen 2005 Allsvenskan 23 0 ? ? — — 23 0
FK Ventspils 2005 Latvian Higher League 28 5 ? ? — 2[a] 0 30 5
Blackpool 2006–07 League One 10 0 3 0 0 0 0 0 13 0
2007–08 Championship 40 6 0 0 4 2 — 44 8
Total 50 6 3 0 4 2 0 0 57 8
Queens Park Rangers 2008–09 Championship 31 0 2 0 2 0 — 35 0
2009–10 41 3 2 0 3 0 — 46 3
2010–11 42 3 1 0 0 0 — 43 3
Total 114 6 5 0 5 0 — 124 6
Reading 2011–12 Championship 42 3 1 0 0 0 — 43 3
2012–13 Premier League 14 1 0 0 3 1 — 17 2
2013–14 Championship 25 3 1 0 1 0 — 27 3
Total 81 7 2 0 4 1 — 87 8
Wolves (loan) 2012–13 Championship 15 0 0 0 0 0 — 15 0
Colchester United 2013–14 League One 7 1 2 0 0 0 — 9 1
Ergotelis 2014–15 Greek Super League 13 2 0 0 0 0 — 13 2
Dukla Prague 2015–16 Czech First League 23 3 1 0 — — 24 3
Liepāja 2016 Latvian Higher League 13 0 0 0 — 2[b] 0 15 0
Riga 2017 Latvian Higher League 20 3 7 1 — — 27 4
FK Auda 2018 Latvian First League 1 0 ? ? — — 1 0
Career total 497 43 20 1 13 3 8 0 538 47
  1. ^ a b Appearances in the UEFA Cup
  2. ^ Appearances in the UEFA Champions League qualification

International

[edit]
Appearances and goals by national team and year[52]
National team Year Apps Goals
Latvia 2005 1 0
2006 2 0
2007 10 1
2008 8 0
2009 7 1
2010 6 1
2011 6 1
2012 6 1
2013 10 0
2014 8 0
2015 7 0
2016 8 0
2017 7 0
Total 86 5
Scores and results list Latvia's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Gorkšs goal.[52]
List of international goals scored by Kaspars Gorkšs
No. Date Venue Opponent Score Result Competition
1 17 October 2007 Parken Stadium, Copenhagen, Denmark  Denmark 1–2 1–3 UEFA Euro 2008 qualification
2 9 September 2009 Ramat Gan Stadium, Ramat Gan, Israel  Israel 1–0 1–0 2010 FIFA World Cup qualification
3 7 September 2010 Ta' Qali National Stadium, Ta' Qali, Malta  Malta 1–0 2–0 UEFA Euro 2012 qualification
4 26 March 2011 Bloomfield Stadium, Tel Aviv, Israel  Israel 1–1 1–2 UEFA Euro 2012 qualification
5 11 September 2012 Bilino Polje Stadium, Zenica, Bosnia and Herzegovina  Bosnia and Herzegovina 1–0 1–4 2014 FIFA World Cup qualification

Honours

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Ventspils

Blackpool

Queens Park Rangers

Reading

Individual

References

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  1. ^ Kaspars Gorkšs paziņo par atvadām no valstsvienības‚ sportacentrs.com, 30 October 2017
  2. ^ a b "Gorkšs lands Sweden switch". UEFA. 28 October 2003.
  3. ^ "Kaspars Gorkss går till Assyriska". Smp.se (in Swedish). 7 January 2005. Archived from the original on 22 February 2014. Retrieved 24 April 2012.
  4. ^ "Lights, cameras, Latvian action". UEFA. 7 April 2006. Archived from the original on 1 January 2007.
  5. ^ "Latvia 2006". Rec.Sport.Soccer Statistics Foundation. 21 March 2007.
  6. ^ "FK Ventspils 0–1 Newcastle". BBC Sport. 10 August 2006.
  7. ^ "Gorkss agrees to join Blackpool". BBC Sport. 12 December 2006.
  8. ^ a b "Coca-Cola Championship Team of the Week" (PDF). The Football League. 20 August 2007. Archived from the original (PDF) on 29 May 2008.
  9. ^ "Derby 2–2 Blackpool (Blackpool win 7–6 on penalties)". BBC Sport. 27 August 2007.
  10. ^ a b "Coca-Cola Championship Team of the Week" (PDF). The Football League. 1 October 2007. Archived from the original (PDF) on 29 February 2008. Retrieved 2 October 2007.
  11. ^ "Blackpool 1–0 Scunthorpe". BBC Sport. 10 November 2007. Retrieved 11 November 2007.
  12. ^ a b c "Emotional reunion for goal-hero Gorkss". Blackpool Gazette. 12 November 2007. Archived from the original on 28 December 2007. Retrieved 13 November 2007.
  13. ^ "Astafjevs named Latvia's number one". UEFA. 29 December 2007. Retrieved 8 February 2008.
  14. ^ a b "Coca-Cola Championship Team of the Week" (PDF). The Football League. 25 February 2008. Retrieved 1 March 2008.[permanent dead link]
  15. ^ a b "Coca-Cola Championship Team of the Week" (PDF). The Football League. 10 March 2008. Retrieved 11 March 2008.[permanent dead link]
  16. ^ "Pool Player of Year revealed". Blackpool Gazette. 7 May 2008. Archived from the original on 10 May 2008. Retrieved 7 May 2008.
  17. ^ "Retained List Latest". Blackpool F.C. 7 May 2008. Archived from the original on 25 July 2008. Retrieved 7 May 2008.
  18. ^ Canavan, Steve (15 May 2008). "Just talk says Gorkss". Blackpool Gazette. Archived from the original on 18 May 2008. Retrieved 15 May 2008.
  19. ^ Canavan, Steve (29 May 2008). "Canaries eyeing up Seasiders stars". Blackpool Gazette. Archived from the original on 30 May 2008. Retrieved 30 May 2008.
  20. ^ "Londoners bid for Pool star". Blackpool Gazette. 12 June 2008. Archived from the original on 14 January 2013. Retrieved 12 June 2008.
  21. ^ "Club Statement". Blackpool F.C. 17 June 2008. Archived from the original on 23 October 2008. Retrieved 18 June 2008.
  22. ^ "FA to handle QPR Gorkss approach". BBC Sport. 17 June 2008. Retrieved 18 June 2008.
  23. ^ "League may block Gorkss move". Blackpool Gazette. 18 June 2008. Retrieved 18 June 2008.
  24. ^ "League wait on QPR response – Blackpool's Gorkss claim to be investigated". Sky Sports. 18 June 2008. Retrieved 23 June 2008.
  25. ^ "Gorkšs arranges a deal with "QPR"" (in Latvian). eSports. 4 July 2008. Retrieved 4 July 2008.
  26. ^ "Oyston denies Gorkss QPR approach". BBC Sport. 4 July 2008. Retrieved 9 July 2008.
  27. ^ "Blackpool seal deals for QPR pair" – BBC Sport
  28. ^ "Sheff Wed 1–2 QPR". BBC Sport. British Broadcasting Corporation. 7 November 2009. Retrieved 24 April 2012.
  29. ^ "Gorkss extends Rangers deal". Skysports.com. 10 September 2010. Retrieved 24 April 2012.
  30. ^ "Royals sign Kaspars Gorkss from QPR". readingfc.co.uk. 24 August 2011. Archived from the original on 5 August 2012. Retrieved 24 August 2011.
  31. ^ 2011–12 Reading F.C. season
  32. ^ "Struggling QPR and Reading are still searching for their first Premier League win of the season after playing out a disjointed draw at Loftus Road". bbc.co.uk. 4 November 2012. Retrieved 11 February 2013.
  33. ^ "Wolves: Reading defender Kaspars Gorkss signs on loan". BBC Sport. 12 February 2013.
  34. ^ "Jobi, Mikele & Kaspars to move on". Reading FC. Retrieved 6 May 2014.
  35. ^ Waldron, Jonathan (7 December 2014). "U's sign experienced defender Gorkss". Daily Gazette. Colchester. Retrieved 7 December 2014.
  36. ^ "U's Flash: Gorkss Signs". Colchester United F.C. 7 December 2014. Retrieved 15 January 2015.
  37. ^ "Colchester 1–0 Peterborough". BBC Sport. 7 December 2014. Retrieved 7 December 2014.
  38. ^ Marston, Carl (10 January 2015). "Kaspars Gorkss signs a new short term deal at Colchester United". Green'Un. Ipswich. Retrieved 10 January 2015.
  39. ^ "Colchester 2–0 Leyton Orient". BBC Sport. 24 January 2015. Retrieved 24 January 2015.
  40. ^ "Στον Εργοτέλη ο Kaspars Gorkss" (in Greek). Ergotelis FC. 29 January 2015. Retrieved 24 January 2015.
  41. ^ "Latvijas izlases kapteinim Gorkšam uzvaras vārti Krētas derbijā" (in Latvian). sportacentrs.com. 7 February 2015. Retrieved 8 February 2015.
  42. ^ "Lotyše proti Česku vedl jako kapitán. Teď stoper Gorkšs posílil Duklu". iDNES.cz (in Czech). 21 September 2015. Retrieved 22 September 2015.
  43. ^ "2005. gads" (in Latvian). Latvian Football Federation. Retrieved 21 June 2008.
  44. ^ McCaig, Alvin (11 October 2006). "Northern Ireland 1–0 Latvia". BBC Sport. Retrieved 27 August 2007.
  45. ^ "Cyprus International Tournament 2007". Rec.Sport.Soccer Statistics Foundation. Retrieved 20 August 2007.
  46. ^ "Cyprus International Football Tournament 2007 – Cyprus". Futbol Planet. 2007. Retrieved 20 August 2007.
  47. ^ "Liechtenstein beats Latvia 1–0". Fox Sports. 29 March 2007. Archived from the original on 30 September 2007. Retrieved 27 August 2007.
  48. ^ "Latvia – Latest Match – Wed, August 22, 2007". ESPN. 22 August 2007. Archived from the original on 20 March 2003. Retrieved 27 August 2007.
  49. ^ a b "Kaspars celebrates". Blackpool F.C. 18 October 2007. Retrieved 18 October 2007.[permanent dead link]
  50. ^ "Latvian soccer captain Gorkšs hangs up his international boots". Public Broadcasting of Latvia. LETA. 31 October 2017. Retrieved 1 November 2017.
  51. ^ "Futbolista Kaspara Gorkša restorāna "Koya" atklāšanas vērienīgā ballīte. FOTO". kasjauns.lv. 18 July 2012. Retrieved 8 February 2015.
  52. ^ a b c "Kaspars Gorkšs". National Football Teams. Retrieved 12 January 2014.
  53. ^ "Kaspars Gorkšs". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 12 January 2014.
  54. ^ Kaspars Gorkšs at Soccerway
  55. ^ "Kaspars Gorkšs". UEFA. Retrieved 12 January 2014.
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