Paulo Wanchope facts for kids
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Wanchope in 2015
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| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Pablo César Wanchope Watson | ||
| Date of birth | 31 July 1976 | ||
| Place of birth | Heredia, Costa Rica | ||
| Height | 1.89 m (6 ft 2 in) | ||
| Position(s) | Striker | ||
| Team information | |||
|
Current team
|
Deportivo Saprissa (manager) | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 1993–1997 | Herediano | 14 | (20) |
| 1997–1999 | Derby County | 72 | (23) |
| 1999–2000 | West Ham United | 35 | (12) |
| 2000–2004 | Manchester City | 64 | (27) |
| 2004–2005 | Málaga | 25 | (6) |
| 2005 | Al-Gharafa | 6 | (1) |
| 2006 | Herediano | 10 | (3) |
| 2006 | Rosario Central | 14 | (5) |
| 2007 | FC Tokyo | 11 | (3) |
| 2007 | Chicago Fire | 12 | (2) |
| Total | 264 | (102) | |
| International career | |||
| Costa Rica U20 | |||
| 1996–2008 | Costa Rica | 73 | (45) |
| Managerial career | |||
| 2008–2009 | Herediano | ||
| 2010–2011 | Uruguay Coronado | ||
| 2010–2014 | Costa Rica (assistant) | ||
| 2014–2015 | Costa Rica | ||
| 2018 | Cartaginés | ||
| 2018 | Herediano | ||
| 2021 | Pérez Zeledón | ||
| 2022–2023 | Cartaginés | ||
| 2024–2025 | Costa Rica (assistant) | ||
| 2025– | Deportivo Saprissa | ||
| *Club domestic league appearances and goals | |||
Paulo César Wanchope Watson (born on July 31, 1976), known as Paulo Wanchope, is a famous Costa Rican football coach. He used to be a professional footballer, playing as a striker. Currently, he is the manager of Deportivo Saprissa.
As a player, Paulo Wanchope was well-known for playing in the Premier League for teams like Derby County, West Ham United, and Manchester City. He also played in other leagues, including La Liga in Spain and Major League Soccer in the USA. He played for his home country, Costa Rica, 73 times and scored 45 goals. This makes him the second-highest goal scorer for Costa Rica's national team. He shares the record for most World Cup goals for Costa Rica with Rónald Gómez.
After his playing career, Wanchope became a coach. He was the head coach for the Costa Rica national football team from 2014 to 2015. He has also managed several club teams in Costa Rica.
Contents
Paulo Wanchope's Club Career
Playing for Derby County
Paulo Wanchope started his football journey with CS Herediano in his hometown of Heredia. In March 1997, he moved to England to play for Derby County. He cost the club £600,000.
Wanchope made an amazing debut for Derby County on April 5, 1997. He scored a memorable goal against Manchester United at Old Trafford. He dribbled past four United players before scoring past their goalkeeper, Peter Schmeichel. Derby won that game 3-2. Fans later voted this goal as the best in the club's history.
He scored 13 league goals in the 1997–98 season, helping Derby finish ninth. The next season, he scored nine goals, and Derby finished eighth. After scoring 28 goals in 83 games for Derby, he moved to West Ham United in July 1999 for £3.5 million.
Time at West Ham United
Wanchope played his first game for West Ham on July 28, 1999. He scored his first goal for them in August 1999. He played 47 games for West Ham and scored 15 goals. During his year there, he formed a strong partnership with Paolo Di Canio. Together, they scored 31 league goals in the 1999–2000 season. West Ham finished ninth in the Premier League that year.
He was then sold to Manchester City for £3.65 million in 2000.
Playing for Manchester City
On August 23, 2000, Paulo Wanchope scored three goals in one game (a hat-trick) against Sunderland, helping Manchester City win 4-2. He became a regular starter for Manchester City. However, the team was relegated to a lower division at the end of the 2000–01 season, even though Wanchope scored nine league goals.
The next season was tough for Wanchope due to injuries. Still, he managed to score 12 goals in just 15 games. Manchester City returned to the top league as champions. But Wanchope missed almost all of the 2002–03 season because of injuries.
He returned to play an important part at the end of the 2003–04 season. He scored key goals that helped Manchester City avoid being relegated again. This included the winning goal against Newcastle United. He scored six goals in 22 league games that season.
After the Premier League
In August 2004, Wanchope moved to Málaga CF in Spain for £500,000. He played 25 games for them and scored six goals. In 2005, his goal against Numancia was named the best in the Spanish First Division.
After the 2006 World Cup, he played briefly for Al-Gharafa in Qatar and Herediano in Costa Rica. Then, he signed with Argentine club Rosario Central, scoring five goals in 14 games. In December 2006, he joined J1 League club FC Tokyo in Japan. He later signed a one-year deal with MLS team Chicago Fire in the USA.
Retiring from Football
On November 16, 2007, Paulo Wanchope decided to end his 13-year playing career. His old knee injury was affecting his performance, making it hard for him to be in his best physical shape. This injury had caused him to miss many games while at Manchester City. At his retirement press conference, he shared his dream of becoming a professional coach, especially in England.
Paulo Wanchope's International Career
Paulo Wanchope played for Costa Rica's youth national teams. He took part in the 1995 FIFA World Youth Championship in Qatar.
He became a very important player for the senior Costa Rica national team. He first played for them in October 1996 against Venezuela. He also played in the 2002 FIFA World Cup and several Gold Cups. On October 8, 2005, Wanchope became Costa Rica's all-time leading goal scorer. He scored the first goal in a home win against the USA. This win helped Costa Rica qualify for the 2006 FIFA World Cup. Wanchope scored more than twenty goals in World Cup qualifying matches.
On June 9, 2006, he scored two goals in the opening game of the 2006 World Cup against Germany. Costa Rica lost that game 4-2. These two goals made Wanchope the first Costa Rican to score twice in one World Cup match. He also joined Rónald Gómez as the only Costa Ricans to score more than one World Cup goal. After losing to Germany, Costa Rica also lost to Ecuador and Poland. Costa Rica finished last in their group and did not move on to the next round. Wanchope played his last game for Costa Rica in January 2008 against Sweden.
Paulo Wanchope's Managerial Career
Paulo Wanchope managed Club Sport Herediano from 2008 to 2009. He resigned because he felt the team's performance was not good enough. He also wanted to study more in England.
Later, Wanchope became an assistant coach for the Costa Rica national team under Jorge Luis Pinto. After Pinto left following the 2014 FIFA World Cup, Wanchope became the interim national team coach.
In September 2014, he led the Costa Rica national football team to win the Copa Centroamericana. On January 31, 2015, he was officially named the national team coach.
On August 12, 2015, Wanchope resigned as manager of Costa Rica's national team after an incident following a match.
Paulo Wanchope's Personal Life
Paulo Wanchope's father, Vicente Wanchope, was also a former international striker for Costa Rica. Both of Paulo's brothers, Javier and Carlos, also played for the national team. Paulo is married to Brenda Carballo, and they have a son and a daughter. His family has roots in Jamaica.
Career Statistics
Club
| Club | Season | League | National cup | League cup | Continental | Total | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Derby County | 1996–97 | Premier League | 5 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 5 | 1 | |
| 1997–98 | 32 | 13 | 2 | 0 | 4 | 4 | — | 38 | 17 | |||
| 1998–99 | 35 | 9 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 1 | — | 40 | 10 | |||
| Total | 72 | 23 | 4 | 0 | 7 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 83 | 28 | ||
| West Ham United | 1999–2000 | Premier League | 35 | 12 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 8 | 3 | 47 | 15 |
| Manchester City | 2000–01 | Premier League | 27 | 9 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 1 | — | 31 | 10 | |
| 2001–02 | First Division | 15 | 12 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | — | 18 | 13 | ||
| 2002–03 | Premier League | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 | 0 | ||
| 2003–04 | 22 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 26 | 6 | ||
| Total | 64 | 27 | 3 | 1 | 4 | 1 | 4 | 0 | 75 | 29 | ||
| Málaga | 2004–05 | La Liga | 25 | 6 | 0 | 0 | — | — | 25 | 6 | ||
| Al-Gharafa | 2005–06 | Qatar Stars League | 6 | 1 | — | 6 | 1 | |||||
| Herediano | 2005–06 | Liga FPD | 10 | 3 | — | — | — | 10 | 3 | |||
| Rosario Central | 2006–07 | Primera División | 14 | 5 | — | — | 14 | 5 | ||||
| FC Tokyo | 2007 | J1 League | 12 | 2 | — | 4 | 1 | — | 16 | 3 | ||
| Chicago Fire | 2007 | Major League Soccer | 12 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | 13 | 2 | |
| Career total | 250 | 81 | 8 | 1 | 19 | 7 | 12 | 3 | 289 | 92 | ||
International
| National team | Year | Apps | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|
| Costa Rica | 1996 | 7 | 3 |
| 1997 | 7 | 6 | |
| 1998 | 2 | 4 | |
| 1999 | 5 | 2 | |
| 2000 | 12 | 7 | |
| 2001 | 11 | 10 | |
| 2002 | 7 | 3 | |
| 2003 | 1 | 0 | |
| 2004 | 6 | 5 | |
| 2005 | 9 | 3 | |
| 2006 | 5 | 2 | |
| 2007 | 0 | 0 | |
| 2008 | 1 | 0 | |
| Total | 73 | 45 | |
Managerial
| Team | Nat | From | To | Record | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| G | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Win % | ||||
| Herediano |  |
1 April 2008 | 10 March 2009 | 44 | 19 | 13 | 12 | 60 | 47 | +13 | 43.18 |
| Costa Rica | |
25 July 2014 | 12 August 2015 | 15 | 4 | 7 | 4 | 24 | 21 | +3 | 26.67 |
| C.S. Cartaginés | |
1 July 2018 | 14 September 2018 | 10 | 1 | 6 | 3 | 11 | 13 | −2 | 10.00 |
| Herediano | |
14 September 2018 | 21 October 2018 | 10 | 4 | 1 | 5 | 10 | 12 | −2 | 40.00 |
| Pérez Zeledón | |
2 February 2021 | 18 August 2021 | 23 | 5 | 12 | 6 | 22 | 30 | −8 | 21.74 |
| C.S. Cartaginés | |
26 October 2022 | 6 October 2023 | 43 | 22 | 8 | 13 | 74 | 60 | +14 | 51.16 |
| Total | 145 | 55 | 47 | 43 | 201 | 183 | +18 | 37.93 | |||
Honours and Awards
As a Player
- West Ham United
- UEFA Intertoto Cup: 1999
- Manchester City
- Football League First Division: 2001–02
- Costa Rica National Team
- UNCAF Nations Cup: 1999
- Individual Awards
- Premier League Player of the Month: October 1997
- CONCACAF Gold Cup Best XI: 1998
As a Manager
- Costa Rica National Team
- Copa Centroamericana: 2014
- Cartaginés
- Costa Rican Cup: 2022
See also
In Spanish: Paulo Wanchope para niños
