João Gabriel hails first senior goal, rallies fans for Botafogo/SP | OneFootball

Photo: Igor de Castro/Ceará SC

One of Ceará’s breakout players in 2026, midfielder João Gabriel has been establishing himself as one of the club’s main names in its 2026 Brazilian Serie B campaign. This Monday, the No. 81 scored Ceará’s goal in a 1-1 draw against Criciúma away from home. At the end of the match, the 20-year-old celebrated his first professional goal, praised the commitment of the entire group in today’s match, and called on the Alvinegra Nation for next Saturday’s clash, the 20th, against Botafogo/SP.

João Gabriel did not hide his happiness at fulfilling the dream of scoring his first professional goal, giving a positive assessment of the point earned in Santa Catarina and highlighting how important the Time do Povo supporters will be for continuing the unbeaten run next Saturday.

“First of all, I want to thank God. I’m very happy about my first professional goal. I have to praise the work of the whole team. Criciúma is a team fighting near the top of the table, it’s very difficult to play here, and we leave with a very important point. I want to call on our fans for our next home match because they make all the difference and will help us in the search for the three points,” he said.

João Gabriel has already made 15 official appearances in 2026. Signed in 2025 to strengthen the Under-20 squad, the player won the Copa do Nordeste in that category last season and was promoted to the first team at the beginning of this year. Recently, the player had his contract extended, signing with Vozão until the end of 2028.

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇧🇷 here.