Cape Verde 2021-22 Home (RODRIGUES #11) Jersey/Shirt
£34.99
This is a Tempo Cape Verde national team 2021-22 home jersey featuring the name and number of star striker Garry Rodrigues.
Despite having a population of only just over 500,000, Cape Verde have emerged in recent years as a genuine force in African football. Cape Verdeans abroad, who are more numerous than the population of the islands themselves, are a major source of players for the national team, with many of the squad competing in some of Europe’s top leagues. Cape Verde first qualified for the Africa Cup of Nations and 2013 and were one of the surprises of the tournament, advancing to the quarter finals at the expense of Morocco and Angola. They qualified for AFCON again in 2015, however didn’t make it through the group stage this time and did not return to the tournament until the 2021 edition. At AFCON 2021, Cape Verde progressed through the group stages and lost to eventual champions Senegal in the Round of 16.
Garry Rodrigues is one of many Cape Verdean internationals to be playing in a top-tier European league, with the 31-year-old having played his club football with a number of major clubs throughout the continent. Rodrigues was born in the Netherlands to Cape Verdean parents and began his youth career with local club Feyenoord. After failing to make their senior squad, he played for a number of amateur clubs before joining Eredivisie club ADO Den Haag in 2012. After a strong season on loan with Eerste Divisie club Dordrecht, Rodrigues was signed by Bulgarian giants Levski Sofia, where he had a breakout 2013-14 season, scoring 11 goals and having the 2nd most assists in the league. In January 2014, after interest from several clubs, he joined La Liga side Elche CF, where he continued his strong form. Rodrigues then joined Greek Super League club PAOK in in August 2015, with his impressive performances in their Europa League campaign attracting the interest of Turkish powerhouse Galatasaray, who signed him for €3.7m in January 2017. Since then, he has played his Saudi Arabian club Al-Ittihad, Turkish giants Fenerbahçe and is currently with Olympiacos, where he played a key role in their 2021-22 league title victory. Rodrigues has been a key member of the Cape Verde national team since debuting in 2013 and has been one of the leading strikers of their golden generation. He has scored 7 goals in 40 matches for Cape Verde, including the equalizer against hosts Cameroon in a 1-1 draw that secured their progression past the group stage.