Gustavo Bou

Gustavo Leonardo Bou ( , ; born 18 February 1990) is a former Argentine professional footballer who played as a forward.

Bou's professional career began in 2008 at the age of 18 with River Plate, under coach Diego Simeone. During his career he has played in Argentina, Ecuador, Mexico and the United States.

While playing in Argentina, Bou was on the team that won the 2007–08 Toreno Clasura tournament, the 2011–12 Primera B Nacional with River Plate, the 2014 Torneo Transición and 2018–19 Primera División with Racing Club de Avellaneda. He was the top goal scorer in the 2015 Copa Libertadores with eight goals.

Bou is often referred to by his nickname ''La Pantera'' ("The Panther"). He has a tattoo of a panther on his left arm in honor of the moniker. When asked about its meaning in a 2019 interview, Bou compared his playing style to that of a panther, saying, "A panther is always ready to pounce on an opportunity ..A panther does not leave. It hides."

Career

River Plate

Bou started his career in the youth ranks of Club Comunicaciones Concordia. At the age of 14, he joined River Plate's reserve team, where manager Diego Simeone later offered him a contract to join the senior team. On 23 March 2008, Bou made his debut for River Plate against Vélez Sarsfield, coming on for Mauro Rosales in the 43rd minute of the match.

While Bou was with River Plate, he was called up for the 2007 U-17 World Cup in South Korea, but was unable to participate due to a partial tear of a lateral ligament and meniscus.

Bou scored his first goal in a match against Newell's Old Boys on the 12th week of the Torneo Apertura 2008. He played sparingly during the 2010-11 season, and the team was later relegated to Primera B Nacional (Argentina's second division).

Olimpo

At the beginning of the 2012–13 Primera B Nacional season, Club Olimpo signed Bou on a loan. He debuted on 27 August 2012 against Gimnasia y Esgrima de Jujuy. In week 4, he scored his first goal for Olimpo.

Liga de Quito

Bou signed with Liga de Quito, on loan from River Plate, for the second round of the 2013 Campeonato Ecuatoriano de Fútbol Serie A, scoring his first brace (two goals in the same match) on 21 July against Barcelona Guayaquil.

Gimnasia La Plata

At the beginning of 2014, Bou signed with Gimnasia La Plata on a six-month loan from River Plate. At the end of the loan, he became a free agent.

Racing Club

2014 season

In August 2014, Bou signed as a free agent with Racing Club. This was a controversial move, as both Cocca and Bou were represented by the same agent, Christian Bragarnik. He played his first match on 26 August against Arsenal de Sarandí. Bou scored his first goal with Racing on 22 September against Newell's Old Boys.

2015 season

On 17 January 2015, Bou scored the first hat-trick (three goals in the same match) of his career against Boca Juniors in the Summer Tournament held in the city of Mar del Plata, and also won the player of the match award for that performance.

Bou made his Libertadores Cup debut against Deportivo Tachira where he was named the best player of the match for his hat trick and two assists.

2016 season

In the summer before the 2016 season, Bou refused to practice with the club after Blanco rejected a $5 million offer from Borussia Mönchengladbach. Bou reached an agreement with Racing to be sold if an $8 million offer was made for his contract. Later, Racing rejected an $8 million bid from Chinese Super League club Beijing Guoan for Bou, who voiced his frustration with Racing president Víctor Blanco for violating the agreement by rejecting the offer. Blanco later clarified that the $8 million figure was an after-tax amount and that Racing would therefore need an offer in the $10 million range, however, Bou did not agree with that interpretation.

Although he continued to be a Racing player, he stopped making appearances later in the season due to injuries and conflicts with the president of Racing Víctor Blanco.

2016-17 season

Despite the controversy over his contract, and with some changes in the club's staff, Bou signed a new contract expiring in 2020.

Tijuana de Mexico (2017–2018)

On 26 June 2017, Bou joined Liga MX side Tijuana. On his decision to join "Xolos", Bou stated "I made my decision after the coaching staff called and made it clear it wanted to bring me here and the effort the front office made to get me here. I really value that." According to various Argentine media sources, Tijuana paid roughly $7 million for Bou's transfer. During his time in Mexico, he played 36 games, scored 10 goals and made six assists.

Second stint at Racing Club

2018–2019 season

In 2018, Racing Club brought Bou in on loan for one year for $2 million to replace Lautaro Martínez, who had just joined Inter Milan.

His first game was played against his former team, River Plate, for the 2018 Copa Libertadores. On 31 March 2019, he was awarded champion with Racing Club for the second time, even though he was no longer in the club. In the 2018–2019 season he scored only one goal and made three assists.

Return to Tijuana

In 2019, Gustavo surprised many when he terminated his contract with Racing and returned to Tijuana. During this stint he played 19 games, scoring 11 goals.

New England Revolution

2019 Season

On 10 July 2019, Bou signed as a designated player with the New England Revolution for a club-record transfer fee, reportedly in the $6–7 million range. ''The Boston Globe'' reported that the deal included $12 million in transfer fees and guaranteed compensation; and could rise to "exceed $16 million" with bonuses and options.

Bou made his Revolution debut on 17 July 2019, and scored his first goal for the club, in a 4-0 victory over Vancouver Whitecaps. On 27 July, he scored his second MLS goal, in the 3rd minute of the match, against Orlando City SC. It was the fastest goal of the Revolution's season, and was nominated for MLS Goal of the Week. In that match, Bou also tied a single-game club record for most shots, with 9. On 29 September, Bou recording a game-winning assist against New York City FC to help the Revolution clinch a spot in the 2019 MLS Cup Playoffs, the club's first playoff appearance since 2015.

Bou concluded the 2019 season with nine goals and two assists in 14 appearances. His strike against the Chicago Fire was a finalist for MLS Goal of the Year, and he finished 5th in MLS Newcomer of the Year voting.

2020 Season

Bou scored 5 goals and recorded 3 assists in 18 appearances in the 2020 regular season.

In Play-in round of the 2020 MLS Cup Playoffs, Bou scored the game-winning goal against the Montreal Impact in the 95th minute of the match. In the Eastern Conference semifinals, Bou scored twice to help the Revolution secure a 3-1 victory over Orlando City SC on 29 November. In doing so, he became only the third-ever Revolution player to record a postseason brace, and became only the second player in club history to record a brace in the MLS Cup Playoffs, joining Charlie Davies, who recorded the feat on two occasions. Bou paid tribute to Diego Maradona after his second goal, laying an Argentine flag on the ground, pointing towards the sky, and kissing the flag.

2021 Season

In 2021, Bou made 25 starts (30 total appearances) for the Revolution, and recorded fifteen goals and 9 assists. Bou's strike against Montreal Impact in matchweek 15 was named MLS goal of the Week. He was named to the MLS Team of the Week following his one goal, one assist performance against the New York Red Bulls on 22 May, and again on 31 July following his brace against Montreal.
Bou was named MLS Player of the Month for the month of July after scoring five goals in six matches. Bou received MLS Best XI honors for the 2021 season, and additionally received 2021 MLS All-Star honors.

2022 Season

In 2022, Bou missed thirteen matches with various injuries, but still won the Revolution Golden Boot award, leading the team in scoring with 8 goals and 2 assists.

On 28 May, Bou converted a penalty against the Philadelphia Union. The goal was the Bou's 30th with the club in regular season play, and the 10th-most in Revolution history.

2023 Season

Bou opened his 2023 scoring account on 18 March against Nashville SC, and was subsequently named to the MLS Team of the Matchday. On 3 August, in the 2023 Leagues Cup Round of 32, Bou recorded a brace and converted a penalty to help the Revolution defeat Atlas F.C. Bou missed six weeks of the season with a "right leg injury," but made his return on 30 September against Charlotte FC.

On 21 October 2023, Bou made his 100th MLS regular season appearance for the Revolution, and scored his second brace, which brought his goal total with the club to 50. The brace also brought Bou to 44 regular season goals, which were the second most by a Revolution player through his first 100 games played, behind only Taylor Twellman.

Club Atlético Talleres

In January 2024, Bou moved to Club Atlético Talleres after his contract with the Revolution expired. Bou announced his retirement via his Instagram in August 2024.

Career statistics

Club

Honours

River Plate
* Argentine Primera División: 2007–08 (Clausura)
* Primera B Nacional: 2011–12

Racing Club
* Argentine Primera División: 2014

New England Revolution
* Supporters' Shield: 2021

Individual

* 2015 Copa Libertadores top scorer (8 goals)
* MLS All-Star: 2021
* MLS Player of the Month: July 2021
* MLS Best XI: 2021

References

External links

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{{DEFAULTSORT:Bou, Gustavo Leonardo
1990 births
Living people
Argentine men's footballers
Footballers from Concordia, Entre Ríos

Men's association football forwards
Club Atlético River Plate footballers
Club Olimpo footballers
Club Tijuana footballers
New England Revolution players
L.D.U. Quito footballers
Club de Gimnasia y Esgrima La Plata footballers
Racing Club de Avellaneda footballers
Talleres de Córdoba footballers
Argentine Primera División players
Primera Nacional players
Ecuadorian Serie A players
Liga MX players
Argentine expatriate men's footballers
Expatriate men's footballers in Ecuador
Expatriate men's footballers in Mexico
Expatriate men's soccer players in the United States
Designated Players (MLS)
Major League Soccer players
Argentine expatriate sportspeople in Ecuador
Argentine expatriate sportspeople in Mexico
Argentine expatriate sportspeople in the United States
21st-century Argentine sportsmen