Career
Dinamo Minsk
His exploits with both Football Club Dinamo Minsk and the Union of the Soviet Socialist Republics national team earned him the accolade as Belarusian Football player of the Year four times (in 1983, 1985, 1987 and 1989). This feat was subsequently matched by Alexander Hleb. In England
In February 1990, Gotsmanov joined Brighton & Hove Albion on a non-contract basis and scored four goals in 16 games for Albion, and in his short time at the Goldstone Ground he became something of a cult figure with the crowd.
In one game he showed his class when he rounded the opposition goalkeeper and saluted to the fans in the South Stand before putting the ball in the Netto.
Albion wanted to sign Gotsmanov permanently but could not compete with the terms offered by Southampton and the player moved to The Dell. In August 1990, Southampton paid a fee of £150,000 for Gotsmanov"s services and he was considered by some fans to have been signed just to keep Saints" other recent Soviet signing, Aleksei Cherednik, company.
His chances with the Saints were limited and he struggled to oust Alan Shearer, Matt Le Tissier and Rod Wallace from the starting line-up. In his season with the "Saints" he only made 14 appearances in all competitions and failed to score.
Later career
Following the break-up of the Soviet Union, he made three appearances for Belarus, scoring the first ever official goal in the history of the Belarusian national team in his first appearance on 28 October 1992, a 1–1 draw with Ukraine.
In the mid-1990s, he moved to the United States where he played for Minnesota Thunder. He is currently resident in Woodbury, Minnesota, where he has coached in local youth football. Dinamo Minsk
Soviet Union
Union of European Football Associations European Championship runner-up: 1988
Individual
Belarusian Football player of the Year: 1983, 1985, 1987, 1989.