German-born Portuguese footballer
Cristiano Pereira Figueiredo (born 29 November 1990), known simply as Cristiano , is a Portuguese professional footballer who plays as a goalkeeper for Liga Portugal 2 club Felgueiras .
He played 80 Primeira Liga games for Braga , Académica , Belenenses and Vitória de Setúbal , while also representing three teams in Romania and having brief spells in Spain, Greece and Bulgaria.
Club career
Born in Munich , Germany to Portuguese parents , Cristiano started playing youth football with Académico de Viseu FC , finishing his development with S.C. Braga .[ 2] He spent his first two years as a senior as the latter's third choice, also being loaned to F.C. Vizela who acted as the farm team .[ 3]
Cristiano was signed by Valencia CF from Spain on 24 July 2011, being assigned to the B side in the Segunda División B .[ 4] He appeared in just five games during his only season .
In summer 2012, Cristiano returned to Portugal and Braga, being again third string with the main squad and competing with the re-created reserves in the Segunda Liga . He made his debut as a professional on 11 August, playing the full 90 minutes in a 2–2 away draw against S.L. Benfica B .[ 5]
For the 2014–15 campaign , Cristiano went on loan to Académica de Coimbra of the Primeira Liga . He appeared in 28 games in all competitions, helping his team narrowly avoid relegation.[ 6]
On 5 January 2016, having been deemed surplus to requirements by manager Paulo Fonseca as several other Portuguese players, Cristiano signed a two-and-a-half-year contract with Greek club Panetolikos FC .[ 7] He returned to his country one year later, going on to represent C.F. Os Belenenses [ 8] and Vitória de Setúbal in the top tier.[ 9]
Cristiano joined FC Hermannstadt on 4 July 2019.[ 10] Two years later, he agreed to a three-year deal at CFR Cluj also from the Romanian Liga I .[ 11] However, in January 2022 the free agent signed with FC Dinamo București still in that country and league.[ 12]
In January 2023, Cristiano moved to FC Spartak Varna of the First Professional Football League (Bulgaria) .[ 13] Twelve months later, he joined FC Košice of the Slovak First Football League on a one-and-a-half-year contract.[ 14]
International career
Cristiano won his first cap for the Portugal under-21 side on 9 February 2011, playing the second half of a 3–1 friendly win over Sweden in Cartaxo .[ 15]
Personal life
Cristiano's younger brother, Tobias , is also a footballer. A defender , he played youth football at Sporting CP .[ 16]
References
^ a b c d "Cristiano" (in Portuguese). Mais Futebol. Retrieved 13 April 2021 .
^ "Valência confirma contratação de guarda-redes Cristiano" [Valencia confirm signing of goalkeeper Cristiano] (in Portuguese). SAPO . 25 July 2011. Retrieved 15 April 2019 .
^ "Oportunidades para ganhar ritmo em Vizela" [A chance to get playing time in Vizela]. Record (in Portuguese). 1 September 2010. Retrieved 1 February 2022 .
^ Picó, Diego (24 July 2011). "El Valencia ficha al portero Cristiano Pereira" [Valencia sign goalkeeper Cristiano Pereira]. Marca (in Spanish). Retrieved 7 February 2013 .
^ "Benfica B-Sp. Braga B, 2–2: André Gomes dá empate nos descontos" [Benfica B-Sp. Braga B, 2–2: André Gomes for the draw in injury time]. Record (in Portuguese). 11 August 2012. Retrieved 18 November 2017 .
^ Machado, Miguel (16 June 2015). "Sp. Braga – Yazalde, João Pedro, Capela e Cristiano fora das opções de Paulo Fonseca" [Sp. Braga – Yazalde, João Pedro, Capela and Cristiano out of Paulo Fonseca's plans]. Correio do Minho (in Portuguese). Retrieved 8 May 2018 .
^ Αποκτήθηκε ο Κριστιάνο [Cristiano acquired] (in Greek). Panetolikos F.C. 5 January 2016. Archived from the original on 7 March 2016. Retrieved 5 January 2016 .
^ "Cristiano, o dono da baliza do Belenenses" [Cristiano, the owner of Belenenses' goal]. O Jogo (in Portuguese). 8 January 2017. Retrieved 30 July 2019 .
^ "Cristiano reforça Vitória Setúbal" [Cristiano strengthens Vitória Setúbal] (in Portuguese). Mais Futebol. 3 July 2017. Retrieved 30 July 2019 .
^ Sousa, Ricardo (5 July 2019). "Cristiano muda-se para a Roménia e recebe elogios no Bonfim" [Cristiano moves to Romania and is praised at the Bonfim]. O Jogo (in Portuguese). Retrieved 30 July 2019 .
^ "CFR Cluj transferă din Liga 1 » Acord pe 3 ani cu jucătorul" [CFR Cluj transfer from Liga 1 » Three-year agreement with player]. Gazeta Sporturilor (in Romanian). 10 May 2021. Retrieved 22 June 2021 .
^ Apostol, Eduard; Barbu, Alexandru (21 January 2022). "A reziliat contractul cu CFR Cluj și a semnat cu Dinamo" [He terminated the contract with CFR Cluj and signed with Dinamo]. Gazeta Sporturilor (in Romanian). Retrieved 21 January 2022 .
^ "Новият вратар на Спартак Вн Кристиано Фигейредо: Контузии в двете колена ме спряха във Валенсия. Работил съм с Унай Емери и Жорже Жезус, не познавах Димитър Димитров, но знам, че ще донесе победоносен дух, казва той" [The new goalkeeper of Spartak Vn Cristiano Figueiredo: Injuries to both knees stopped me at Valencia. I have worked with Unai Emery and Jorge Jesus, I didn't know Dimitar Dimitrov, but I know he will bring a winning spirit, he says]. Telegraph (in Bulgarian). 14 January 2023. Retrieved 30 April 2023 .
^ "Prvá posila FC Košice: portugalský brankár Cristiano Figueiredo" [First reinforcement of FC Košice: Portuguese goalkeeper Cristiano Figueiredo] (in Slovak). FC Košice. 11 January 2024. Retrieved 12 January 2024 .
^ "Sub-21: Portugal bate Suécia no Cartaxo" [Under-21: Portugal beat Sweden in Cartaxo]. Record (in Portuguese). 9 February 2011. Retrieved 8 May 2018 .
^ "Tobias Figueiredo e... irmão Cristiano à conversa" [Tobias Figueiredo and... brother Cristiano chatting]. Record (in Portuguese). 26 January 2015. Retrieved 18 November 2017 .
External links