Caio Lucas Fernandes (born 19 April 1994), known as Caio Lucas or just Caio , is a Brazilian professional

footballer A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby le ...

who plays as a winger for Emirati Club

Sharjah Sharjah (; ar, ٱلشَّارقَة ', Gulf Arabic: ''aš-Šārja'') is the third-most populous city in the United Arab Emirates, after Dubai and Abu Dhabi, forming part of the Dubai-Sharjah-Ajman metropolitan area. Sharjah is the capital o ...

Career

Born in

Araçatuba Araçatuba is a city located in the northwest of São Paulo state, Brazil. The city has 198,129 inhabitants (IBGE/2020) and spans . The city name comes from the Tupi language and means "abundance of araçá (a fruit, Psidium cattleianum)". Ara� ...

São Paulo São Paulo (, ; Portuguese for 'Saint Paul') is the most populous city in Brazil, and is the capital of the state of São Paulo, the most populous and wealthiest Brazilian state, located in the country's Southeast Region. Listed by the GaWC a ...

, Caio Lucas started playing football in 2002, aged 8, at local clubs SMER Bosque Araçatuba and América-SP. He then played for

's youth teams from 2005 to 2009 but could not become professional, so he left the club and unsuccessfully tried to join rivals Santos and

Palmeiras Sociedade Esportiva Palmeiras (), commonly known as Palmeiras, is a Brazilian professional football club based in the city of São Paulo, in the district of Perdizes. Palmeiras is one of the most popular clubs in South America, with around ...

before returning to América. In 2011, when he was prepared to give up on football, he was discovered by a Japanese university that was playing in

Birigui Birigui is a city in the state of São Paulo, Brazil. The city is located on the northwest of the state and has 124,883 inhabitants (IBGE/2020) and 530.9 km2 of area. The name ''Birigui'' comes from the Tupi–Guarani language and means "l ...

, Brazil. Almost aged 17, he moved to Japan that year to enroll in Chiba Kokusai High School in

Kimitsu is a city located in Chiba Prefecture, Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 83,058 in 39,138 households and a population density of 260 persons per km2. The total area of the city is . Geography Kimitsu is located in the southweste ...

, where he played for three years. After his

graduation Graduation is the awarding of a diploma to a student by an educational institution. It may also refer to the ceremony that is associated with it. The date of the graduation ceremony is often called graduation day. The graduation ceremony is a ...

, Caio Lucas joined the

J1 League The , known as the for sponsorship reasons, is the top level of the system. Founded in 1992, it is one of the most successful leagues in Asian club football. Contested by 18 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the J ...

club, the

Kashima Antlers are a football club in Kashima, Ibaraki, currently playing in the J1 League, top tier of Japanese professional football leagues. The name ''Antlers'' is derived from the city name, Kashima, which literally means "deer island". The club has fi ...

in 2014. In his first professional season, under the coaching of

Toninho Cerezo Antônio Carlos Cerezo (born 21 April 1955), known as Toninho Cerezo (), is a Brazilian former footballer. Cerezo is commonly regarded as one of the finest Brazilian defensive midfielders of all time, most notably having played for his hometo ...

, Caio scored eight goals as Kashima Antlers qualified for the

AFC Champions League The AFC Champions League (abbreviated as ACL) is an annual continental club football competition organised by the Asian Football Confederation, and contested by Asia's top-division football clubs. It is the most prestigious club competition ...

. Moreover, he was named J. League's Young Player of the Year in 2014 and won the

2016 J1 League The 2016 Meiji Yasuda J1 League (2016 明治安田生命J1リーグ) season was the 51st season of top-flight football in Japan, and the 24th since the establishment of the J.League in 1993. For a five-year period starting in 2015, the J.Leag ...

and

2015 J.League Cup The 2015 J.League Cup, also known as the 2015 J.League Yamazaki Nabisco Cup for sponsoring purposes, is the 40th edition of the most prestigious Japanese soccer league cup tournament and the 23rd edition under the current J.League Cup format. Form ...

. In 2019, following a three-year spell with Emirati club

Al Ain Al Ain ( ar, ٱلْعَيْن, , ) is a city in the western side of Tawam (region), Tuwwam region and the seat of the administrative division of its namesake, Al-Ain Region, Abu Dhabi, Al Ain in the Emirate of Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates. ...

, with whom he reached the 2018 FIFA Club World Cup Final, Caio signed a four-year contract with Portuguese club Benfica. On 23 January 2020,

signed Caio Lucas from Benfica on loan for 18 months .

Career statistics

Club

Honours

Kashima Antlers *

2016 File:2016 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Bombed-out buildings in Ankara following the 2016 Turkish coup d'état attempt; the impeachment trial of Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff; Damaged houses during the 2016 Nagorno-Karabakh ...

J.League Cup The is a Japanese football (soccer) competition organized by J.League. It has been sponsored by Yamazaki Biscuits (YBC) of Yamazaki Baking (formerly Yamazaki Nabisco) since its inception in 1992. It is also known as the or (Levain is one of YB ...

2015 File:2015 Events Collage new.png, From top left, clockwise: Civil service in remembrance of November 2015 Paris attacks; Germanwings Flight 9525 was purposely crashed into the French Alps; the rubble of residences in Kathmandu following the Apri ...

Al Ain *

UAE Pro-League The UAE Pro League ( ar, دوري المحترفين الإماراتي), known for sponsorship reasons as the ADNOC Pro League, is the top professional football league in the United Arab Emirates (UAE). The first team to win the title was Al O ...

: 2017–18 *

UAE President's Cup The UAE President's Cup, or simply the President Cup, is a football tournament that takes place in United Arab Emirates, between clubs in the UAE Pro League and the UAE First Division League. The winner qualifies for the AFC Champions League. His ...

: 2017–18 Sharjah *UAE Pro League: 2018–19 Individual *

J.League Rookie of the Year The J.League Best Young Player (formerly known as the "J.League Rookie of the Year" from 1993 to 2019) is awarded by the J.League to the most outstanding rookie of the season. To be considered a rookie, a player must be in his first professional y ...

2014 File:2014 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Stocking up supplies and personal protective equipment (PPE) for the Western African Ebola virus epidemic; Citizens examining the ruins after the Chibok schoolgirls kidnapping; Bundles of wat ...

* FIFA Club World Cup Silver Ball:

2018 File:2018 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2018 Winter Olympics opening ceremony in PyeongChang, South Korea; Protests erupt following the Assassination of Jamal Khashoggi; March for Our Lives protests take place across the United ...

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Lucas, Caio 1994 births Living people People from Araçatuba Brazilian footballers Brazilian expatriate footballers Expatriate footballers in Japan Expatriate footballers in the United Arab Emirates Expatriate footballers in Portugal Brazilian expatriate sportspeople in Japan Brazilian expatriate sportspeople in the United Arab Emirates Brazilian expatriate sportspeople in Portugal J1 League players Kashima Antlers players UAE Pro League players Al Ain FC players Sharjah FC players Primeira Liga players S.L. Benfica footballers Association football wingers Footballers from São Paulo (state)