João Pedro Lima Santos (born 15 August 1980), known as João Pedro, is a Portuguese

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

left back In the sport of association football, a defender is an outfield position whose primary role is to stop attacks during the game and prevent the opposition from scoring. Centre-backs are usually positioned in pairs, with one full-back on either s ...

. He played 155 matches in the Segunda Liga during seven seasons, scoring a combined eight goals for Leça, Estoril, Gil Vicente and Penafiel. He added 67 appearances in the

Primeira Liga The Primeira Liga (; English: Premier League, also written as Liga Portugal 1), also known as Liga Portugal Bwin for sponsorship reasons, is the top level of the Portuguese football league system. Organised and supervised by the Liga Portugal, ...

, in a 17-year senior career.

Club career

Born in Vila Nova de Famalicão,

Braga District The district of Braga ( pt, Distrito de Braga ) is a district in the northwest of Portugal. The district capital is the city of Braga, and it is bordered by the district of Viana do Castelo in the north, Vila Real in the east, Spain ( Galicia) ...

, João Pedro spent the better part of his youth career with

FC Porto Futebol Clube do Porto, MHIH, OM (), commonly known as FC Porto or simply Porto, is a Portuguese professional sports club based in Porto. It is best known for the professional football team playing in the Primeira Liga, the top flight of Portu ...

. His senior debut occurred in the second division, with Leça FC. In the following years, João Pedro alternated between the second and the third levels. From

2002 File:2002 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The 2002 Winter Olympics are held in Salt Lake City; Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother and her daughter Princess Margaret, Countess of Snowdon die; East Timor gains East Timor independence, indepe ...

2004 2004 was designated as an International Year of Rice by the United Nations, and the International Year to Commemorate the Struggle Against Slavery and its Abolition (by UNESCO). Events January * January 3 – Flash Airlines Flight 6 ...

he achieved consecutive promotions with

G.D. Estoril Praia Grupo Desportivo Estoril Praia (), commonly known as Estoril, is a Portuguese sports club from Estoril, Cascais, Lisbon. Founded on 17 May 1939, its football team currently plays in Primeira Liga and hold home games at the Estádio António Coimb ...

, contributing with 69 games and three goals in the process; he played his first match in the

also with that team, in a 0–0 home draw against

Rio Ave F.C. Rio Ave Futebol Clube, commonly known as Rio Ave (), is a Portuguese professional football club based in Vila do Conde, that competes in the Primeira Liga. The club is named after the Ave River, which flows through the town and into the Atlanti ...

on 29 August 2004 where he featured the full 90 minutes. For 2005–06, following his team's relegation, João Pedro signed with

Gil Vicente F.C. Gil Vicente Futebol Clube (), commonly known as Gil Vicente, founded in 1924, is a Portuguese football club that plays in Barcelos. It competes in the Primeira Liga, the top division of football in the country, and it is named after the Portugues ...

also in the top tier. He scored once from 28 appearances during the season, again dropping down a level but now due to irregularities. After one year in the Cypriot First Division with

Ethnikos Achna FC Ethnikos Achna Football Club ( el, Αθλητικός Σύλλογος Εθνικός Άχνας), commonly known as Ethnikos Achna, or simply Ethnikos, is a Cypriot football club based in the village of Achna. Founded in 1968, the club currentl ...

, João Pedro returned to Barcelos, again promoting to the top flight in

2011 File:2011 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: a protester partaking in Occupy Wall Street heralds the beginning of the Occupy movement; protests against Libyan dictator Muammar Gaddafi, who was killed that October; a young man celebrate ...

but failing to play in a single league match during the campaign due to a knee injury. The 33-year-old returned to the second division on 17 June 2013, joining

F.C. Penafiel Futebol Clube de Penafiel ( or ) is a Portuguese Association football, football club founded on 8 February 1951 and based in the city of Penafiel, Portugal, Penafiel. Brief history Penafiel first reached the Portuguese Liga, first division in Po ...

on a one-year contract. Subsequently, João Pedro competed in the lower leagues with former clubs

F.C. Famalicão Futebol Clube de Famalicão, commonly known as Famalicão, is a Portuguese association football, football club from Vila Nova de Famalicão. Founded on 21 August 1931, its senior team currently plays in the Primeira Liga, the top tier of Portugu ...

and

C.D. Trofense Clube Desportivo Trofense (), commonly known as Trofense, is a Portuguese football club based in Trofa, Portugal. Founded in 1930, it plays in Segunda Liga, holding home games at '' Estádio do Clube Desportivo Trofense'', with a capacity of 5,0 ...

Honours

;Estoril * Segunda Liga: 2003–04 * Portuguese Second Division: 2002–03

References

External links

*
National team data
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Joao Pedro 1980 births Living people People from Vila Nova de Famalicão Portuguese footballers Association football defenders Primeira Liga players Liga Portugal 2 players Segunda Divisão players Leça F.C. players C.D. Trofense players F.C. Famalicão players G.D. Estoril Praia players Gil Vicente F.C. players F.C. Penafiel players Cypriot First Division players Ethnikos Achna FC players Portugal youth international footballers Portuguese expatriate footballers Expatriate footballers in Cyprus Sportspeople from Braga District