Leonardo Renan Simões de Lacerda (born 30 January 1988), commonly known as Léo, is a Brazilian

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

central defender 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 ...

for Chapecoense.

Club career

Grêmio

Born in

Contagem Contagem () is a city in the center of the state of Minas Gerais, in Brazil. It is only from the capital, Belo Horizonte, and forms part of a metropolitan area with a population of 4.8 million. Geography The city belongs to the metropolitan meso ...

Minas Gerais Minas Gerais () is a state in Southeastern Brazil. It ranks as the second most populous, the third by gross domestic product (GDP), and the fourth largest by area in the country. The state's capital and largest city, Belo Horizonte (literally ...

, Léo joined Grêmio's youth setup at the age of 12. He made his first team – and Série A – debut on 25 July 2007, coming on as a first-half substitute for

Itaqui Itaqui is a municipality in Brazil, located in the southwestern part of the state of Rio Grande do Sul, close to the Argentinian border, between Uruguaiana and São Borja. It sits at a mean altitude of 57 meters (187 ft), by the Uruguay Ri ...

in a 2–0 away win over Náutico. Léo scored his first professional goal for Grêmio on 16 September 2007, netting the winner in a 1–0 home success over rivals

Internacional Sport Club Internacional (), commonly known as Internacional or simply Inter, is a Brazilian professional football club based in Porto Alegre. They play in the Série A, the first division of the Brazilian league, as well as in Campeonat ...

. He then became a regular starter for the side, and helped the club finish second in the 2008 Série A.

Palmeiras

On 18 December 2009, Léo moved to fellow top tier side

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 ...

on a five-year contract, with Maurício moving in the opposite direction on loan; Grêmio also saw R$ 6.5 million of a R$ 8 million debt being discounted on the move. He made his club debut the following 16 January, starting and scoring his team's second in a 5–1

Campeonato Paulista The Campeonato Paulista Série A1, commonly known as Campeonato Paulista, nicknamed Paulistão, is the top-flight professional association football, football league in the Brazilian States of Brazil, state of São Paulo (state), São Paulo. Run b ...

home routing of Mogi Mirim. Léo began the season as a starter, but was subsequently overtaken by Maurício Ramos and Edinho.

Cruzeiro

On 13 August 2010, Léo moved to Cruzeiro for a fee of R$ 1 million plus Leandro Amaro. Initially a backup to Edcarlos and Gil, he subsequently became a regular starter in the 2011 season onwards, when both left the club. Léo was also a part of the Cruzeiro squad which won two consecutive Série A titles in 2013 and 2014, aside from winning four

Campeonato Mineiro Campeonato Mineiro is the state football league of the state of Minas Gerais and is controlled by the Minas Gerais Football Federation FMF (Federação Mineira de Futebol). The history of Campeonato Mineiro can be divided into two parts: befor ...

titles. He struggled with injuries during the 2019 and 2020 campaigns, with his side suffering a first-ever relegation in the former. On 20 May 2021, after nearly eleven years and 401 matches with Cruzeiro, Léo left the club after rescinding his contract.

Club Statistics

Honours

;Grêmio *

Campeonato Gaúcho The Campeonato Gaúcho Série A1 (Gaúcho Championship A1 Series or Série A1), officially named as Campeonato da Primeira Divisão de Futebol Profissional da FGF - Divisão Especial - Série A1 and commonly known as Campeonato Gaúcho or Gauchã ...

: 2007 ;Cruzeiro *

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 ...

, 2014,

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 ...

2019 File:2019 collage v1.png, From top left, clockwise: Hong Kong protests turn to widespread riots and civil disobedience; House of Representatives votes to adopt articles of impeachment against Donald Trump; CRISPR gene editing first used to experim ...

Campeonato Brasileiro Série A The Campeonato Brasileiro Série A (; English: "Brazilian Championship A Series"), commonly referred to as the Brasileirão (; English: "Big Brazilian"), and also known as Brasileirão Assaí due to sponsorship with Assaí Atacadista, is a Br ...

2013 File:2013 Events Collage V2.png, From left, clockwise: Edward Snowden becomes internationally famous for leaking classified NSA wiretapping information; Typhoon Haiyan kills over 6,000 in the Philippines and Southeast Asia; The Dhaka garment fact ...

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 ...

Copa do Brasil The Copa do Brasil ( en, Brazil Cup) is a knockout football competition played by 92 teams, representing all 26 Brazilian states plus the Federal District. It is the Brazilian domestic cup and the Brazilian equivalent of the FA Cup, Taça de ...

2017 File:2017 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: The War Against ISIS at the Battle of Mosul (2016-2017); aftermath of the Manchester Arena bombing; The Solar eclipse of August 21, 2017 ("Great American Eclipse"); North Korea tests a ser ...

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Leo 1988 births Living people Sportspeople from Minas Gerais Brazilian footballers Association football defenders Campeonato Brasileiro Série A players Campeonato Brasileiro Série B players Grêmio Foot-Ball Porto Alegrense players Sociedade Esportiva Palmeiras players Cruzeiro Esporte Clube players Associação Chapecoense de Futebol players