Leonardo "Leo" Carrilho Baptistão (born 26 August 1992) 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 for

La Liga The Campeonato Nacional de Liga de Primera División, commonly known simply as Primera División in Spain, and as La Liga in English-speaking countries and officially as LaLiga Santander for sponsorship reasons, stylized as LaLiga, is the men's ...

club

UD Almería Unión Deportiva Almería, S.A.D. () is a Spanish professional football club based in Almería, in the autonomous community of Andalusia. Founded on 26 July 1989 and known as ''Almería Club de Fútbol'' until 2001, when it was renamed ''Unión D ...

. Mainly a striker, he can also play as a winger. Baptistão spent most of his career in Spain from the age of 16, making 178 appearances and scoring 34 goals in

. He represented

Rayo Vallecano Rayo Vallecano de Madrid, S.A.D. (), often abbreviated to Rayo (Spanish for "thunderbolt"), is a Spanish professional football club based in Madrid, in the neighbourhood of Vallecas. Rayo was founded on 29 May 1924, and currently compete in La Lig ...

Atlético Madrid Club Atlético de Madrid, Sociedad Anónima Deportiva, S.A.D. (; meaning "Athletic Club of Madrid"), known simply as Atleti in the Spanish-speaking world and commonly referred to at international level as Atlético Madrid, is a Spanish profess ...

, Betis,

Villarreal Villarreal ( ca-valencia , Vila-real) is a city and municipality in the province of Castellón which is part of the Valencian Community in the east of Spain. The town is located at 42 m above sea level, 7 km to the south of the province's ...

and

Espanyol Reial Club Deportiu Espanyol de Barcelona (; "Royal Spanish Sports Club of Barcelona"), commonly known as Espanyol, is a professional sports club based in Barcelona, Spain, that competes in La Liga, the top tier of the Spanish football league sy ...

in the competition, and played a part in Atlético's league win in 2013–14.

Club career

Early career

Born in

Santos, São Paulo Santos (, ''Saints'') is a municipality in the Brazilian state of São Paulo, founded in 1546 by the Portuguese nobleman Brás Cubas. It is located mostly on the island of São Vicente, which harbors both the city of Santos and the city of São ...

, Baptistão began playing football for

Associação Atlética Portuguesa (Santos) Associação Atlética Portuguesa, commonly referred to as Portuguesa Santista, is a professional football club based in Santos, São Paulo, Brazil. The team competes in Campeonato Paulista Série A2, the second tier of the São Paulo state f ...

, alongside

Neymar Neymar da Silva Santos Júnior (born 5 February 1992), known as Neymar, is a Brazilian professional association football, footballer who plays as a Forward (association football), forward for Ligue 1 club Paris Saint-Germain F.C., Paris Sain ...

. Aged only 16, he moved to Spain and joined

's youth system. However, he soon contracted

hepatitis Hepatitis is inflammation of the liver tissue. Some people or animals with hepatitis have no symptoms, whereas others develop yellow discoloration of the skin and whites of the eyes (jaundice), poor appetite, vomiting, tiredness, abdominal pa ...

and had to return home to be treated by his father, a doctor; subsequently, he was loaned to

CD San Fernando de Henares Club Deportivo San Fernando is a Spanish football club based in San Fernando de Henares, in the Community of Madrid. Founded in 1929 it currently plays in Tercera División – Group 7, holding home games at ''Estadio Santiago del Pino''. Hist ...

after the

Royal Spanish Football Federation The Royal Spanish Football Federation ( es, Real Federación Española de Fútbol; RFEF) is the governing body of football in Spain. It is based in La Ciudad del Fútbol of Las Rozas, a municipality near Madrid. It was founded on 14 October 1909 ...

prevented him from joining his previous club.

Rayo Vallecano

In July 2011, after playing his last year as a junior again with Rayo, Baptistão joined the first team for preseason games. However, in his debut, a ''Trophy of

Vallecas Vallecas was a municipality of Spain that disappeared as such in 1950, when its annexation to the Municipality of Madrid was effectuated. Nowadays it is a large neighborhood of Madrid composed of two districts: Puente de Vallecas (population ...

'' match against

Sporting de Gijón Real Sporting de Gijón, S.A.D. (), commonly known as Real Sporting, Sporting Gijón, or simply Sporting (although in an international context this can lead to confusion with Sporting Clube de Portugal) is a Spanish football club from Gijón, P ...

, he suffered a

collarbone The clavicle, or collarbone, is a slender, S-shaped long bone approximately 6 inches (15 cm) long that serves as a strut between the shoulder blade and the sternum (breastbone). There are two clavicles, one on the left and one on the right ...

injury; his first appearances as a senior were made with

the B team The B Team is a global nonprofit initiative co-founded by Sir Richard Branson and Jochen Zeitz. It advocates for business practices that are more centered on humanity and the climate. History In 2013, a group of leaders came together following ...

in the

Segunda División B Segunda División B ( en, Second Division B) was the third tier of the Spanish football league system containing 102 teams divided into five groups, until it was replaced by the new structure in 2021. It was administered by the Royal Spanish Foot ...

. In the summer of 2012, Baptistão was recalled for Rayo's main squad for the preseason. On 25 August he finally made his first-team debut, starting in a 2–1

away win against

Real Betis Real Betis Balompié, known as Real Betis () or just Betis, is a Spanish professional football club based in Seville in the autonomous community of Andalusia. Founded in 1907, it plays in La Liga. It holds home games at the Estadio Benito Vill ...

, assisting

Piti Piti may refer to: * Pīti, a mental factor in Buddhism * PITI, the principal, interest, taxes, and insurance sum of a mortgage payment * Piti (food), a soup dish of Central Asia * Piti (footballer) (born 1981), Spanish footballer * Piti, Guam * Pi ...

on one goal and scoring the decider. On 16 September he netted against

but in a 4–3 away loss, adding a brace the following month at

RCD Espanyol Reial Club Deportiu Espanyol de Barcelona (; "Royal Spanish Sports Club of Barcelona"), commonly known as Espanyol, is a professional sports club based in Barcelona, Spain, that competes in La Liga, the top tier of the Spanish football league sy ...

but again not being able to help his team earn a single point. Baptistão quickly became first-choice in his

first year A freshman, fresher, first year, or frosh, is a person in the first year at an educational institution, usually a secondary school or at the college and university level, but also in other forms of post-secondary educational institutions. Ara ...

with the

Paco Jémez Francisco "Paco" Jémez Martín (born 18 April 1970) is a Spanish football manager and former player who played as a central defender. He is the manager of Iranian club Tractor. Over 11 seasons, he played 269 La Liga matches in representation o ...

-led side. On 3 November 2012 he provided a further two assists for Piti in a 2–1 away victory over

Málaga CF Málaga Club de Fútbol (, ''Málaga Football Club''), or simply Málaga, is a association football, football club based in Málaga, Andalusia, Spain, that competes in the Segunda División, the second tier of the Spanish football league system, ...

, scoring his fifth goal of the season the following matchday, a 3–2 home defeat of

RC Celta de Vigo Real Club Celta de Vigo (; ), commonly known as Celta de Vigo or simply Celta, is a Spanish professional football club based in Vigo, Galicia, that competes in La Liga, the top tier of Spanish football. Nicknamed ''Os Celestes'' (The Sky Blues), ...

. In January 2013, with the winter

transfer window A transfer window is the period during the year in which a football club can transfer players from other playing staff into their playing staff. Such a transfer is completed by registering the player into the new club through FIFA. "Transfer win ...

opened, Baptistão was linked with moves to the likes of

Liverpool Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. With a population of in 2019, it is the 10th largest English district by population and its metropolitan area is the fifth largest in the United Kingdom, with a popul ...

Manchester United Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of City of Salford, Salford to ...

Queens Park Rangers Queens Park Rangers Football Club, commonly abbreviated to QPR, is a professional football club based in Shepherd's Bush, West London, England, which compete in the . After a nomadic early existence, they have played home matches at Loftus Ro ...

Leeds United Leeds United Football Club is a professional football club based in Leeds, West Yorkshire in England. The club competes in the Premier League, the highest level of England's football league system, and plays its home matches at Elland Road S ...

and

Brighton Brighton () is a seaside resort and one of the two main areas of the City of Brighton and Hove in the county of East Sussex, England. It is located south of London. Archaeological evidence of settlement in the area dates back to the Bronze A ...

, but nothing came of it. On 14 February, in his second appearance after being sidelined several weeks with a muscle injury, he closed the 2–1 home win over Atlético Madrid, only to be downed with another collarbone ailment in April, which sidelined him for the rest of the season.

Atlético Madrid

On 3 June 2013, Baptistão signed a five-year contract with Atlético Madrid for an undisclosed fee. He made his debut for his new team on 21 August, replacing

Arda Turan Arda Turan (born 30 January 1987) is a Turkish former professional footballer who played most notably as a winger. Turan is mostly known for his ball control, dribbling skills and vision. At age 21, prior to the 2009–10 season, he was named ...

in a 1–1 home draw with

FC Barcelona Futbol Club Barcelona (), commonly referred to as Barcelona and colloquially known as Barça (), is a professional football club based in Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain, that competes in La Liga, the top flight of Spanish football. Founded ...

in the first leg of the

Supercopa de España The Supercopa de España or the ''Spanish Super Cup'' is a super cup tournament in Spanish football. Founded in 1982 as a two-team competition, the current version has been contested since 2019–20 by four teams: the winners and runners-up of ...

, which was eventually lost on the

away goals rule The away goals rule is a method of tiebreaker, tiebreaking in association football and other sports when teams play each other twice, once at each team's home ground. Under the away goals rule, if the total goals scored by each team are equal, the ...

.Neymar ya hace de Messi (Neymar already plays as Messi)
Marca, 21 August 2013 (in Spanish) Baptistão scored his first goal for the ''Colchoneros'' on 18 September 2013, in a 3–1 home win over

FC Zenit Saint Petersburg Football Club Zenit (russian: link=no, Футбольный клуб «Зенит» ), also known as Zenit Saint Petersburg or simply Zenit, is a Russian professional association football, football club based in Saint Petersburg. Founded in ...

in that season's

UEFA Champions League The UEFA Champions League (abbreviated as UCL, or sometimes, UEFA CL) is an annual club football competition organised by the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) and contested by top-division European clubs, deciding the competit ...

. It was also his maiden appearance in the competition. On 11 January 2014, Baptistão joined Betis on loan until June. He scored in the 2–0 away victory against city rivals

Sevilla FC Sevilla Fútbol Club () is a Spanish professional football club based in Seville, the capital and largest city of the autonomous community of Andalusia, Spain. It plays in Spanish football's top flight, La Liga. Sevilla have won the UEFA Euro ...

in the last-16 clash of the

UEFA Europa League The UEFA Europa League (abbreviated as UEL, or sometimes, UEFA EL), formerly the UEFA Cup, is an annual football club competition organised since 1971 by the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) for eligible European football clubs. It ...

, but the tie eventually ended in

penalty shootout The penalty shootout is a method of determining a winner in sports matches that would have otherwise been drawn or tied. The rules for penalty shootouts vary between sports and even different competitions; however, the usual form is similar to pen ...

elimination. On 19 August 2014, Baptistão joined former side Rayo in a

season A season is a division of the year based on changes in weather, ecology, and the number of daylight hours in a given region. On Earth, seasons are the result of the axial parallelism of Earth's tilted orbit around the Sun. In temperate and pol ...

-long loan. In late September, in two matches separated by only three days, he earned his team six points by scoring braces at home against

Athletic Bilbao Athletic Club ( eu, Bilboko Athletic Kluba; es, Athletic Club de Bilbao), commonly known as Athletic Bilbao or just Athletic, is a professional Association football, football club based in the city of Bilbao in the Basque Country (autonomous com ...

(2–1) and at

Levante UD Levante Unión Deportiva, S.A.D. (, ca-valencia, Llevant Unió Esportiva ) is a List of football clubs in Spain, Spanish football club in Valencia, in the Valencian Community, namesake autonomous community. Founded on 9 September 1909, Levante ...

(2–0). Baptistão was loaned to

Villarreal CF Villarreal Club de Fútbol, S.A.D. ( ca-valencia, Vila-real Club de Futbol, S.A.D.), usually abbreviated to Villarreal CF or simply Villarreal, is a professional football club based in Villarreal, in the Castellón province of eastern Spain, th ...

in July 2015, with the club having an option to buy him at the end of the campaign. On 27 September, he helped defeat Atlético Madrid by scoring the game's only goal at the

Estadio El Madrigal A stadium ( : stadiums or stadia) is a place or venue for (mostly) outdoor sports, concerts, or other events and consists of a field or stage either partly or completely surrounded by a tiered structure designed to allow spectators to stand o ...

, and four days later, against

FC Viktoria Plzeň Football Club Viktoria Plzeň () is a Czech professional football club based in Plzeň. They play in the Czech First League, the top division of football in the country. As runners-up in the 1970–71 Czechoslovak Cup, the club gained the right ...

in the Europa League group stage, repeated the feat.

Espanyol

On 9 July 2016, Baptistão signed a permanent five-year deal with Espanyol. In his second season, he scored a career-best eight goals.

Wuhan Zall

On 31 January 2019, Baptistão transferred to

Chinese Super League The Chinese Football Association Super League, commonly known as Chinese Super League or CSL, currently known as the China Ping An Chinese Football Association Super League for sponsorship reasons, is the highest tier of professional football in ...

newcomers Wuhan Zall FC. He made his debut on 1 March in a 0–1 home loss to Beijing Sinobo Guoan FC, scoring his first goal on 11 May in the 2–1 win at Dalian Professional FC.

Santos

On 21 August 2021, Baptistão signed a contract with hometown club

Santos FC Santos Futebol Clube (), commonly known simply as Santos or Santos FC and nicknamed the ''Peixe'' (; "fish"), is a Brazilian sports club based in Vila Belmiro, a '' bairro'' in the city of Santos. It is also the team with the most goals i ...

until May 2023, returning to Brazil after 13 years. He made his debut on 4 September, starting in a 2–1 away loss against

Cuiabá Esporte Clube Cuiabá Esporte Clube, commonly referred to as Cuiabá, is a Brazilian professional club based in Cuiabá, Mato Grosso founded on 12 December 2001. It competes in the Campeonato Brasileiro Série A, the top flight of Brazilian football, as wel ...

, and finished the season with just eight appearances due to injury. Baptistão scored his first goal for ''Peixe'' on 16 March 2022, a last-minute equaliser in the 3–3

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 ...

away draw against

Associação Ferroviária de Esportes Associação Ferroviária de Esportes, commonly referred to as simply Ferroviária, is a Brazilian association football club in Araraquara, São Paulo. They currently play in the Série D, the fourth tier of Brazilian football, as well as in the ...

Almería

On 10 August 2022, Santos announced the transfer of Baptistão to

Career statistics

Honours

Atlético Madrid *

: 2013–14 *

runner-up:

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 ...

runner-up: 2013–14

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Baptistao, Leo 1992 births Living people Sportspeople from Santos, São Paulo Brazilian footballers Association football forwards La Liga players Segunda División B players Rayo Vallecano B players Rayo Vallecano players Atlético Madrid footballers Real Betis players Villarreal CF players RCD Espanyol footballers UD Almería players Chinese Super League players Wuhan F.C. players Campeonato Brasileiro Série A players Santos FC players Brazilian expatriate footballers Expatriate footballers in Spain Expatriate footballers in China Brazilian expatriate sportspeople in Spain Brazilian expatriate sportspeople in China