Robert Kenedy Nunes do Nascimento (born 8 February 1996), known as Kenedy, 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

left winger A midfielder is an outfield position in association football. Midfielders may play an exclusively defensive role, breaking up attacks, and are in that case known as defensive midfielders. As central midfielders often go across boundarie ...

for

Segunda División The Campeonato Nacional de Liga de Segunda División, commercially known as LaLiga SmartBank for sponsorship reasons, is the men's second professional association football division of the Spanish football league system. Administrated by the Lig ...

club

Real Valladolid Real Valladolid Club de Fútbol, S.A.D., or simply Real Valladolid () or Valladolid, is a professional football club based in Valladolid, Castile and León, Spain that competes in La Liga, the top tier of the Spanish league system. The club colo ...

. Kenedy made his professional debut aged 17 for

Fluminense Fluminense Football Club (), known as Fluminense, is a Brazilian sports club best known for its professional football team that competes in the Campeonato Brasileiro Série A, the first tier of Brazilian football and the Campeonato Carioca, ...

, scoring five goals in 40 official games before a £6.3 million move to Chelsea in 2015. Kenedy has represented Brazil at under-17 and under-20 level.

Club career

Early career

Born in

Santa Rita do Sapucaí Santa Rita do Sapucaí () is a Municipalities of Brazil, municipality situated in the southernmost part of the State of Minas Gerais. The city is known as the "electronic valley", since it has plenty of electronic industries, and both a technical ...

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 ...

, Kenedy is named after

Robert F. Kennedy Robert Francis Kennedy (November 20, 1925June 6, 1968), also known by his initials RFK and by the nickname Bobby, was an American lawyer and politician who served as the 64th United States Attorney General from January 1961 to September 1964, ...

. He began his career at local club Santarritense before moving to Friburguense in

Rio de Janeiro state Rio de Janeiro () is one of the 27 federative units of Brazil. It has the second largest economy of Brazil, with the largest being that of the state of São Paulo. The state, which has 8.2% of the Brazilian population, is responsible for 9.2% of ...

at the age of 11, going on to

Vasco da Gama Vasco da Gama, 1st Count of Vidigueira (; ; c. 1460s – 24 December 1524), was a Portuguese explorer and the first European to reach India by sea. His initial voyage to India by way of Cape of Good Hope (1497–1499) was the first to link E ...

and

Atlético Mineiro Atlético, Spanish for ''athletics'', or Athletico in English, may refer to: Sports Teams Athletico *Athletico SC (Lebanon), a Lebanese football academy *Athletic Bilbao, or Atletico Bilbao, Basque students athletic club (also forming Athletic Cl ...

before arriving at

Fluminense

Kenedy made his professional debut on 28 July 2013 in a 2–0 Série A defeat at Grêmio, replacing

Wagner Wilhelm Richard Wagner ( ; ; 22 May 181313 February 1883) was a German composer, theatre director, polemicist, and conductor who is chiefly known for his operas (or, as some of his mature works were later known, "music dramas"). Unlike most op ...

for the final nine minutes. On 24 May 2014, he scored his first professional goal, the only one in an away win over

Esporte Clube Bahia Esporte Clube Bahia (), known familiarly as Bahia, is a Brazilian professional football club, based in Salvador, capital city of the Brazilian state of Bahia. They play in the Campeonato Baiano, Bahia's state league, and the Campeonato Bras ...

. He netted his second goal for the club in September, a late equaliser against Cruzeiro. In March 2015, Kenedy scored in three home victories for ''Flu'' in the year's

Campeonato Carioca The Campeonato Carioca (Carioca Championship), officially known as Campeonato Estadual do Rio de Janeiro (Port., Rio de Janeiro State Championship), was started in 1906 and is the annual football championship in the state of Rio de Janeiro, B ...

. On 18 April, in the tournament's semi-final, he missed their first attempt as they lost 9–8 in a

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 ...

Botafogo Botafogo (local/standard alternative Brazilian Portuguese pronunciation: ) is a beachfront neighborhood (''bairro'') in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. It is a mostly upper middle class and small commerce community, and is located between the hills of M ...

Chelsea

2015–16 season

On 26 June 2015, Fluminense announced that Kenedy had been sold to an unnamed club for a fee around the region of £6.3 million. It was later confirmed that Kenedy was on trial at

Chelsea Chelsea or Chelsey may refer to: Places Australia * Chelsea, Victoria Canada * Chelsea, Nova Scotia * Chelsea, Quebec United Kingdom * Chelsea, London, an area of London, bounded to the south by the River Thames ** Chelsea (UK Parliament consti ...

, where he played in a pre-season match against

Barcelona Barcelona ( , , ) is a city on the coast of northeastern Spain. It is the capital and largest city of the autonomous community of Catalonia, as well as the second most populous municipality of Spain. With a population of 1.6 million within ci ...

, after Kenedy was given permission from Fluminense to play in the game as he had not yet been formally signed. On 22 August 2015, Chelsea completed the transfer. A week later, Kenedy made his debut against

Crystal Palace Crystal Palace may refer to: Places Canada * Crystal Palace Complex (Dieppe), a former amusement park now a shopping complex in Dieppe, New Brunswick * Crystal Palace Barracks, London, Ontario * Crystal Palace (Montreal), an exhibition building * ...

, coming on as a 68th-minute substitute for

César Azpilicueta César Azpilicueta Tanco (born 28 August 1989) is a Spanish professional footballer who plays as a defender for club Chelsea and the Spain national team. A youth product of Osasuna, Azpilicueta spent three seasons in La Liga before switching ...

in a 2–1 home defeat. He scored his first goal for the club on 23 September in the third round of the

League Cup In several sports, most prominently association football, a league cup or secondary cup generally signifies a cup competition for which entry is restricted only to teams in a particular league. The first national association football tournament t ...

Walsall Walsall (, or ; locally ) is a market town and administrative centre in the West Midlands (county), West Midlands County, England. Historic counties of England, Historically part of Staffordshire, it is located north-west of Birmingham, east ...

, also assisting compatriot

Ramires Ramires Santos do Nascimento (; born 24 March 1987), known as Ramires, is a Brazilian former professional footballer. A midfielder, he was comfortable playing in either the centre or right midfielder position. He normally played as a box-to-box ...

in the 4–1 victory; his first league goal was the following 1 March, a 39th-second effort in a 2–1 win at

Norwich City Norwich City Football Club (also known as The Canaries or The Yellows) is an English professional football club based in Norwich, Norfolk. The club competes in the EFL Championship following their relegation from the Premier League in the 20 ...

that was the fastest goal of the season.

Loan to Watford

On 30 August 2016, Kenedy joined

Watford Watford () is a town and borough in Hertfordshire, England, 15 miles northwest of Central London, on the River Colne. Initially a small market town, the Grand Junction Canal encouraged the construction of paper-making mills, print works, a ...

on a season-long

loan In finance, a loan is the lending of money by one or more individuals, organizations, or other entities to other individuals, organizations, etc. The recipient (i.e., the borrower) incurs a debt and is usually liable to pay interest on that d ...

after having a bid accepted from Chelsea. On 26 September, he made his only appearance for the Hornets in a 2–0 away defeat against

Burnley Burnley () is a town and the administrative centre of the wider Borough of Burnley in Lancashire, England, with a 2001 population of 73,021. It is north of Manchester and east of Preston, at the confluence of the River Calder and River Bru ...

, replacing

Roberto Pereyra Roberto Maximiliano Pereyra (; born 7 January 1991) is an Argentine professional footballer who plays as a forward for Serie A club Udinese. A versatile player, he is capable of playing a variety of positions such as left or right wing, central ...

with 15 minutes remaining. After struggling with injuries, manager

Walter Mazzarri Walter Mazzarri (; born 1 October 1961) is an Italian former footballer and head coach, most recently in charge of Serie A club Cagliari. After a 14-year playing career with Italian clubs including Reggiana and Empoli, Mazzarri coached several ...

, confirmed that Kenedy had returned to Chelsea on 12 December after a disappointing loan spell.

2016–17 season

After being recalled by Chelsea from his loan spell with Watford, Kenedy made his return for the Blues in their 4–0 home victory over

Brentford Brentford is a suburban town in West London, England and part of the London Borough of Hounslow. It lies at the confluence of the River Brent and the Thames, west of Charing Cross. Its economy has diverse company headquarters buildings whi ...

in their

FA Cup The Football Association Challenge Cup, more commonly known as the FA Cup, is an annual knockout football competition in men's domestic English football. First played during the 1871–72 season, it is the oldest national football competi ...

fourth round tie. Retaining his number 16 jersey, Kenedy replaced

with just under twenty minutes remaining. He made his first start under Conte against Watford on 15 May 2017.

2017–18 season

During a pre-season tour of China, Kenedy caused controversy by posting two inflammatory videos on social media, one captioned "Porra china", roughly translating to "Fuck China", and the other of a sleeping Chinese security guard captioned "Acorda china. Vacilão", translating to "Wake up China. You idiot". The incident was met with uproar by Chinese fans and media. As a result, Kenedy was sent back to England for damaging relationships with the Asian fan base. Both Kenedy and Chelsea later issued apologies over the incident and the club stated that the player had been "strongly reprimanded and disciplined". Following the incident, Chinese media outlets were ordered to withdraw stories related to Chelsea from homepages and apps and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs confirmed that there was a remote possibility of a ban for the club. In August, a loan to

Newcastle United Newcastle United Football Club is an English professional football club, based in Newcastle upon Tyne, that plays in the Premier League – the top flight of English football. The club was founded in 1892 by the merger of Newcastle East End ...

fell through on transfer deadline day. On 20 September 2017, Kenedy made his first appearance since the incident during pre-season when he started against

Nottingham Forest Nottingham Forest Football Club is an association football club based in West Bridgford, Nottinghamshire, England. Nottingham Forest was founded in 1865 and have been playing their home games at the City Ground, on the banks of the River Tren ...

in the League Cup. He scored the opener in a 5–1 victory.

Loans to Newcastle United

On 23 January 2018, Kenedy joined Newcastle United on loan for the remainder of the 2017–18 season. Kenedy impressed on his Newcastle debut, creating

Jamaal Lascelles Jamaal Lascelles ( ; born 11 November 1993) is an English professional footballer who plays as a centre-back and captains club Newcastle United. Lascelles previously played for Nottingham Forest, where he was developed through its youth acade ...

opener from a corner kick in a 1–1 draw with

. On 10 March, Kenedy won the Man of the Match award after scoring a brace in Newcastle's 3–0 win against

Southampton Southampton () is a port city in the ceremonial county of Hampshire in southern England. It is located approximately south-west of London and west of Portsmouth. The city forms part of the South Hampshire built-up area, which also covers Po ...

. Kenedy provided an assist for Ayoze Perez's 80th minute winner in Newcastle's 1–0 victory against

Huddersfield Huddersfield is a market town in the Kirklees district in West Yorkshire, England. It is the administrative centre and largest settlement in the Kirklees district. The town is in the foothills of the Pennines. The River Holme's confluence into ...

on 31 March. He returned to

Tyneside Tyneside is a built-up area across the banks of the River Tyne in northern England. Residents of the area are commonly referred to as Geordies. The whole area is surrounded by the North East Green Belt. The population of Tyneside as published i ...

on loan for the 2018–19 season. Kenedy had a particularly poor match in a goalless draw at

Cardiff City Cardiff City Football Club ( cy, Clwb Pêl-droed Dinas Caerdydd) is a professional association football club based in Cardiff, Wales. It competes in the Championship, the second tier of the English football league system. Founded in 1899 as R ...

on 18 August, he avoided a red card for a kick at

Víctor Camarasa Víctor Camarasa Ferrando (born 28 May 1994) is a Spanish professional footballer who plays as a central midfielder for Real Oviedo. Club career Levante Born in Meliana, Valencian Community, Camarasa joined local Valencia CF's youth academy in ...

, became the first player since 2010 to play a full Premier League first half without completing a pass and his penalty in added time to win the game was saved by

Neil Etheridge Neil Leonard Dula Etheridge (born 7 February 1990) is a Filipino-English professional footballer who plays as a goalkeeper for club Birmingham City. Born in England, he captains the Philippines national team. He joined the Fulham Academy af ...

. On 6 October, Kenedy scored his first goal of the season in a 3–2 loss at

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 ...

Loan to Getafe

On 2 September 2019, Kenedy was loaned to

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 ...

side

Getafe CF Getafe Club de Fútbol (), or simply Getafe, is a professional football club based in Getafe, a city in the Community of Madrid. The team competes in La Liga, the highest tier of the Spanish football system. The club's home stadium (owned and op ...

for the 2019–20 season. On 3 November 2019, he scored his first league goal of the season in a 1-0 win over

Celta 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) ...

Loan to Granada

On 8 September 2020, Kenedy returned to Spain with

Granada Granada (,, DIN 31635, DIN: ; grc, Ἐλιβύργη, Elibýrgē; la, Illiberis or . ) is the capital city of the province of Granada, in the autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Andalusia, Spain. Granada is located at the fo ...

on loan until the end of 2020–21 season. He made his club debut as a substitute on 12 September 2020, in a 2–0 win 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 ...

Loan to Flamengo

On 18 August 2021, Kenedy extended his contract with Chelsea and returned to Brazil on loan with

Flamengo Clube de Regatas do Flamengo (; English: ''Flamengo Rowing Club''), more commonly referred to as simply Flamengo, is a Brazilian sports club based in Rio de Janeiro, in the neighborhood of Gávea, best known for their professional football t ...

until July 2022. He was recalled by Chelsea in January 2022 due to an injury to

Ben Chilwell Benjamin James Chilwell (born 21 December 1996) is an English professional footballer who plays as a left-back for club Chelsea and the England national team. Beginning his career at Leicester City, Chilwell had a loan spell with Huddersfiel ...

2021–22 season

Kenedy made his first Chelsea appearance in over four years when he started in a 3–2 win over

Luton Town Luton Town Football Club () is a professional association football club based in the town of Luton, Bedfordshire, England, that competes in the Championship, the second tier of the English football league system. Founded in 1885, it is nicknam ...

in the

on 2 March 2022. He also played in the next round against

Middlesbrough Middlesbrough ( ) is a town on the southern bank of the River Tees in North Yorkshire, England. It is near the North York Moors national park. It is the namesake and main town of its local borough council area. Until the early 1800s, the a ...

later that month. On the final day of the season, he made his first league appearance for the Blues in five years, starting in a 2-1 win over

Valladolid

On 1 September 2022, Kenedy joined

club

for an undisclosed fee.

International career

Kenedy scored six goals in eight games for Brazil under-17 as they came third at the 2013 South American Championship in Argentina. Kenedy originally named as part of the Brazil under-20 squad for the 2015 World Cup in New Zealand, but missed the tournament with

appendicitis Appendicitis is inflammation of the appendix. Symptoms commonly include right lower abdominal pain, nausea, vomiting, and decreased appetite. However, approximately 40% of people do not have these typical symptoms. Severe complications of a rup ...

, being replaced by Malcom as the team ended as runners-up.

Style of play

An ''

NBC Sports NBC Sports is an American programming division of the broadcast network NBC, owned and operated by NBC Sports Group division of NBCUniversal and subsidiary of Comcast. The division is responsible for sports broadcasts on the network, and its d ...

'' article by Nicholas Mendola in 2018 credited Kenedy's versatility, stating "The Brazilian left-sided man can play virtually any field position besides

center 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 ...

Career statistics

Honours

Chelsea *

FIFA Club World Cup The FIFA Club World Cup is an international men's association football competition organised by the ''Fédération Internationale de Football Association'' ( FIFA), the sport's global governing body. The competition was first contested in 200 ...

2021 File:2021 collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: the James Webb Space Telescope was launched in 2021; Protesters in Yangon, Myanmar following the 2021 Myanmar coup d'état, coup d'état; A civil demonstration against the October–November 2021 ...

References

External links

Profile
at the Real Valladolid website * {{DEFAULTSORT:Kenedy Living people 1996 births Footballers from Minas Gerais Brazilian men's footballers Men's association football wingers Men's association football fullbacks Fluminense FC players Chelsea F.C. players Watford F.C. players Newcastle United F.C. players Getafe CF footballers Granada CF footballers CR Flamengo footballers Real Valladolid players Campeonato Brasileiro Série A players Premier League players La Liga players Brazil men's youth international footballers Brazilian expatriate men's footballers Expatriate men's footballers in England Expatriate men's footballers in Spain Brazilian expatriate sportspeople in England Brazilian expatriate sportspeople in Spain People from Santa Rita do Sapucaí