Rafael Pires Monteiro (born 23 June 1989 in

Coronel Fabriciano Coronel Fabriciano is a municipality in the state of Minas Gerais in the Southeast region of Brazil. It is located in the region of Vale do Rio Doce and is situated 200 km from the state capital. The municipal population was estimated in 202 ...

), known simply as Rafael, 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 ...

who plays as a

goalkeeper In many team sports which involve scoring goals, the goalkeeper (sometimes termed goaltender, netminder, GK, goalie or keeper) is a designated player charged with directly preventing the opposing team from scoring by blocking or intercepting o ...

for

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 ...

Club career

Rafael joined the youth ranks of Cruzeiro in 2002 and received his first call up to the first team squad six years later. He made his professional debut on 30 January 2010, in a Campeonato Mineiro 3–0 defeat to

Ipatinga Ipatinga is a municipality in eastern Minas Gerais state, Brazil. The city was founded on 29 April 1964 and covers a total area of . Its population is 267,333 as of 2021. It is part of the Vale do Aço (Steel Valley) metropolitan area (populati ...

. On 4 December 2011, he was in the starting lineup in one of Cruzeiro's most famed Clássico Mineiro wins, in which they beat rivals

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 ...

6–1 in the last round of that year's Campeonato Brasileiro Série A and avoided relegation. During Cruzeiro's 2016 Campeonato Brasileiro Série A campaign, Rafael served as the main goalkeeper, while the first choice and club

captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police department, election precinct, e ...

Fábio Fabio is a given name descended from Latin '' Fabius'' and very popular in Italy and Latin America (due to Italian migration). Its English equivalent is Fabian. The name is written without an accent in Italian and Spanish, but is usually accented ...

recovered from a long-term injury. During the first months of 2017, he and Fábio battled for the spot, with Rafael starting in most of the

2017 Campeonato Mineiro The 2017 Campeonato Mineiro is the 103nd season of Mineiro's top professional football league. The competition began on January 28 and will end in May. Teams * América * América TO *Atlético Mineiro * Caldense * Cruzeiro * Democrata GV * Tomb ...

matches. On 3 March 2020, Rafael joined

on a three-year deal. On 8 December 2022, Rafael signed a three-year deal with

Career statistics

Honours

Cruzeiro *

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 *

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, 2018 * Campeonato Mineiro: 2009,

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, 2019 Atlético Mineiro *Campeonato Brasileiro Série A:

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 ...

*Copa do Brasil:

*Campeonato Mineiro:

2020 2020 was heavily defined by the COVID-19 pandemic, which led to global Social impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, social and Economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, economic disruption, mass cancellations and postponements of events, COVID- ...

2022 File:2022 collage V1.png, Clockwise, from top left: Road junction at Yamato-Saidaiji Station several hours after the assassination of Shinzo Abe; 2022 Sri Lankan protests, Anti-government protest in Sri Lanka in front of the Presidential Secretari ...

Supercopa do Brasil The Supercopa do Brasil ( en, Brazil Super Cup) is a Brazilian association football trophy organized by the Brazilian Football Confederation (CBF). It is contested between the champions of the Campeonato Brasileiro and the winners of the Copa d ...

Brazil U20 *

South American Youth Championship The South American Youth Football Championship, also known as U-20 South American Championship and es, Torneo Juventudes de América, "Campeonato Sudamericano Sub 20" or pt, Juventude da América (English: "America's Youth") is a South American ...

: 2009

References

External links

* 1989 births Living people Sportspeople from Minas Gerais Brazilian footballers Association football goalkeepers Cruzeiro Esporte Clube players Clube Atlético Mineiro players São Paulo FC players Campeonato Brasileiro Série A players Brazil youth international footballers Brazil under-20 international footballers {{Brazil-footy-goalkeeper-stub