Eliseu

Eliseu Pereira dos Santos (born 1 October 1983), known simply as Eliseu (), is a Portuguese former professional footballer who played either as a left back or left winger.

After starting out at Belenenses, he went on to spend most of his career with Málaga after signing in 2007, appearing in 224 official games and scoring 27 goals in two separate spells. In 2014 he signed with Benfica, with whom he won three consecutive Primeira Liga titles among other major trophies during four seasons.

A full international since 2009, Eliseu was part of the Portuguese squad that won Euro 2016.

Early years

Eliseu was born in Angra do Heroísmo, Azores, to a Cape Verdean mother, Inês Furtado (a restaurant owner), and a Portuguese father, José (an ambulance driver). The couple divorced when he was a teenager.

Club career

Belenenses

Eliseu moved to Portugal's mainland in 2002, moving from Sport Clube Marítimo de Angra do Heroísmo to C.F. Os Belenenses. He gradually broke into the Lisbon-based club's first team, appearing in 19 Primeira Liga games in his second season.

After a loan with Varzim S.C. in the Segunda Liga, Eliseu continued to be a relatively important attacking player for Belenenses, but was used mainly as a substitute.

Málaga

For 2007–08, Eliseu and countrymen Hélder Rosário and Paulo Jorge moved to Málaga CF, helping the Andalusians return to La Liga after a two-year absence, with the trio totalling 108 matches and six goals combined (three from Eliseu). The following campaign he continued to be an automatic first-choice, scoring his first Spanish top flight goal(s) in a 4–0 away win over neighbours Recreativo de Huelva on 5 October 2008. The following month he also netted, in a 3–4 loss at Real Madrid.

On 25 June 2009, Eliseu joined S.S. Lazio in Italy for exactly €1 million. However, after receiving few opportunities, he moved to Real Zaragoza on 7 January of the following year, on loan until the end of the season. He scored in only his second match for the Aragonese, which lost 2–4 at Villarreal CF.

After contributing to Zaragoza avoiding relegation – he also scored in the last match, netting a 35-yard free kick against the same opponents, in a 3–3 home draw– Eliseu returned to La Rosaleda Stadium. Subsequently, he became teammate of compatriot Duda.

Eliseu started 2010–11 firmly established in the starting XI. On 27 September 2010, he scored from 25 meters against Villarreal to open the score but, minutes later, he headbutted Carlos Marchena and was sent off in an eventual 2–3 home loss; as his suspension was lifted he was able to appear in the next fixture, at UD Almería, but he again received his marching orders after elbowing Juan Manuel Ortiz in the 1–1 draw.

Eliseu was a regular starter when available, netting in a 4–1 home win against Racing de Santander on 5 December 2010 from a volley and also providing two assists to Salomón Rondón. Following the arrival of Manuel Pellegrini, who replaced sacked Jesualdo Ferreira, he was mostly used as a left back.

After the signing of Nacho Monreal, Eliseu played in the midfield more often than not. On 3 October 2012, he scored a brace in a 3–0 away win over Anderlecht in that season's UEFA Champions League group stage, the first coming from 20 meters and the second through a lob over the goalkeeper.

Benfica

On 24 July 2014, Eliseu signed for Portuguese champions S.L. Benfica for an undisclosed fee rumoured to be around €1.5 million, on a two-year deal with the option for a further one. He was reunited at the club with former Belenenses coach Jorge Jesus, who had previously tried to acquire his services.

Eliseu made his official debut on 10 August 2014, playing the full 120 minutes as a left back in a penalty shootout win against Rio Ave for the Supertaça Cândido de Oliveira ( 0–0 draw). He scored his first goal for his new team with a strike from outside the box, which ended up being the winning goal at Boavista FC's artificial turf. His second came on 21 September also in the league, striking from 30 meters out in a 3–1 home success over Moreirense.

On 21 February 2015, Eliseu also netted from long range against Moreirense in the league (3–1 away win). He ended the campaign with 33 games across all competitions, as Benfica won the national championship for the second time in a row.

It was reported by Portuguese press in December 2017 that Eliseu had been told by manager Rui Vitória that he would be released at the turn of the year. This did not happen, but in March it was confirmed that his contract would not be renewed once it expired at the end of the season. In May 2019 he returned to the Estádio da Luz to celebrate the team's league win by driving around the pitch on his scooter, wearing sunglasses at night; he had marked the victory two years prior in the same way.

International career

Courtesy of his Málaga performances, Eliseu was first called to the Portugal national team for an exhibition game with Finland on 11 February 2009, but did not leave the bench. He finally made his debut on 10 June, in a 0–0 friendly against Estonia.

Although not part of the provisional 24-player list for the 2010 FIFA World Cup in South Africa, Eliseu was named in a backup list of six players. He scored his first international goal on 7 October 2011, in a 5–3 home defeat of Iceland for the UEFA Euro 2012 qualifiers where he featured as a left back and also made two assists.

Eliseu did not make any appearances for his country in 2012 and 2013. He was selected by manager Fernando Santos for his Euro 2016 squad, featuring against Hungary in the group stage (3–3) and Poland in the quarter-finals (1–1, triumph on penalties) as the tournament ended in conquest.

Career statistics

Club

:Sources:

International

:Source:

Honours

Club

Lazio
* Supercoppa Italiana: 2009

Benfica
* Primeira Liga: 2014–15, 2015–16, 2016–17
*Taça de Portugal: 2016–17
* Taça da Liga: 2014–15, 2015–16
*Supertaça Cândido de Oliveira: 2014, 2016, 2017

International

Portugal
*UEFA European Championship: 2016
* FIFA Confederations Cup third place: 2017

Orders

* Commander of the Order of Merit

References

External links

National team data

*
*

{{DEFAULTSORT:Eliseu
1983 births
Living people
People from Angra do Heroísmo
Portuguese people of Cape Verdean descent
Portuguese footballers
Association football defenders
Association football wingers
Association football utility players
Primeira Liga players
Liga Portugal 2 players
C.F. Os Belenenses players
Varzim S.C. players
S.L. Benfica footballers
La Liga players
Segunda División players
Málaga CF players
Real Zaragoza players
Serie A players
S.S. Lazio players
Portugal youth international footballers
Portugal under-21 international footballers
Portugal international footballers
UEFA Euro 2016 players
UEFA European Championship-winning players
2017 FIFA Confederations Cup players
Portuguese expatriate footballers
Expatriate footballers in Spain
Expatriate footballers in Italy
Portuguese expatriate sportspeople in Spain
Portuguese expatriate sportspeople in Italy
Commanders of the Order of Merit (Portugal)
Black Portuguese sportspeople
Portugal B international footballers