Luís Leal dos Anjos (born 29 May 1987) is a 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 lea ...

who plays as a striker for

Peruvian Segunda División The Peruvian Second Division (; known simply as ''Second Division'', and Liga 2 Caja Cusco for sponsorship reasons), officially known as Liga 2, is the second-highest division in the Peruvian football league system. Founded in 1943, it is a profess ...

club Bentín Tacna Heroica and captains the São Tomé and Príncipe national team. He achieved

Primeira Liga The Primeira Liga (), also known as Liga Portugal Betclic for sponsorship reasons, is a professional association football league in Portugal and the highest level of the Portuguese football league system. Organised and supervised by the Liga ...

totals of 67 games and 19 goals for

União de Leiria União Desportiva de Leiria (), commonly known as União de Leiria, is a Portuguese professional Association football, football club based in Leiria. Founded on 6 June 1966, it currently plays in the Liga Portugal 2, holding home matches at Está ...

Estoril Estoril () is a town in the civil parish of Cascais e Estoril of the Portuguese Municipality of Cascais, on the Portuguese Riviera. It is a popular tourist destination, with hotels, beaches, and the Casino Estoril. It has been home to numero ...

and

Belenenses Clube de Futebol Os Belenenses (), commonly known as Os Belenenses or simply Belenenses, is a Portuguese sports club best known for its football team. Founded in 1919, it is one of the oldest Portuguese sports clubs. It is based in the 19,856 ...

, but spent most of his career abroad, playing top-flight football in Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Turkey, Cyprus, Paraguay, Mexico, Argentina and Bolivia. Born in Portugal, Leal represented

São Tomé and Príncipe São Tomé and Príncipe, officially the Democratic Republic of São Tomé and Príncipe, is an island country in the Gulf of Guinea, off the western equatorial coast of Central Africa. It consists of two archipelagos around the two main isla ...

at international level.

Club career

Portugal

Born in

Arrentela Arrentela is a former civil parish in the municipality (''concelho'') of Seixal, Lisbon metropolitan area, Portugal. In 2013, the parish merged into the new parish Seixal, Arrentela e Aldeia de Paio Pires. The population in 2011 was 28,886, in an ...

Setúbal District The District of Setúbal ( ) is a district located in the south-west of Portugal. It is named for its capital, the city of Setúbal. Geography It is delimited by Lisbon District and Santarém District on the north, Évora District on the eas ...

in Portugal, Leal joined

Sporting CP Sporting Clube de Portugal (), otherwise referred to as Sporting CP or simply Sporting (particularly within Portugal), or as Sporting Lisbon in other countries,

's youth system at the age of 11, moving after four years to C.D. Cova da Piedade. He made his senior debut with the latter, playing a couple of seasons in the fourth division.Full circle – a decade in the life of Luís Leal
PortuGOAL, 28 September 2012 Leal then had two solid campaigns in the third tier, one apiece with

Atlético Clube de Portugal Atlético Clube de Portugal is a Portuguese sports club based in the parish of Alcântara, in the west side of Lisbon. The club was established on 18 September 1942 through the merger of two local clubs from Alcântara: Carcavelinhos Football ...

and

Moreirense FC Moreirense Futebol Clube is a Portuguese professional football club based in Moreira de Cónegos, Guimarães Municipality, Minho. Founded on 1 November 1938, it plays in the Primeira Liga, holding home games at Parque de Jogos Comendador Joaqui ...

, continuing his professional progression in summer 2010 by signing with

G.D. Estoril Praia Grupo Desportivo Estoril Praia (), commonly known as Estoril, is a Portuguese professional sports club from Estoril, Cascais, Lisbon. Founded on 17 May 1939, its Association football, football team currently plays in Primeira Liga and hold home g ...

in the Segunda Liga. He made his debut in the

in the 2011–12 campaign with U.D. Leiria, appearing in his first game in the competition on 15 August 2011 against Académica de Coimbra (17 minutes played, 1–2 home loss). In 2012, after Leiria's relegation – and further demotion to division three due to irregularities – Leal returned to Estoril, with the team now in the top flight. He started the season in impressive fashion, scoring a

hat-trick A hat-trick or hat trick is the achievement of a generally positive feat three times in a match, or another achievement based on the number three. Origin The term first appeared in 1858 in cricket, to describe H. H. Stephenson taking three Wick ...

in a 3–1 home win over C.S. Marítimo and one goal in a 2–2 draw at former club Sporting.

Abroad

On 18 June 2015, after brief spells at

Al Ahli Saudi FC Al-Ahli Saudi Football Club (), commonly known as Al-Ahli, is a Saudi professional football club based in Jeddah. It competes in the Saudi Pro League, the top tier of Saudi football. Al-Ahli has won 52 official championships, the third mos ...

, Al-Ittihad Kalba SC and

Gaziantepspor Gaziantepspor was a Turkish football club located in the city of Gaziantep. Formed in 1969 and dissolved in 2020, Gaziantepspor were nicknamed the ''Şahinler'' (The Falcons). The club colours were black and red, and they played their home matc ...

, Leal signed a two-year contract with

Cypriot First Division The Cypriot First Division (), also known as the Cyprus League by Stoiximan for sponsorship reasons, is a professional association football league in Cyprus and the highest level of the Cypriot football league system. Operated by the Cyprus Fo ...

club

APOEL FC APOEL FC (; short for Αθλητικός Ποδοσφαιρικός Όμιλος Ελλήνων Λευκωσίας, ''Athletikos Podosferikos Omilos Ellinon Lefkosias'', "Athletic Football Club of Greeks of Nicosia") is a Cypriot professio ...

. He made his debut on 14 July, in a 0–0 home draw against

FK Vardar FK Vardar () is a professional Association football, football club based in Skopje, North Macedonia, which competes in the Macedonian First Football League, Macedonian First League. They are the most successful football club in Football in Maced ...

in the

second qualifying round The second (symbol: s) is a unit of time derived from the division of the day first into 24 hours, then to 60 minutes, and finally to 60 seconds each (24 × 60 × 60 = 86400). The current and formal definition in the International System of Un ...

of the

UEFA Champions League The UEFA Champions League (UCL) is an annual club association football competition organised by the UEFA, Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) that is contested by List of top-division football clubs in UEFA countries, top-divisio ...

. Leal scored his first two goals for APOEL on 22 August 2015, in a 5–1 away victory over

Ermis Aradippou FC Ermis Aradippou () is a Cypriot professional football club based in Aradippou, a settlement on the outskirts of the city of Larnaca. The club was formed in 1958, and currently plays in the Cypriot Third Division. Ermis' greatest success cam ...

. Eight days later, however, after underperforming in the Champions League's qualifiers, he was sent on loan to

C.F. Os Belenenses Clube de Futebol Os Belenenses (), commonly known as Os Belenenses or simply Belenenses, is a Portuguese sports club best known for its football team. Founded in 1919, it is one of the oldest Portuguese sports clubs. It is based in the 19,856 ...

until the end of the season. On 26 January 2016, Leal joined

Cerro Porteño Club Cerro Porteño is a professional Paraguayan Association football, football club, based in the neighbourhood of Obrero (Asunción), Obrero in Asunción. Founded in 1912, Cerro has won 34 Paraguayan Primera División, Primera División titles ...

for an undisclosed fee, agreeing to a two-year deal. He made his debut in the

Paraguayan Primera División The División Profesional de la Paraguayan Football Association, Asociación Paraguaya de Fútbol (; "Professional Division of the Paraguayan Football Association"), also known as the Primera División (; "first division"), or due to sponsorship ...

five days later, in a 2–1 away loss to Sportivo Luqueño where he came on as a 64th-minute substitute for Sergio Díaz; one week later, he scored a double to help to a 3–0 home defeat of

General Caballero Sport Club General Caballero Sport Club, also referred as General Caballero ZC, is an association football club from Zeballos Cué, Asunción, Paraguay. The club was founded September 6, 1918 and plays in the Primera División B, the third division of th ...

. Leal returned to the

Saudi Professional League The Saudi Pro League (SPL), also known as the Roshn Saudi League (RSL) for sponsorship reasons, is a professional association football league in Saudi Arabia and the highest level of the Saudi football league system. The SPL is regarded as th ...

in August 2016, joining

Al Fateh SC Al Fateh Sports Club () is a Saudi Arabian multi-sports club based in Al-Mubarraz, Al-Ahsa. It is mainly known for its professional football club. The club derives its nickname from the fact that almost all of its sections play in the nationa ...

. Only months into his spell at the Prince Abdullah bin Jalawi Stadium, the player's agent Óscar Díaz stated that he wanted to return to Cerro. He left in January 2017, signing for Chiapas F.C. in Mexico's

Liga MX Liga MX, also known as Liga BBVA MX for sponsorship reasons, is a professional association football league in Mexico and the highest level of the Mexican football league system. Formerly known as Liga Mayor (1943–1949) and also as Primera Divis ...

. His first goal for the ''Jaguares'' was on 26 February, the team's last in a 4–3 home comeback win over

CD Guadalajara Club Deportivo Guadalajara S.A de C.V. (;), nicknamed ''"Chivas"'' () and simply known as Guadalajara or internationally as Chivas de Guadalajara, is a Mexican professional Association football, football club based in the Guadalajara metropolit ...

. In August 2017, Leal returned to South America, loaned for a

US$ The United States dollar (Currency symbol, symbol: Dollar sign, $; ISO 4217, currency code: USD) is the official currency of the United States and International use of the U.S. dollar, several other countries. The Coinage Act of 1792 introdu ...

150,000 fee to

Newell's Old Boys Club Atlético Newell's Old Boys () is an Argentine sports club based in Rosario, Santa Fe. The club was founded on 3 November 1903, and is named after Isaac Newell of the English county of Kent, one of the pioneers of Argentine football. A ...

in Argentina with the option to buy. He scored his first goal in the

Argentine Primera División The Primera División (; ), known officially as Liga Profesional de Fútbol, or Torneo Betano for sponsorship reasons, is a professional association football league in Argentina and the highest level of the Argentine football league system. Organ ...

on 16 September to open a 2–0 home victory against

Club Olimpo Club Olimpo, usually referred to as Olimpo de Bahía Blanca, is an Argentine sports club based in the city of Bahía Blanca, Buenos Aires Province. The club was founded October 15th, 1910. Its primary activity is soccer. The club is recognized in ...

. In July 2018, he signed a three-year contract when the

Rosario Rosario () is the largest city in the central provinces of Argentina, Argentine province of Santa Fe Province, Santa Fe. The city, located northwest of Buenos Aires on the west bank of the Paraná River, is the third-most populous city in the ...

-based club purchased 85% of his economic rights. In August 2020, Leal returned to Mexico's top flight with

Club Tijuana Club Tijuana Xoloitzcuintles de Caliente, simply known as Tijuana or Xolos, is a Mexican professional Association football, football club based in Tijuana, Baja California, that competes in Liga MX, the top division of Mexican football. The club ...

. He totalled nine games for the ''Xolos'', including their defeat to

CF Monterrey Club de Fútbol Monterrey Rayados, A.C., simply known as Monterrey or by its nickname Rayados, is a Mexican professional association football, football club based in the Monterrey metropolitan area, Nuevo León, that plays in Liga MX, the top d ...

in the

Copa MX Copa MX, also known as Copa Corona MX for sponsorship reasons, was an association football competition in Mexico and the domestic cup tournament for clubs at the highest and second levels of Mexican football league system. Formerly known as Copa ...

final Final, Finals or The Final may refer to: *Final examination or finals, a test given at the end of a course of study or training *Final (competition), the last or championship round of a sporting competition, match, game, or other contest which d ...

in October. Leal made a move to another country he already knew in January 2021, when he signed a one-year deal at

Club Sol de América Club Sol de América is a Paraguayan sports club, mostly known for its Association football, football team. The club is located in barrio Obrero (Asunción), Barrio Obrero, Asunción, and was founded in 1909. The stadium Sol de America uses for m ...

in Paraguay. On 31 December, he switched to the

Bolivian Primera División The División de Fútbol Profesional is the top-flight professional football league in Bolivia. In 2017 it replaced the "Liga de Fútbol Profesional Boliviano" (; ). Since 1950, a total of 16 clubs have been crowned champions of the Bolivian foot ...

with

Club Deportivo Guabirá Club Deportivo Guabirá is a Bolivian professional football club from Montero, Santa Cruz, that currently plays in the Bolivian Primera División. Their home ground is the Estadio Gilberto Parada, which has a capacity of 13,000 spectators. Alt ...

International career

Born in Portugal, Leal expressed his desire to represent his parents' homeland of

internationally. He made his debut on 16 June 2012 in a

2013 Africa Cup of Nations qualification The 2013 Africa Cup of Nations qualification was the qualification process for the 2013 Africa Cup of Nations, the 29th edition of the Africa Cup of Nations tournament. South Africa automatically qualified as the host country. Qualified nation ...

match against

Sierra Leone Sierra Leone, officially the Republic of Sierra Leone, is a country on the southwest coast of West Africa. It is bordered to the southeast by Liberia and by Guinea to the north. Sierra Leone's land area is . It has a tropical climate and envi ...

, and scored his first goal on 13 June 2015 in the 7–1 defeat in

Cape Verde Cape Verde or Cabo Verde, officially the Republic of Cabo Verde, is an island country and archipelagic state of West Africa in the central Atlantic Ocean, consisting of ten volcanic islands with a combined land area of about . These islands ...

for the 2017 Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers. In October 2019, Leal scored three of São Tomé and Príncipe's goals in a 5–2 aggregate win over

Mauritius Mauritius, officially the Republic of Mauritius, is an island country in the Indian Ocean, about off the southeastern coast of East Africa, east of Madagascar. It includes the main island (also called Mauritius), as well as Rodrigues, Ag ...

to reach the group stage of

qualification Qualification may refer to: Processes * Qualifications-Based Selection (QBS), a competitive contract procurement process established by the United States Congress * Process qualification, ensures that manufacturing and production processes can ...

for the

2021 Africa Cup of Nations The 2021 Africa Cup of Nations (also referred to as AFCON 2021 or CAN 2021), known as the TotalEnergies 2021 Africa Cup of Nations for sponsorship reasons, was the 33rd edition of the Africa Cup of Nations, the biennial international men's ass ...

. On 24 March 2022, he scored the only goal in the 1–0 victory against the same team in the preliminary round of qualification for the 2023 CAN, and also found the net in the return leg five days later, a 3–3 draw; he was subsequently found to have been ineligible for the first of these matches due to breaching

COVID-19 Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by the coronavirus SARS-CoV-2. In January 2020, the disease spread worldwide, resulting in the COVID-19 pandemic. The symptoms of COVID‑19 can vary but often include fever ...

rules, and Mauritius were awarded a 3–0 win, only for São Tomé to be later reinstated.

Career statistics

Club

International

. ''São Tomé and Príncipe score listed first, score column indicates score after each Leal goal.''

References

External links