Rodrigo Moreno Machado (; born 6 March 1991), known as Rodrigo, is a professional footballer who plays as a striker or winger for Qatar Stars League club Al-Rayyan. He started his career with

Real Madrid Real Madrid Club de Fútbol (), commonly referred to as Real Madrid, is a Spanish professional Football club (association football), football club based in Madrid. The club competes in La Liga, th ...

, appearing solely for its

reserve team In sports, a reserve team is a team composed of players who are under contract to a club but who do not regularly play in matches for the club's primary team. Reserve teams usually include players who are part of the larger first-team squad but ...

s. In 2010, he signed with Benfica with whom he won four titles, most notably the domestic treble in the 2013–14 season. He then spent six years at

Valencia Valencia ( , ), formally València (), is the capital of the Province of Valencia, province and Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Valencian Community, the same name in Spain. It is located on the banks of the Turia (r ...

, scoring 59 goals in 220 games and winning the

Copa del Rey The , commonly known as , or (in English) the Spanish Cup or King's Cup, and formerly known as Copa del Presidente de la República (1932–1936) and Copa del Generalísimo (1939–1976), is an annual knockout football competition in Spanis ...

2019 This was the year in which the first known human case of COVID-19 was documented, preceding COVID-19 pandemic, the pandemic which was declared by the World Health Organization the following year. Up to that point, 2019 had been described as ...

. In 2020, he joined Leeds United. Born in Brazil, Rodrigo represented Spain at youth level, and in

2013 2013 was the first year since 1987 to contain four unique digits (a span of 26 years). 2013 was designated as: *International Year of Water Cooperation *International Year of Quinoa Events January * January 5 – 2013 Craig, Alask ...

he won the European Championship with the under-21 team. The following year, he earned his first

cap A cap is a flat headgear, usually with a visor. Caps have crowns that fit very close to the head. They made their first appearance as early as 3200 BC. The origin of the word "cap" comes from the Old French word "chapeau" which means "head co ...

for the senior side, appearing for them at the 2018 World Cup.

Club career

Early career

Born in

Rio de Janeiro Rio de Janeiro, or simply Rio, is the capital of the Rio de Janeiro (state), state of Rio de Janeiro. It is the List of cities in Brazil by population, second-most-populous city in Brazil (after São Paulo) and the Largest cities in the America ...

, Rodrigo moved to Spain in his early teens, settling in Galicia and started playing organised football with RC Celta de Vigo. In 2009, aged 18, he moved to

to complete his development. Only a few weeks after arriving, Rodrigo started playing as a senior with the C team. Shortly after, he was promoted to Real Madrid Castilla in

Segunda División B Segunda División B (English: 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 ...

, making his debut with the latter on 29 November 2009 in a 4–3 away win against UD Lanzarote.

Benfica

On 31 July 2010, Rodrigo signed a five-year contract with S.L. Benfica for a reported fee of €6 million. Real Madrid had an option to re-buy the player for €12 million during the next two seasons; however, after Fábio Coentrão's transfer to the Spanish club, both parties agreed to cancel the buyback clause. The following month, Rodrigo joined

Premier League The Premier League is a professional association football league in England and the highest level of the English football league system. Contested by 20 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the English Football Lea ...

side

Bolton Wanderers Bolton Wanderers Football Club ( ) is a professional association football, football club based in Horwich, Metropolitan Borough of Bolton, Greater Manchester, England, which competes in EFL League One, League One, the third level of the Englis ...

on 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 axial tilt, tilted orbit around the Sun. In temperat ...

-long loan. He made his official debut in a League Cup fixture at Burnley on 21 September, starting in a 1–0 away loss. Rodrigo first appeared in the league for Bolton on 23 October 2010, coming on as a substitute for Lee Chung-yong midway through the second half of a 1–1 away draw with

Wigan Athletic Wigan Athletic Football Club is a professional association football club based in Wigan, Greater Manchester, England. The team competes in the EFL League One, the third level of the English football league system. Founded in 1932, they have p ...

. On 5 January 2011, against the same opponent, he scored his only goal of the campaign, with the game ending with the same result. Rodrigo Moreno Machado

Returning to Benfica for 2011–12, Rodrigo played 38 competitive matches in his first year and scored 16 goals, including the opener in the season's Taça da Liga

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 ...

against Gil Vicente FC, which his team won for the fourth year in a row (2–1). On 2 January 2013, he combined with Óscar Cardozo for five goals in a 6–0 home defeat of C.D. Aves in the fifth round of the

Taça de Portugal The Taça de Portugal (; ) is an annual association football competition and the premier knockout tournament in Portuguese football. For sponsorship reasons, it has been known as Taça de Portugal Generali Tranquilidade since the 2024–25 seaso ...

. On 31 January 2014, Benfica (and Benfica Stars Fund) sold 100% of Rodrigo's economic rights to a private company, Meriton Capital Limited, owned by Peter Lim, for €30 million, plus another potential €10 million on performance-related bonuses– he remained with them until the end of the campaign. On 10 April, he scored a brace in a 2–0 home win against

AZ Alkmaar Alkmaar Zaanstreek (), better known internationally as AZ Alkmaar, or simply and most commonly as AZ () in the Netherlands, is a Dutch professional Association football, football club from Alkmaar and the Zaan#The Zaan district, Zaan district. ...

in the quarter-finals of the

UEFA Europa League The UEFA Europa League (UEL), usually known simply as the Europa League, is an annual association football, football club competition organised since 1971 by the UEFA, Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) for eligible European footb ...

, which took the hosts through to the last-four stage 3–0 on aggregate. Rodrigo scored Benfica's first goal in a 2–0 final victory over Rio Ave F.C. in the League Cup, and was subsequently voted player of the match as the

Lisbon Lisbon ( ; ) is the capital and largest city of Portugal, with an estimated population of 567,131, as of 2023, within its administrative limits and 3,028,000 within the Lisbon Metropolitan Area, metropolis, as of 2025. Lisbon is mainlan ...

side won the competition for the fifth time in seven years. On 14 May he had his penalty shootout attempt saved by

Sevilla FC Sevilla Fútbol Club () is a Spanish professional association football, football club based in Seville, Andalusia, that competes in La Liga, the Spanish football league system, top flight of Spanish football. The club was formed on 25 January ...

's Beto, in an eventual Europa League final loss; in total, he contributed 18 goals in 43 appearances across all competitions to win an unprecedented treble of

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 ...

and League Cup.

Valencia

On 23 July 2014, Rodrigo moved back to Spain, after agreeing to a one-season loan deal with

Valencia CF Valencia Club de Fútbol, S. A. D. (; ), commonly referred to as Valencia CF or simply Valencia, is a Spanish professional Association football, football club based in Valencia, Spain, that currently plays in La Liga, the top tier of the Spani ...

. Although his economic rights were owned by Lim, a loan was arranged to take him and André Gomes to Valencia due to Lim's purchase of the latter club. Rodrigo made his debut for the ''Che'' on 23 August 2014, starting and playing the full 90 minutes in a 1–1 away draw against Sevilla. He scored his first

La Liga The Campeonato Nacional de Liga de Primera División, commonly known as the Primera División or La Liga, and officially known as LaLiga EA Sports for sponsorship reasons, is a professional association football league in Spain and the highest ...

goal on 22 September, netting the last of a 3–0 away win over

Getafe CF Getafe Club de Fútbol S.A.D. () is a Spanish professional association football, football club based in Getafe, a city in the Community of Madrid. They compete in La Liga, the top tier of the Football in Spain, Spanish football. The team has pla ...

through a penalty, but was later sent off; he was dismissed the following 30 May for striking Rayo Vallecano's Toño, and banned for three games by the

Royal Spanish Football Federation The Royal Spanish Football Federation (; RFEF) is the governing body of football in Spain. Founded on 29 September 1913, it is based in La Ciudad del Fútbol of Las Rozas de Madrid, Las Rozas, a municipality near Madrid. RFEF organizes the natio ...

. On 15 June 2015, Benfica and Valencia announced they had reached an agreement on Rodrigo's federative rights, and he signed a four-year contract with the latter until 30 June 2019, for a reported fee of €30 million, which made him their most expensive transfer at the time. After moderate returns in his first three seasons at the Mestalla Stadium, he scored a career-best 16 goals (19 in all competitions) in 2017–18 as the Marcelino García Toral-led team qualified for the group stage 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 ...

; in late November 2017, he was rewarded with a new deal through 2022 with a reported release clause of €120 million. On 29 January 2019, Rodrigo scored a second-half

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 ...

– including two goals in injury time – as the hosts defeated Getafe 3–1 in the quarter-finals of the

, winning the tie 3–2 on aggregate. He also scored in the decisive match, a 2–1 defeat of

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

at the Estadio Benito Villamarín. On 17 September 2019, Rodrigo scored the only goal of the match in the first Champions League group stage fixture, providing Valencia's first ever win against Chelsea in the club's history. On 10 December, he repeated the feat in a 1–0 away win over

AFC Ajax Amsterdamsche Football Club Ajax (), also known as AFC Ajax, Ajax Amsterdam, or commonly Ajax, is a Dutch professional Association football, football Football team, club based in Amsterdam, that plays in the , the top tier in Dutch football. ...

to reach the knockout phase.

Leeds United

On 29 August 2020, Leeds United announced the signing of Rodrigo on a four-year deal for a club-record fee of £27 million (€30 million). He made his Premier League debut for them in the first match of the season against reigning champions

Liverpool Liverpool is a port City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. It is situated on the eastern side of the River Mersey, Mersey Estuary, near the Irish Sea, north-west of London. With a population ...

on 12 September, coming on as a substitute in the 4–3 defeat at Anfield. Four days later, he made his first start in a 1–1 draw with League One side Hull City in the

EFL Cup The English Football League Cup, often referred to as the League Cup and currently known as the Carabao Cup for sponsorship reasons, is an annual Single-elimination tournament, knockout competition in men's domestic football in England. Orga ...

(penalty shootout loss). Rodrigo scored his first goal on 3 October 2020, in a 1–1 home league draw against Manchester City. Having missed several games through a groin injury at the beginning of 2021, he was used sparingly by Marcelo Bielsa upon his return before hitting strong form at the end of the campaign, scoring his first brace for the club on 15 May in a 4–0 away victory over Burnley. He finished his first year with seven goals, four of them coming in the final four fixtures. Rodrigo scored six times in the league in the 2021–22 campaign. His team managed to stay up on the last matchday. On 28 January 2023, Rodrigo sustained a bone and ligament injury during a 3–1 win at Accrington Stanley in the fourth round of the

FA Cup The Football Association Challenge Cup, more commonly known as the FA Cup, is an annual Single-elimination tournament, knockout association football, football competition in domestic Football in England, English football. First played during ...

, and was sidelined until his return as a 66th-minute replacement for Patrick Bamford in the 2–2 home draw with

Brighton Brighton ( ) is a seaside resort in the city status in the United Kingdom, city of Brighton and Hove, East Sussex, England, south of London. Archaeological evidence of settlement in the area dates back to the Bronze Age Britain, Bronze Age, R ...

on 11 March. He went on to manage three more league goals for the remainder of the season, being Leeds' top scorer, but was stricken with injury again –

plantar fasciitis Plantar fasciitis or plantar heel pain is a disorder of the plantar fascia, which is the connective tissue that supports the Arches of the foot, arch of the foot. It results in pain in the heel and Sole (foot), bottom of the foot that is usuall ...

– against West Ham, scoring in the 3–1 loss at

London Stadium London Stadium (formerly and also known as the Olympic Stadium and the Stadium at Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park) is a multi-purpose outdoor stadium at Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park in the Stratford, London, Stratford district of London. It is loc ...

Al-Rayyan

On 13 July 2023, Qatar Stars League club Al-Rayyan SC triggered a relegation release clause inserted into Rodrigo's Leeds contract, signing the player.

International career

Rodrigo competed for

Spain Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...

internationally, starting with the under-19s which he helped to the second position in the 2010 UEFA European Championship by netting two goals, including one in the final against

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

. He then appeared in the 2011 FIFA U-20 World Cup, helping the national team to the quarter-finals with his three goals. Rodrigo made his debut for the Spanish under-21 side on 1 September 2011, scoring three times in

Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the South Caucasus * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the southeastern United States Georgia may also refer to: People and fictional characters * Georgia (name), a list of pe ...

in the 2013 European Championship qualifiers (7–2 rout). On 21 March 2013, in a friendly against

Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic countries, Nordic country located on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and the archipelago of Svalbard also form part of the Kingdom of ...

, he scored his 13th goal in the category to help to the 5–2 victory in Toledo, thus becoming the highest goal scorer after surpassing Óscar García's record which had stood since 1992. Rodrigo was included in Spain's squad at the

2012 Summer Olympics The 2012 Summer Olympics, officially the Games of the XXX Olympiad and also known as London 2012, were an international multi-sport event held from 27 July to 12 August 2012 in London, England, United Kingdom. The first event, the ...

, appearing in two games in an eventual group stage exit in London. On 3 October 2014, he was one of 23 players selected by Vicente del Bosque for UEFA Euro 2016 qualifying matches against

Slovakia Slovakia, officially the Slovak Republic, is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is bordered by Poland to the north, Ukraine to the east, Hungary to the south, Austria to the west, and the Czech Republic to the northwest. Slovakia's m ...

and

Luxembourg Luxembourg, officially the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg, is a landlocked country in Western Europe. It is bordered by Belgium to the west and north, Germany to the east, and France on the south. Its capital and most populous city, Luxembour ...

, making his debut in the latter game by replacing Diego Costa in the 82nd minute and assisting the fourth and last goal for Juan Bernat. On 6 October 2017, nearly three years after his first

, Rodrigo marked his second by starting and scoring the first goal in a 3–0 home defeat of

Albania Albania ( ; or ), officially the Republic of Albania (), is a country in Southeast Europe. It is located in the Balkans, on the Adriatic Sea, Adriatic and Ionian Seas within the Mediterranean Sea, and shares land borders with Montenegro to ...

in the

2018 FIFA World Cup The 2018 FIFA World Cup was the 21st FIFA World Cup, the quadrennial world championship for national association football, football teams organized by FIFA. It took place in Russia from 14 June to 15 July 2018, after the country was awarded t ...

qualifiers, in

Alicante Alicante (, , ; ; ; officially: ''/'' ) is a city and municipalities of Spain, municipality in the Valencian Community, Spain. It is the capital of the province of Alicante and a historic Mediterranean Sea, Mediterranean port. The population ...

. He was then included in the squad for the finals in Russia, making his debut in the competition on 20 June when he replaced Costa for the final minute of the 1–0 group stage win over

Iran Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran (IRI) and also known as Persia, is a country in West Asia. It borders Iraq to the west, Turkey, Azerbaijan, and Armenia to the northwest, the Caspian Sea to the north, Turkmenistan to the nort ...

. Rodrigo was selected for the 2023 UEFA Nations League Finals. He started in the semi-final against

Italy Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe, Western Europe. It consists of Italian Peninsula, a peninsula that extends into the Mediterranean Sea, with the Alps on its northern land b ...

, but was an unused substitute in the

against

Croatia Croatia, officially the Republic of Croatia, is a country in Central Europe, Central and Southeast Europe, on the coast of the Adriatic Sea. It borders Slovenia to the northwest, Hungary to the northeast, Serbia to the east, Bosnia and Herze ...

, which Spain won on penalties.

Personal life

Rodrigo moved to Spain at a young age when his father, Brazilian footballer Adalberto, opened a football school in Vigo alongside 1994 FIFA World Cup winner Mazinho. He is a lifelong friend of the latter's sons Thiago Alcântara and Rafinha, who were raised in footballing terms at

and also represented Spain and Brazil respectively, and was erroneously reported to be their cousin.

Career statistics

Club

International

:''Spain score listed first, score column indicates score after each Rodrigo goal.''

Honours

Benfica *

: 2013–14 *

: 2013–14 * Taça da Liga: 2011–12, 2013–14 *

runner-up: 2012–13, 2013–14 Valencia *

: 2018–19 Al-Gharafa *

Emir of Qatar Cup Emir of Qatar Cup (), also known as the Emir Cup, but changed to Amir Cup starting in 2019, is an association football tournament played every season by all first and second division teams in Qatar. The tournament is played in a knockout system, ...

2025 So far, the year has seen the continuation of major armed conflicts, including the Russian invasion of Ukraine, the Sudanese civil war (2023–present), Sudanese civil war, and the Gaza war. Internal crises in Bangladesh post-resignation v ...

Spain U19 * UEFA European Under-19 Championship runner-up:

2010 The year saw a multitude of natural and environmental disasters such as the 2010 Haiti earthquake, the Deepwater Horizon oil spill, and the 2010 Chile earthquake. The 2009 swine flu pandemic, swine flu pandemic which began the previous year ...

Spain U21 *

UEFA European Under-21 Championship The UEFA European Under-21 Championship, the UEFA Under-21 Championship or simply the Euro Under-21, is a biennial football competition contested by the European men's under-21 national teams of the UEFA member associations. Since 1992, the comp ...

Spain *

UEFA Nations League The UEFA Nations League is an international European football competition played by the senior men's national teams of the member associations of UEFA, the sport's European governing body. The competition was devised to minimise friendlies a ...

: 2022–23 Individual *UEFA Europa League Squad of the Season: 2013–14 * La Liga Player of the Month: March 2018 *Copa del Rey top scorer: 2018–19 (5 goals)

References

External links

* * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Rodrigo 1991 births Living people Brazilian emigrants to Spain Naturalised citizens of Spain 21st-century Brazilian sportsmen 21st-century Spanish sportsmen Brazilian men's footballers Spanish men's footballers Footballers from Rio de Janeiro (city) Naturalised association football players Men's association football forwards La Liga players Segunda División B players Tercera División players Real Madrid C footballers Real Madrid Castilla footballers Valencia CF players Primeira Liga players S.L. Benfica footballers Premier League players Bolton Wanderers F.C. players Leeds United F.C. players Qatar Stars League players Al-Rayyan SC players Al-Gharafa SC players Spain men's youth international footballers Spain men's under-21 international footballers Spain men's under-23 international footballers Spain men's international footballers 2018 FIFA World Cup players UEFA Nations League–winning players Footballers at the 2012 Summer Olympics Olympic footballers for Spain Spanish expatriate men's footballers Expatriate men's footballers in Portugal Expatriate men's footballers in England Expatriate men's footballers in Qatar Spanish expatriate sportspeople in Portugal Spanish expatriate sportspeople in England Spanish expatriate sportspeople in Qatar