João Ferreira (footballer)
 Ferreira in 2020 | |||
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | João Diogo Fonseca Ferreira | ||
| Date of birth | 22 March 2001 | ||
| Place of birth | Póvoa de Varzim, Portugal | ||
| Height | 1.85 m (6 ft 1 in) | ||
| Position(s) | Defender | ||
| Team information | |||
Current team | Saint-Étienne | ||
| Number | 13 | ||
| Youth career | |||
| 2011–2014 | Rio Ave | ||
| 2014–2019 | Benfica | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2019–2023 | Benfica B | 38 | (2) |
| 2019–2023 | Benfica | 1 | (0) |
| 2021–2022 | → Vitória de Guimarães (loan) | 14 | (0) |
| 2022–2023 | → Rio Ave (loan) | 8 | (0) |
| 2023–2025 | Watford | 5 | (1) |
| 2023–2024 | → Udinese (loan) | 35 | (0) |
| 2024–2025 | → SC Braga (loan) | 21 | (0) |
| 2025– | Saint-Étienne | 0 | (0) |
| International career‡ | |||
| 2016 | Portugal U15 | 2 | (0) |
| 2017 | Portugal U16 | 2 | (0) |
| 2016–2018 | Portugal U17 | 13 | (0) |
| 2018 | Portugal U18 | 4 | (0) |
| 2019 | Portugal U19 | 7 | (1) |
|
* Club domestic league appearances and goals as of 30 May 2025 ‡ National team caps and goals as of 18 November 2019 | |||
João Diogo Fonseca Ferreira (born 22 March 2001) is a Portuguese professional footballer who plays as a right-back or centre-back for Ligue 2 club Saint-Étienne.
Football career
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Born in Póvoa de Varzim, Ferreira made his professional debut with Benfica B in a 2–1 win over Estoril Praia in LigaPro on 11 August 2019.[1] On 25 January 2021, he made his debut with the first team in a Primeira Liga 1–1 draw against Nacional.[2]
On 31 August 2021, he joined Vitória de Guimarães on a season-long loan with an option to purchase for €5 million.[3]
Watford
On 9 January 2023, Ferriera joined EFL Championship club Watford for an undisclosed fee.[4] He made his league debut on 14 January 2023 as a half time substitute in a 2–0 win against Blackpool and scored the equalising goal in a 1–1 draw against Rotherham a week later in what was his first start for the club.[5]
On 1 August 2023, Ferreira signed for Serie A club Udinese on a season-long loan deal.[6]
Saint-Étienne
On 6 August 2025, Ferreira signed for Ligue 2 club Saint-Étienne on a four-year deal for an undisclosed fee.[7][8]
Career statistics
- As of match played 17 May 2025[9]
| Club | Season | League | National cup[a] | League cup[b] | Continental | Other | Total | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Benfica B | 2019–20 | Liga Portugal 2 | 18 | 1 | — | — | — | — | 18 | 1 | ||||
| 2020–21 | Liga Portugal 2 | 18 | 0 | — | — | — | — | 18 | 0 | |||||
| 2021–22 | Liga Portugal 2 | 2 | 1 | — | — | — | — | 2 | 1 | |||||
| Total | 38 | 2 | — | — | — | — | 38 | 2 | ||||||
| Benfica | 2019–20 | Primeira Liga | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2020–21 | Primeira Liga | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 | |
| Total | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 | ||
| Vitória de Guimarães (loan) | 2021–22 | Primeira Liga | 14 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | — | 16 | 0 | ||
| Rio Ave (loan) | 2022–23 | Primeira Liga | 8 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 0 | — | — | 12 | 0 | ||
| Watford | 2022–23 | Championship | 5 | 1 | — | — | — | — | 5 | 1 | ||||
| Udinese (loan) | 2023-24 | Serie A | 27 | 0 | 2 | 0 | — | — | — | 29 | 0 | |||
| Braga (loan) | 2024–25 | Primeira Liga | 21 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 7[c] | 0 | — | 32 | 0 | |
| Career total | 114 | 3 | 6 | 0 | 7 | 0 | 8 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 136 | 3 | ||
- ^ Includes Taca de Portugal, Copa Italia
- ^ Includes Taca da Liga
- ^ Appearances in UEFA Europa League
Honours
Benfica
- UEFA Youth League runner-up: 2019–20[10]
References
- ^ "Benfica II vs. Estoril 2-1". Soccerway. 11 August 2019.
- ^ "Benfica vs. Nacional 1-1". Soccerway. 25 January 2021.
- ^ "João Ferreira assina pelo Vitória SC" (in Portuguese). Vitória de Guimarães. 31 August 2021. Retrieved 24 September 2021.
- ^ "Watford sign Benfica defender Ferreira". BBC Sport. 9 January 2023. Retrieved 9 January 2023.
- ^ "Watford 1-1 Rotherham". BBC. 21 January 2023. Retrieved 26 January 2023.
- ^ "Official: Loan Switch For Ferreira". www.watfordfc.com. 1 August 2023. Retrieved 1 August 2023.
- ^ "João Ferreira, nouvelle recrue des Verts!" [João Ferreira, new Green recruit!]. www.asse.fr (in French). 6 August 2025. Retrieved 6 August 2025.
- ^ "Official: Ferreira Departs For Saint-Étienne". www.watfordfc.com. 6 August 2025. Retrieved 6 August 2025.
- ^ João Ferreira at Soccerway
- ^ "Benfica-Real Madrid". UEFA. Retrieved 26 August 2020.
External links
- João Ferreira at ForaDeJogo (archived)
- João Ferreira at Soccerway
- João Ferreira national team profile at the Portuguese Football Federation (in Portuguese)