Rolando (Portuguese footballer)
Encyclopedia
Rolando Jorge Pires da Fonseca (born 31 August 1985 in São Vicente
São Vicente, Cape Verde
São Vicente , also Son Visent or Son Sent in Cape Verdean Creole, is one of the Barlavento islands of Cape Verde. It is located between the islands of Santo Antão and Santa Luzia, with the Canal de São Vicente separating it from Santo Antão.- Geography :The island is roughly rectangular in shape...

), simply Rolando, is a Cape Verde
Cape Verde
The Republic of Cape Verde is an island country, spanning an archipelago of 10 islands located in the central Atlantic Ocean, 570 kilometres off the coast of Western Africa...

an-born Portuguese
Portugal
Portugal , officially the Portuguese Republic is a country situated in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. Portugal is the westernmost country of Europe, and is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the West and South and by Spain to the North and East. The Atlantic archipelagos of the...

 footballer who plays for F.C. Porto as a central defender.

Club career

After beginning his career in the youth ranks of lowly S.C. Campomaiorense
S.C. Campomaiorense
Sporting Clube Campomaiorense is a Portuguese football club, founded in 1926, and based in Campo Maior.The club had a professional football section that played five seasons at the top level of Portuguese football and reached the Cup of Portugal final in 1999.Campomaiorense was first promoted to the...

, Rolando finished his football formation with Lisbon
Lisbon
Lisbon is the capital city and largest city of Portugal with a population of 545,245 within its administrative limits on a land area of . The urban area of Lisbon extends beyond the administrative city limits with a population of 3 million on an area of , making it the 9th most populous urban...

's C.F. Os Belenenses, which he joined at nearly 18. In his first division debut, on 28 August 2004, he played 90 minutes and scored a goal in a 3–0 home win against C.S. Marítimo; he went on to become an essential defensive figure onwards, appearing in all 30 matches in 2007–08, as the club finished in eighth place.

On 15 April 2008, F.C. Porto confirmed that Rolando had agreed to part ways with Belenenses and join them on a four-year contract. In his first season, he quickly beat competition from veteran Pedro Emanuel
Pedro Emanuel
Pedro Emanuel dos Santos Martins Silva , known as Pedro Emanuel, is a retired Portuguese footballer who played mainly as a central defender....

, partnering Bruno Alves
Bruno Alves
Bruno Eduardo Regufe Alves is a Portuguese footballer who plays for FC Zenit Saint Petersburg in Russia and the Portuguese national team, as a central defender....

 in the centre, netting three times in 28 games as the northerners
Porto
Porto , also known as Oporto in English, is the second largest city in Portugal and one of the major urban areas in the Iberian Peninsula. Its administrative limits include a population of 237,559 inhabitants distributed within 15 civil parishes...

 won the league and the domestic cup.

In 2010–11, Rolando rarely missed a game for Porto, who won another national championship. On 17 February 2011, he opened the score at Sevilla FC
Sevilla FC
Sevilla Fútbol Club S.A.D. is a Spanish professional football club based in Seville, Spain that plays in the Spanish La Liga championship.They are one of the most successful clubs in Spanish football having won a 1 La Liga title, 5 Spanish "Copa del Rey" Cups, 1 Spanish Super Cup and 2 UEFA...

 through a header, in an eventual 2–1 win for the season's UEFA Europa League, which ended in conquest
2011 UEFA Europa League Final
The 2011 UEFA Europa League Final was a football match played on 18 May 2011 at the Aviva Stadium in Dublin, Republic of Ireland, which decided the winner of the 2010–11 UEFA Europa League...

.

Rolando started 2011–12
2011–12 Primeira Liga
-Personnel and kits:Note: Flags indicate national team as has been defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players and Managers may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.-Managerial changes:-League table:-Positions by round:...

 in scoring fashion, netting both Porto goals in the season
2011 Supertaça Cândido de Oliveira
The 2011 Supertaça Cândido de Oliveira was the 33rd edition of the Supertaça Cândido de Oliveira, the annual Portuguese football season-opening match contested by the winners of the previous season's top league and cup competitions...

's Portuguese Supercup, a 2–1 win against Vitória de Guimarães in Aveiro.

International career

Although born in Cape Verde
Cape Verde
The Republic of Cape Verde is an island country, spanning an archipelago of 10 islands located in the central Atlantic Ocean, 570 kilometres off the coast of Western Africa...

, Rolando moved to Portugal at age of 14 and became a naturalized citizen in 2006, immediately starting playing for the nation's U-21s
Portugal national under-21 football team
The Portugal national under-21 football team is the national under-21 football team of Portugal and is controlled by the Portuguese Football Federation . They are nicknamed "Esperanças." Esperança means hope, thus they are Portugal's hopes for the future...

, for whom he appeared at the 2007 European Championship
2007 UEFA European Under-21 Football Championship
The UEFA U-21 Championship 2007 were held from 10 June 2007 to 23 June 2007. It is the 16th staging of UEFA's European Under-21 Football Championship....

.

On 11 February 2009, Rolando was called to the squad of full
Portugal national football team
The Portugal national football team represents Portugal in association football and is controlled by the Portuguese Football Federation, the governing body for football in Portugal. Portugal's home ground is Estádio Nacional in Oeiras, and their head coach is Paulo Bento...

 but did not make his debut, in a friendly match with Finland
Finland national football team
The Finland national football team represents Finland in international football competitions and is controlled by the Football Association of Finland....

, in Faro
Faro, Portugal
Faro is the southernmost city in Portugal. It is located in the Faro Municipality in southern Portugal. The city proper has 41,934 inhabitants and the entire municipality has 58,305. It is the seat of the Faro District and capital of the Algarve region...

 (1–0 win). He was selected for the 2010 FIFA World Cup
2010 FIFA World Cup
The 2010 FIFA World Cup was the 19th FIFA World Cup, the world championship for men's national association football teams. It took place in South Africa from 11 June to 11 July 2010...

 in South Africa
South Africa
The Republic of South Africa is a country in southern Africa. Located at the southern tip of Africa, it is divided into nine provinces, with of coastline on the Atlantic and Indian oceans...

, but did not leave the bench.

Honours

  • UEFA Europa League: 2010–11
  • Portuguese League: 2008–09, 2010–11
  • Portuguese Cup
    Taça de Portugal
    The Taça de Portugal is the main Portuguese national football knock-out competition. The tournament has been officially known as the Taça de Portugal Millennium since 2008, due to its sponsorship by Portuguese private bank Millennium BCP. It has occurred on a yearly basis since 1938 and is...

    : 2008–09, 2009–10
    2009–10 Taça de Portugal
    The 2009–10 Taça de Portugal was the 70th season of the Taça de Portugal. The competition began on 30 August 2009, with the first round matches, and concluded with the final, held on 16 May at the Estádio Nacional, in Oeiras, between defending champions Porto and then Liga de Honra team Chaves...

    , 2010–11
    2010–11 Taça de Portugal
    The 2010–11 Taça de Portugal, also known as Taça de Portugal Millennium for sponsorship reasons, is the 71st season of the Taça de Portugal. A total of 172 clubs from all four tiers of Portuguese football took part in this tournament...

  • Portuguese Supercup: 2009, 2010
    2010 Supertaça Cândido de Oliveira
    The 2010 Supertaça Cândido de Oliveira is the 32nd Supertaça Cândido de Oliveira, an annual football match contested by the winners of the previous season's Portuguese Liga and Portuguese Cup competitions. Played at Estádio Municipal de Aveiro, Aveiro, on 7 August 2010, and contested by league...

    , 2011
    2011 Supertaça Cândido de Oliveira
    The 2011 Supertaça Cândido de Oliveira was the 33rd edition of the Supertaça Cândido de Oliveira, the annual Portuguese football season-opening match contested by the winners of the previous season's top league and cup competitions...

  • UEFA Super Cup: Runner-up 2011
    2011 UEFA Super Cup
    -External links:*, UEFA.com...

  • Portuguese League Cup: Runner-up 2009–10

External links

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