Alfa Semedo

In this Portuguese name, the first or maternal family name is Semedo and the second or paternal family name is Esteves.
Alfa Semedo
Semedo in 2024
Personal information
Full name Alfa Semedo Esteves[1]
Date of birth (1997-08-30) 30 August 1997 (age 27)
Place of birth Bissau, Guinea-Bissau
Height 1.89 m (6 ft 2 in)
Position(s) Midfielder
Team information
Current team
 Neom
Number 30
Youth career
2014 Fidjus di Bideras
2014–2016 Benfica
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2016–2017 → Vilafranquense (loan) 29 (4)
2017–2018 Moreirense 28 (2)
2018–2021 Benfica 5 (1)
2019 → Espanyol (loan) 3 (0)
2019–2020 → Nottingham Forest (loan) 24 (2)
2020–2021 → Reading (loan) 35 (2)
2021–2022 Vitória Guimarães 27 (0)
2022–2024 Al-Tai 60 (3)
2024– Neom 0 (0)
International career‡
2021– Guinea-Bissau 12 (2)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 19:53, 27 October 2023 (UTC)
‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 9 June 2022

Alfa Semedo Esteves (born 30 August 1997) is a Bissau-Guinean professional footballer who plays as a midfielder for the Saudi Arabian club Neom and the Guinea-Bissau national team.[2][3]

Club career

Born in Bissau, Semedo started playing football at the local club Fidjus di Bideras. In 2014, aged 16, he moved to Portugal and joined the Benfica youth system. After playing two years for their juniors team, he was loaned out to Vilafranquense in Campeonato de Portugal for one season.[4] On 8 July 2017, he signed a four-year contract with Moreirense in Primeira Liga, with whom he would make his professional debut in a Taça da Liga match against Desportivo das Aves on 30 July that year.[5]

Following his return to Benfica in July 2018 for €2.5 million,[6][7] Semedo debuted for the first team in a 3–2 home win over Vitória de Guimarães in Primeira Liga on 10 August. Later, on 2 October, he made his UEFA Champions League debut, scoring his first and winning goal for Benfica in a 3–2 away victory over AEK Athens in the UEFA Champions League group stage, thus ending the former's eight-match losing streak in the competition's group stage.[8][9]

On 31 January 2019, Semedo was loaned out to La Liga side RCD Espanyol until June.[10] On 8 July, he joined English club Nottingham Forest on a season-long loan, along with Benfica teammate Yuri Ribeiro (the latter on a permanent transfer).[11] He scored his first goal for the club in a 1–0 away win over Swansea City on 14 September 2019.[12]

Semedo joined Reading on a season-long loan for the 2020–21 season. He made his debut in a 1–0 victory over Wycombe Wanderers on 20 October 2020. He scored his first goal for Reading in a 2–1 win over Luton Town on 26 December 2020.[13]

On 10 August 2022, Semedo joined Saudi Pro League club Al-Tai on a three-year deal.[14]

On 19 July 2024, Semedo joined Saudi First Division League club Neom.[15]

International career

He made his debut for Guinea-Bissau national football team on 26 March 2021 in an AFCON 2021 qualifier against Eswatini and scored the team's second goal in a 3–1 win.[16]

Career statistics

Club

As of match played 5 April 2021[17]
Appearances and goals by club, season and competition
Club Season League Cup League Cup Other Total
Division Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals
Benfica 2016–17 Primeira Liga 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Vilafranquense (loan) 2016–17 Campeonato de Portugal 29 4 5 0 0 0 — 34 4
Moreirense 2017–18 Primeira Liga 28 2 3 0 3 1 — 34 3
Benfica 2018–19 Primeira Liga 5 0 2 0 3 0 5 1 15 1
2019–20 Primeira Liga 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Total 5 0 3 0 3 0 5 1 16 1
Espanyol (loan) 2018–19 La Liga 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 3 0
Nottingham Forest (loan) 2019–20 EFL Championship 24 2 1 0 1 0 0 0 26 2
Reading (loan) 2020–21 EFL Championship 35 2 1 0 0 0 0 0 36 2
Career total 124 10 11 0 7 1 5 1 149 12

International

As of match played 9 June 2022[18]
National team Year Apps Goals
Guinea-Bissau 2021 8 1
2022 4 0
Total 12 2

International goals

Scores and results list Guinea-Bissau's goal tally first. Score column indicates score after each Semedo goal.[18]
No. Date Venue Opponent Score Result Competition
1. 26 March 2021 Mavuso Sports Centre, Manzini, Eswatini  Eswatini 2–1 3–1 2021 Africa Cup of Nations qualification
2. 9 June 2022 Stade Adrar, Agadir, Morocco  São Tomé and Príncipe 1–1 5–1 2023 Africa Cup of Nations qualification

Honours

Benfica

References

  1. ^ "Notification of shirt numbers: Nottingham Forest" (PDF). English Football League. p. 49. Retrieved 24 October 2019.
  2. ^ Alfa Semedo signs for Royals
  3. ^ Alfa Semedo loaned out
  4. ^ "Alfa Semedo: O regresso do "Pogba" da Guiné-Bissau" [Alfa Semedo: The return of Guinea-Bissau's "Pogba"] (in Portuguese). Bola na Rede. 8 August 2018. Retrieved 9 January 2019.
  5. ^ "Moreirense 1–0 Aves". ForaDeJogo. 30 July 2017. Retrieved 6 August 2017.
  6. ^ Benfica explica quanto pagou pelos reforços: Ferreyra veio a custo zero mas custou 4 ME SAPO Desporto
  7. ^ "Águias oficializam regresso de Alfa Semedo" [Eagles officialise Alfa Semedo's return]. A Bola (in Portuguese). 3 July 2018. Archived from the original on 3 July 2018. Retrieved 3 July 2018.
  8. ^ Ridge, Patrice (2 October 2018). "AEK Athens 2 Benfica 3: Semedo stunner settles five-goal thriller". Goal.com. Retrieved 19 October 2018.
  9. ^ Gatopoulos, Derek (2 October 2018). "Champions League: Semedo helps Benfica beat AEK 3-2". USA Today. Retrieved 19 October 2018.
  10. ^ "Semedo, nuevo jugador del RCD Espanyol" [Semedo, new player of RCD Espanyol] (in Spanish). RCD Espanyol. 31 January 2019. Retrieved 1 February 2019.
  11. ^ "Nottingham Forest: Alfa Semedo & Yuri Ribeiro join from Benfica". BBC Sport. 8 July 2019. Retrieved 8 July 2019.
  12. ^ "Swansea 0–1 Nottingham Forest". BBC Sport. 14 September 2019. Retrieved 25 September 2019.
  13. ^ "Reading 2-1 Luton". BBC. 26 December 2020. Retrieved 26 December 2020.
  14. ^ "من هو ألفا سيميدو لاعب الطائي الجديد ؟".
  15. ^ "نيوم يعلن تعاقده مع الغيني ألفا سيميدو".
  16. ^ "Eswatini v Guinea Bissau game report". Besoccer. 26 March 2021.[permanent dead link‍]
  17. ^ Alfa Semedo at Soccerway
  18. ^ a b "Alfa Semedo". National Football Teams. Benjamin Strack-Zimmermann. Retrieved 26 March 2021.
  19. ^ "São estes os campeões nacionais pelo Benfica em 2018/19" [These are the national champions for Benfica in 2018–19]. Record (in Portuguese). 18 May 2019. Retrieved 24 October 2019.