Rafaelson

In this Portuguese name, the first or maternal family name is Bezerra and the second or paternal family name is Fernandes.

Rafaelson
Nguyễn Xuân Son
Xuân Son in 2024
Personal information
Full name Nguyễn Xuân Son[1]
Birth name Rafaelson Bezerra Fernandes
Date of birth (1997-03-30) 30 March 1997 (age 27)
Place of birth Pirapemas, Brazil
Height 1.86 m (6 ft 1 in)[2]
Position(s) Striker
Team information
Current team
 Thep Xanh Nam Dinh
Number 14
Youth career
2011–2013 Bahia
2013–2016 Vitória
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2015–2018 Vitória 12 (1)
2018 → Vegalta Sendai (loan) 0 (0)
2018–2019 Vegalta Sendai 0 (0)
2019–2020 Næstved 24 (5)
2020 Nam Dinh 18 (6)
2020–2021 SHB Da Nang 12 (6)
2021–2023 Topenland Binh Dinh 39 (21)
2023– Thep Xanh Nam Dinh 31 (38)
International career‡
2024– Vietnam 5 (7)
Medal record
Men's football
Representing  Vietnam
ASEAN Championship
Winner ASEAN 2024
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 20 November 2024, 16:27 (UTC)
‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 5 January 2025, 18:21 (UTC)

Rafaelson Bezerra Fernandes (born 30 March 1997), known mononymously as Rafaelson and also as Nguyễn Xuân Son, is a professional footballer who plays as a striker for the V.League 1 club Thep Xanh Nam Dinh and the Vietnam national team.

Rafaelson began his football career in his native Brazil. He went playing abroad from 2018 and had unsuccessful spells in Japan and Denmark. In 2020, he moved to Vietnam, signing for Nam Định. In this country, he blossomed as a goalscorer, finishing as V.League 1's top scorer in the 2023 and 2023–24.

Rafaelson is a dual citizen of Brazil and Vietnam. After five years of residency in Vietnam, he was granted Vietnamese citizenship in September 2024. Later in the year, he featured in the 2024 ASEAN Championship for Vietnam and scored a brace in his debut against Myanmar. Later, he finished as the top goalscorer of the tournament and assisted Vietnam in their win of the title; he went on to receive the best player award for his performances.

Early life

Rafaelson was born in a poor family in Pirapemas. His father was a teacher and his mother was a farmer. At the age of 14, he moved alone to Salvador, where he joined the youth academy of Bahia. After two years, he joined the youth side of Vitória.[3]

Club career

Vitória

A Vitória youth graduate, Rafaelson was accused of faking his age in April 2015,[4] a claim later dismissed by the club.[5] He was promoted to the first team in September, by manager Vagner Mancini.[6]

Rafaelson made his professional debut on 5 September 2015, coming on as a second-half substitute for Robert in a 2–1 home loss against Botafogo for the Série B championship. His first goal came on 31 October, netting the last in a 3–2 home loss against Náutico. He contributed with seven appearances during the campaign, as his side achieved promotion to Série A.

On 30 June 2016, Rafaelson made his top tier debut, replacing Tiago Real in a 3–2 home win against Sport Recife.

Vegalta Sendai

In February 2018, Rafaelson joined Japanese club Vegalta Sendai on a loan deal.[7] A month later, he made his first appearance for the team in the J.League Cup game against Albirex Niigata, but suffered a serious injury in the match that required three months of recovery.[8] In August 2018, his transfer to Vegalta Sendai was made permanent. However, in January 2019, he departed from the club after his contract expired, without having appeared in any league game.[9]

Næstved

On 13 April 2019, Rafaelson moved to Denmark and joined Næstved.[10] He scored five goals after 24 league appearances for the team in two seasons.[11]

First spell at Nam Định

In December 2019, Rafaelson arrived in Vietnam. He went on a trial with V.League 1 club Nam Định. After two friendly games, Nam Định head coach decided to sign him.[12] Næstved announced on 12 January 2020, that they had sold Rafaelson to Vietnamese club in the V.League 1.[11] In the last matchday of the 2020 V.League 1, he scored the only goal for Nam Định in a 1–1 against Song Lam Nghe An, thus help the club avoid relegation. After one season at Nam Định, he netted 9 goals for the club after 20 appearances. However, he departed the team after one season as they were unable to meet his salary increase demands.[13]

SHB Đà Nẵng

Rafaelson joined V.League 1 fellow SHB Đà Nẵng for the 2021 season. He scored six goals for the team after the first 12 games of the season, before the league was cancelled due to the effects of COVID-19 pandemic in Vietnam. Due to financial difficulties, SHB Đà Nẵng terminated Rafaelson's contract in September 2021.[14][15]

Bình Định

In September 2021, Rafaelson moved to Topenland Bình Định as a free agent, signing a two-year contract.[16] On 3 September 2022, he scored his first hattrick in V.League 1 in to help his team defeat the league's leading team Hanoi FC 3–0.[17] He later lead his team to the 2022 Vietnamese Cup final, scoring a hattrick in the semi-final game against Đông Á Thanh Hóa.[18] In the 2023 season, Rafaelson became the league top scorer, netting a total of 16 goals and was named in the team of the season.[19]

Return to Nam Định and dominance in V.League 1

Rafaelson celebrating the 2023–24 V.League 1 title with Nam Định.

On 28 August 2023, after his contract with Topenland Bình Định expired, Rafaelson made his return to Nam Định.[20] Being paired with Hêndrio in the attack, he quickly became a influential goal scorer of the club.[21] He registred 13 goals and 4 assists after the first half of the season, helping Nam Định top the league.[22] On 26 May 2024, he scored five goals in a 5–2 victory against Đông Á Thanh Hóa, which tied the record for most goals scored by a single player in a single game in the V.League 1 history with Hoàng Anh Gia Lai's Nguyễn Đình Việt back in 2007. On 25 June 2024, Rafaelson netted a hat-trick in a 5–1 league win against Khánh Hòa, thus securing the first national league title for Nam Định since 1985.[23] He finished the season as the league's top scorer with 31 goals, thus broke the record for most goals scored by a single player in a single V.League 1 season, previously held by Lê Huỳnh Đức (25 goals).[24] In addition to the top scorer award, Rafaelson was also given the "Player of the season" award and featured in the league's team of the season for the second season in a row.[25]

On 31 August 2024, Rafaelson scored a brace in the 2024 Vietnamese Super Cup final to contribute in Nam Định's 3–0 win against Đông Á Thanh Hóa, winning the trophy for the first time in the club's history.[26] Shortly after the start of the 2024–25 season, he was granted Vietnamese passport and was registered for the league as a local player.

International career

In November 2024, FIFA authorized Nguyễn Xuân Son to represent the Vietnam national team after five years of residency in the country. He was named in Vietnam's preliminary squad for the 2024 ASEAN Championship.[27] He was later named in the final squad for the tournament.[28]

2024 ASEAN Championship

Xuân Son made his debut for the Vietnam national team on 21 December 2024 where he scored two goals and made 2 assists in a 5–0 victory against Myanmar in the last group stage game in the 2024 ASEAN Championship.[29] He thus became the first Vietnamese naturalized player to score in an official game.[30]

In the first leg semi-final at Jalan Besar Stadium, he scored the second goal, securing a 2–0 victory for Vietnam against Singapore. In the second leg game at Việt Trì Stadium, Xuân Son netted another two goals, contributing significantly to Vietnam's 3–1 win.[31][32]

Xuân Son continued his scoring streak by adding two more goals in Vietnam's 2–1 win against Thailand in the first leg of the ASEAN Championship final. During the second leg of the of the final at Rajamangala Stadium, he broke his fibula and tibia bone and was substituted off and sent to the hospital in 32nd minute.[33] Later, Vietnam won the final with a 5–3 aggregate score against Thailand. With 7 goals scored during the ASEAN Championship campaign, Xuân Son won the Top scorer and Best player award.[34]

After a successful surgery, Xuân Son is expected to take an 8 months absences. According to doctors, it will take only two months for his bones to heal after surgery and an additional six months of rehabilitation and training. However, he will have to miss first two matches of the final round of 2027 AFC Asian Cup qualification.

Personal life

Rafaelson married Marcele Seippel in January 2018 and has two children.[3][35]

In August 2024, after five years of residency in Vietnam, Rafaelson applied for Vietnamese citizenship at the Nam Định Department of Justice, expressing his wish to represent the Vietnam national team in the future.[36][37] A month later, on 20 September 2024, he officially obtained Vietnamese citizenship with the Vietnamese personal name Nguyễn Xuân Son.[38]

Career statistics

Club

As of match played 29 December 2024
Appearances and goals by club, season and competition
Club Season League State League Cup Continental Other Total
Division Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals
Vitória 2015 Série B 7 1 0 0 — — — 7 1
2016 Série A 1 0 0 0 1 0 — — 2 0
2017 4 0 2 0 0 0 — — 6 0
2018 0 0 1 0 0 0 — — 1 0
Total 12 1 3 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 16 1
Vegalta Sendai 2018 J1 League 0 0 — 0 0 — 1[a] 0 1 0
Næstved BK 2018–19 1st Division 6 1 — 0 0 — — 6 1
2019–20 18 4 — 2 0 — — 20 4
Total 24 5 0 0 2 0 0 0 0 0 26 5
Nam Định 2020 V.League 1 18 6 — 2 3 — — 20 9
SHB Đà Nẵng 2021 12 6 — 0 0 — — 12 6
Topenland Bình Định 2022 21 5 — 4 3 — — 25 8
2023 18 16 — 2 1 — — 20 17
Total 39 21 0 0 6 4 0 0 0 0 45 25
Thép Xanh Nam Định 2023–24 V.League 1 24 31 — 3 1 — — 27 32
2024–25 7 7 — 0 0 5[b] 5 1[c] 2 13 14
Total 31 38 0 0 3 1 5 5 1 2 40 46
Total career 136 77 3 0 14 8 5 5 2 2 160 92
  1. ^ Appearance in J.League Cup
  2. ^ Appearance in AFC Champions League Two
  3. ^ Appearance in Vietnamese Super Cup

International

As of match played 5 January 2025[39]
Appearances and goals by national team and year
National team Year Apps Goals
Vietnam 2024 3 5
2025 2 2
Total 5 7
List of international goals scored by Nguyễn Xuân Son
No. Date Venue Opponent Score Result Competition
1. 21 December 2024 Việt Trì Stadium, Việt Trì, Vietnam  Myanmar 2–0 5–0 2024 ASEAN Championship
2. 4–0
3. 26 December 2024 Jalan Besar Stadium, Kallang, Singapore  Singapore 2–0 2–0
4. 29 December 2024 Việt Trì Stadium, Việt Trì, Vietnam 1–0 3–1
5. 2–0
6. 2 January 2025  Thailand 1–0 2–1
7. 2–0

Honours

Vitória

Topenland Bình Định

Thép Xanh Nam Định

Vietnam

Individual

References

  1. ^ "Nguyễn Xuân Son". Vietnam Professional Football. 30 January 2020. Retrieved 10 September 2024.
  2. ^ "Rafaelson". worldfootball.net. Retrieved 16 October 2023.
  3. ^ a b "Tuổi thơ khốn khó và cuộc gặp định mệnh với vợ của cầu thủ Nguyễn Xuân Son". Dân Trí. 28 December 2024.
  4. ^ "Atacante do Vitória que marcou gol no BAVI sub-20 é denunciado por suposto 'gato'" [Vitória forward who scored a goal in under-20's BAVI is denounced for a supposed 'wrong age'] (in Spanish). Galáticos Online. 25 April 2015. Retrieved 16 November 2016.
  5. ^ "Em nota, Vitória defende jogador acusado de ser 'gato'" [On a note, Vitória defend player accused of having 'wrong age'] (in Portuguese). Bahia Notícias. 27 April 2015. Retrieved 16 November 2016.
  6. ^ "Recém-promovido ao time principal, Rafaelson avalia primeira partida como titular: "Procurei fazer o melhor"" [Newly-promoted to the first team, Rafaelson analyzes first match as a starter: "I tried to do the best"] (in Portuguese). Cenário MT. 11 September 2015. Retrieved 16 November 2016.
  7. ^ "ECヴィトーリア（ブラジル） ラファエルソン選手 期限付き移籍加入のお知らせ" (in Japanese). Vegalta Sendai. 10 February 2018.
  8. ^ "仙台の新外国人FWが日本デビュー戦で全治3か月の重傷" (in Japanese). Gekisaka. 15 March 2018.
  9. ^ "ラファエルソン選手 契約満了のお知らせ" (in Japanese). Vegalta Sendai. 10 January 2019.
  10. ^ Dårlige pasninger irriterer Næstved-træner, bold.dk, 25 April 2019
  11. ^ a b Næstved sender brasilianer til Vietnam, bold.dk, 12 January 2020
  12. ^ "Người phát hiện ra Nguyễn Xuân Son và đưa tới Việt Nam tiết lộ điều thú vị" (in Vietnamese). Dân Việt. 29 December 2024.
  13. ^ "DNH Nam Định tiết lộ lý do để mất Rafaelson" (in Vietnamese). Thể Thao 247. 4 November 2020.
  14. ^ "SHB Đà Nẵng chia tay chân sút chủ lực chỉ sau một mùa giải" (in Vietnamese). Bongda24h. 10 September 2021.
  15. ^ "Rafaelson:Từ nghi án gian lận tuổi đến khởi đầu hứa hẹn ở V.League 2022" (in Vietnamese). On Sport. 2 March 2022.
  16. ^ "CLB Topenland Bình Định chốt ngoại binh V-League 2022" (in Vietnamese). Công An Đà Nẵng. 29 September 2021.
  17. ^ "V-League 2022: Cú sốc lớn trên sân Hàng Đẫy" (in Vietnamese). Thanh Niên. 3 September 2022.
  18. ^ "Rafaelson đưa Topenland Bình Định vào chung kết Cúp quốc gia" (in Vietnamese). Tuổi Trẻ. 23 November 2022.
  19. ^ "Rafaelson trở thành " Vua phá lưới " V-League 2023" (in Vietnamese). Việt Báo. 28 August 2023.
  20. ^ "Vua phá lưới V.League 2023 đầu quân cho Thép Xanh Nam Định" (in Vietnamese). Bongdaplus. 28 August 2023.
  21. ^ "Rafaelson-Hendrio: Cặp 'song sát' đáng gờm" (in Vietnamese). Bongdaplus. 7 November 2023.
  22. ^ "Ngoại binh câu lạc bộ Nam Định lọt top các chân sút tốt nhất thế giới 2023" (in Vietnamese). Lao Động. 29 February 2024.
  23. ^ "Nam Định lần đầu vô địch V-League" (in Vietnamese). VnExpress. 25 June 2024.
  24. ^ Hiếu Lương (26 May 2024). "Tiền đạo Nam Định phá kỷ lục ghi bàn của Lê Huỳnh Đức" (in Vietnamese). VnExpress. Retrieved 26 May 2024.
  25. ^ "'Siêu nhân' Rafaelson xuất sắc nhất V-League, HLV Vũ Hồng Việt được vinh danh" (in Vietnamese). Thanh Niên. 9 July 2024.
  26. ^ "Nam Định lần đầu tiên vô địch Siêu Cúp Quốc gia 2024" (in Vietnamese). Báo Nhân Dân. 31 August 2024.
  27. ^ "HLV Kim Sang Sik bổ sung Xuân Son, Văn Vĩ cùng Văn Toàn cho đội tuyển Việt Nam" (in Vietnamese). Thể Thao & Văn Hóa. 3 December 2024.
  28. ^ "HLV Kim Sang Sik công bố danh sách 26 cầu thủ tham dự ASEAN Cup 2024" (in Vietnamese). Vietnam Football Federation. 5 December 2024.
  29. ^ "TRỰC TIẾP Việt Nam 5-0 Myanmar: Xuân Son kiến tạo, Tiến Linh ghi bàn" (in Vietnamese). VTV. 21 December 2024.
  30. ^ "Xuân Son: 'Tôi sẽ không bao giờ quên đêm nay'". ZNews. 21 December 2024.
  31. ^ "VFF - ASEAN MITSUBISHI ELECTRIC CUP™ 2024 - REPORT: VIETNAM 3-1 SINGAPORE". Vietnam Football Federation. 30 December 2024.
  32. ^ "Lions exit ASEAN Championship with heads held high after battling 3-1 defeat to Vietnam - Football Association of Singapore". www.fas.org.sg. 30 December 2024.
  33. ^ "Vì sao Xuân Son của ĐT Việt Nam bị đau, chấn thương như vậy phải nghỉ bao lâu?" (in Vietnamese). Hoa Học Trò. 5 January 2025.
  34. ^ "Injured Xuan Son scoops MVP and Top Goal Scorer awards". ASEAN United FC. 5 January 2025.
  35. ^ "仙台ＦＷラファエルソン加入会見「寒いのは大好き」". Nikkan Sports (in Japanese). 6 February 2018.
  36. ^ "Ngoại binh Rafaelson và khát khao khoác áo ĐT Việt Nam" (in Vietnamese). Dân Việt. Retrieved 1 September 2024.
  37. ^ Vnexpress. "Brazilian striker, top scorer of V. League, applies for Vietnamese citizenship". VnExpress International – Latest news, business, travel and analysis from Vietnam. VnExpress. Retrieved 8 October 2024.
  38. ^ Vnexpress. "Brazilian prolific striker becomes Vietnamese citizen". VnExpress International – Latest news, business, travel and analysis from Vietnam. VnExpress. Retrieved 8 October 2024.
  39. ^ "Rafaelson". National Football Teams. Benjamin Strack-Zimmermann. Retrieved 30 December 2024.