Guedes Gonçalo
Gonçalo Manuel Ganchinho Guedes is a Portuguese footballer who plays as a winger, and occasionally as a second striker, for the Portugal national team. Guedes began his career at Benfica, making his professional debut for the reserves in April 2014 and the first team six months later. After 11 goals in 63 matches across all competitions, winning five major trophies, he transferred to Paris Saint-Germain for a €30 million transfer fee in January 2017. He played only 13 matches for PSG before being loaned to Valencia in September 2017. In August 2018, he joined Valencia on a permanent basis for a €40 million transfer fee. Guedes earned 57 caps for Portugal at youth level, from under-15 to under-23. He made his senior international debut in November 2015, at age 18, and played at the 2018 FIFA World Cup. He scored the winning goal for Portugal in the 2019 UEFA Nations League Final. Born in Benavente, Guedes joined S.L. Benfica’s youth system in 2005, where he progressed to the juniors team. On his debut at age eight, he scored all of the goals in a 5–0 win against a team of boys three years older. He was part of Benfica’s squad in the inaugural UEFA Youth League in 2013–14, contributing to their victories over Paris Saint-Germain, Anderlecht, Manchester City and Real Madrid en route to the final. On 19 April 2014, he made his professional debut with Benfica B in a 2013–14 Segunda Liga match against Porto B. On 18 October 2014, Guedes debuted for Benfica’s first team at Sporting da Covilhã in the third round of Taça de Portugal. On 4 January 2015, he debuted in the Primeira Liga at Penafiel as an added-time substitute for Lima in a 3–0 victory. On 4 July, he won the 2014–15 Segunda Liga’s Breakthrough Player of the Year award.
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Guedes was first called-up by Portugal first-team manager Fernando Santos on 6 November 2015 ahead of international friendlies against Russia and Luxembourg. He made his debut eight days later against the former, starting in a 0–1 loss in Krasnodar, which made him the first 18-year-old to represent the nation since Cristiano Ronaldo. On 10 November 2017, Guedes scored his first senior international goal in a 3–0 friendly win over Saudi Arabia in Viseu, also assisting Manuel Fernandes earlier in the match. Guedes was named in Portugal’s 23-man squad for the 2018 FIFA World Cup in Russia. In the final warm-up match before the tournament, he scored twice in a 3–0 win over Algeria at the Estádio da Luz. At the 2019 UEFA Nations League Finals, hosted on home soil, Guedes was a substitute for João Félix in the semi-final victory over Switzerland but started the final at the Estádio do Dragão against the Netherlands, during which he scored the match’s only goal.