.jpg) Postiga withDeportivo in 2014 | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Personal information | ||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Hélder Manuel Marques Postiga[1] | |||||||||||||||||||
| Date of birth | (1982-08-02)2 August 1982 (age 43)[2] | |||||||||||||||||||
| Place of birth | Vila do Conde, Portugal | |||||||||||||||||||
| Height | 1.82 m (6 ft 0 in)[2] | |||||||||||||||||||
| Position | Striker | |||||||||||||||||||
| Youth career | ||||||||||||||||||||
| 1992–1995 | Varzim | |||||||||||||||||||
| 1995–2000 | Porto | |||||||||||||||||||
| Senior career* | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) | |||||||||||||||||
| 2000–2001 | Porto B | 37 | (10) | |||||||||||||||||
| 2001–2003 | Porto | 58 | (22) | |||||||||||||||||
| 2003–2004 | Tottenham Hotspur | 19 | (1) | |||||||||||||||||
| 2004–2008 | Porto | 56 | (15) | |||||||||||||||||
| 2006 | →Saint-Étienne (loan) | 16 | (2) | |||||||||||||||||
| 2008 | →Panathinaikos (loan) | 11 | (2) | |||||||||||||||||
| 2008–2011 | Sporting CP | 71 | (12) | |||||||||||||||||
| 2011–2013 | Zaragoza | 70 | (23) | |||||||||||||||||
| 2013–2014 | Valencia | 15 | (3) | |||||||||||||||||
| 2014 | →Lazio (loan) | 5 | (0) | |||||||||||||||||
| 2014–2015 | Deportivo La Coruña | 14 | (1) | |||||||||||||||||
| 2015 | Atlético Kolkata | 1 | (2) | |||||||||||||||||
| 2016 | Rio Ave | 10 | (5) | |||||||||||||||||
| 2016 | Atlético Kolkata | 11 | (2) | |||||||||||||||||
| Total | 394 | (100) | ||||||||||||||||||
| International career | ||||||||||||||||||||
| 2001–2003 | Portugal U21 | 16 | (12) | |||||||||||||||||
| 2002 | Portugal B | 2 | (1) | |||||||||||||||||
| 2003–2014 | Portugal | 71 | (27) | |||||||||||||||||
Medal record
| ||||||||||||||||||||
| * Club domestic league appearances and goals | ||||||||||||||||||||
Hélder Manuel Marques PostigaOIH (Portuguese pronunciation:[ˈɛldɛɾpuʃˈtiɣɐ]; born 2 August 1982) is a Portuguese former professionalfootballer who played as astriker.
After beginning atPorto, where he won eight items of silverware along the way, he amassedPrimeira Liga totals of 195 games and 54 goals over 11 seasons, with that club,Sporting CP andRio Ave. He also played in six foreign countries, most notably in Spain where he totalled 27 goals in 99La Liga matches for three teams.
APortugal international since 2003, Postiga represented the country in twoWorld Cups and threeEuropean Championships, helping the nation to reach the final atEuro 2004.
Born inVila do Conde, Postiga began his career at nearbyVarzim. In 1995, he joinedPorto's youth system and continued to progress until he reached thereserve squad. At the time, coachOctávio Machado picked him for the first team on some occasions and the player performed well.[3]
AfterJosé Mourinho was hired as manager, Postiga became a first-team regular. The 20-year-old scored 19 times in2002–03, playing alongsideDerlei as Porto won thetreble.[4] This included 13 in a victorious league run[5] as well as five in an eventualconquest of the UEFA Cup, although he missedthe final due to suspension.[4] Following his successful season, he made his senior international debut forPortugal.[4]
On 25 June 2003, Postiga moved toPremier League clubTottenham Hotspur for£6.25 million (€9 million), a fee that could have risen to £8.36 million (€12 million).[4] He signed a five-year contract, with managerGlenn Hoddle remarking: "He is a player who will add definite striking quality to our squad and is a young player of proven ability. I'm sure our supporters will enjoy watching him over the coming seasons."[4]
Postiga made his debut on 16 August 2003 in a 1–0 away defeat toBirmingham City, starting but beingreplaced by fellow new signingBobby Zamora after 57 minutes.[6] His first goal came on 3 December, the second of a 3–1 home win againstManchester City in theround of 16 of theLeague Cup,[7] while his only in the league contributed to a 2–1 victory overLiverpool on 17 January 2004, also atWhite Hart Lane.[8]
In summer 2004, Postiga returned to Porto in a deal that sentPedro Mendes in the other direction, with the striker being valued at €7.5 million.[9] New coachVíctor Fernández included him in the team for theupcoming campaign, but he had another disappointing year;[10] however, followingJosé Couceiro's appointment as manager, he managed to score three goals.[11]
In 2005, after a promising preseason, Postiga was demoted to the B team asCo Adriaanse was not happy with his performances.[12] In January of the following year, trying to earn a place in the 2006 World Cup, he moved on loan toSaint-Étienne,[13] where he netted twice inLigue 1, againstMetz andLe Mans, both resulting in 1–0 away wins.[14][15]
Back at Porto for2006–07, Postiga found himself back in the main squad due to a managerial change.[16] A regular starter in the beginning, he nonetheless fell out of favour towards the end of the season, losing his place to BrazilianAdriano though he still managed to score 11 league goals;[17][18][19] in his two spells, he appeared in 165 games in all competitions and netted 48 times.[20]
In mid-January 2008, after having again fallen out of favour, Postiga moved toPanathinaikos on a six-month loan.[21] His first goal for the club came in theAthens derby againstAEK Athens, in which he equalised (1–1).[22]
On 1 June 2008, Postiga moved to Portuguese rivalsSporting CP, signing a three-year contract for a reported transfer fee of €2.5 million, with theLisbon side acquiring 50% of the player's rights.[23] He scored his first official goal for his new club on 1 September, the only in a victory atBraga.[24]
Postiga'ssecond season as aLion was disastrous, both collectively – Sporting finished fourth – and individually (he only found the net on 19 April 2010, closing the 2–1 home win overVitória de Setúbal after just one minute on the pitch);[25] although he began as a starter, he soon lost his job to youth graduateCarlos Saleiro.[26]
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On 31 August 2011, the last day of the summertransfer window, Postiga joinedReal Zaragoza ofLa Liga for €1 million.[27][28] At the Spanish side, he reunited with his compatriotsFernando Meira andRúben Micael.[29]
After three disallowed goals in as many matches,[30] Postiga opened his scoring account on 16 October 2011, netting twice in a 2–0 home defeat ofReal Sociedad; this included abicycle kick in the 11th minute of the game.[31] He finishedthe season as club top scorer, in an eventual narrow escape from relegation.
On 10 November 2012, Postiga scored a brace to help theAragonese to a 5–3 defeat of ten-menDeportivo de La Coruña.[32] He scored a career-best 14 goals duringthe campaign, but his team was relegated.[33]
On 8 August 2013, Postiga joinedValencia for a fee of £2.6 million, replacing Tottenham-boundRoberto Soldado.[34] On 1 September, in only the third match ofthe season, he netted twice late into the first half of the game againstBarcelona at theMestalla Stadium, but in an eventual 2–3 home loss.[35]
Postiga was loaned toLazio for the remainder ofthe campaign on 30 January 2014, with the option of a permanent move afterwards.[36] He made his debut inSerie A on 26 March, playing 20 minutes in a 2–0 away defeat toGenoa.[37]
On 1 September 2014, Postiga terminated his link with Valencia, and subsequently signed a one-year deal with fellow top-division team Deportivo.[38] He made his competitive debut two weeks later, featuring the full 90 minutes of a 1–0 win atEibar.[39] His first goal for theGalicians came in his fifth match on 31 October: coming on athalf-time forLuis Fariña, he scored a consolation in a 1–2 home loss toGetafe.[40] A week later, he wassent off in the 29th minute of a goalless draw atCórdoba, earning a second yellow card for a reaction when fouled byÍñigo López.[41]
Postiga spent the better part ofthe season injured,[42] asDepor went on to narrowly avoid relegation.
On 29 July 2015, Postiga signed as the marquee player ofIndian Super League franchiseAtlético de Kolkata; at 32, he was the youngest such player in the competition, and was deemed by the management to be less injury-prone than his predecessorLuis García.[43] He made his debut on 3 October in the opening game ofthe season, scoring twice in a 3–2 win atChennaiyin but leaving with an injury.[44] He made no further appearances, as they went on to be eliminated by precisely that opponent in theplay-off semi-finals.
On 1 February 2016, Postiga returned to his homeland, signing for top-flightRio Ave until the end ofthe season.[45] In his second match, 26 days later, he opened a 2–1 away victory overBoavista which was his 50th goal in the division.[46]
On 14 May 2016, in the last fixture, Postiga scored the winning goal as his team won 2–1 atUnião da Madeira,qualifying for the Europa League and relegating their opponents.[47]
On 12 August 2016, Postiga returned to Atlético Kolkata as their marquee player.[48][49] Early in his second match ofthe season, away toKerala Blasters on 5 October, he suffered another long-term injury; the club's ownership admitted that due to such concerns they had wanted a different figurehead.[50]
Postiga returned to the lineups and the side eventually won the championship, although he was substituted inthe final.[51]
"Hélder is one of the most promising youngsters I've seen in Europe."
Postiga earned the first of his 71caps for thePortugal national team (27 goals)[53] on 12 February 2003 in afriendly withItaly, where he came on as a substitute forTiago Mendes in the 70th minute – this game was alsoLuiz Felipe Scolari's first as manager.[54][55] He was handed his first start on 10 June in the 4–0 win overBolivia, where he scored his first two international goals.[56][57]
.jpg)
Even though he had arguably a poor year with Tottenham, Postiga was selected forUEFA Euro 2004.[58][59] In the tournament, he managed to save his team from defeat againstEngland during thequarter-finals, netting an 83rd-minute equaliser to level the score at 1–1 as Portugal would prevail in thepenalty shootout 6–5 after a 2–2 draw. He converted his attempt with a "Panenka-style" shot,[60][61] but did not feature inthe final, lost 1–0 to outsidersGreece.[62]
Postiga was included in the2006 FIFA World Cup squad, starting againstMexico in a 2–1 win at the end of thegroup phase.[63] In the quarter-finals, after replacing captainLuís Figo, he again scored to eliminate England on penalties,[64] as the nation eventually finished fourth.
InEuro 2008, Postiga was also mainly used from the bench. In the quarter-finals againstGermany, he scored a late goal byheading in a cross from fellow replacementNani, although Portugal lost 3–2.[65]
After more than two years of absence from the national team setup, Postiga was called up for twoEuro 2012 qualifiers withDenmark andIceland, in October 2010. On 12 October, against the latter, he netted in a 3–1 away victory.[66] On 17 November, he put two pastworld championsSpain in a 4–0 friendly win in Lisbon.[67]
On 4 June 2011, Postiga scored the only goal in a Euro 2012 qualifier againstNorway played atEstádio da Luz, which made him the tenth highest scorer in Portugal's history.[68] He added a brace on 15 November that year, in a 6–2 play-off second leg defeat ofBosnia and Herzegovina which secured a place in the competition.[69]
Picked byPaulo Bento for the finals inPoland andUkraine as first-choice striker, Postiga scored in the group-stage fixture against Denmark, the second in an eventual 3–2 win.[70] He injured his rightthigh in the first half of the national side's 1–0 quarter-final victory over theCzech Republic, being sidelined for the rest of the tournament.[71]
Postiga scored six goals in thequalification campaign for the2014 World Cup. On 6 September 2013, he was sent off in the first half of a 3–2 win inNorthern Ireland for headbuttingGareth McAuley;[72] at the finals, he started the second game against theUnited States after an injury toHugo Almeida in the opener, but was himself substituted 16 minutes later due to physical problems[73] as Portugal were eliminated in the group stage.
A childhood fan ofBenfica who went on to play for theirtwo main rivals,[74] Postiga grew up in the Caxinas fishing neighbourhood of Vila do Conde, as did his long-time international teammatesBruno Alves andFábio Coentrão.[75]
Postiga's younger brother,José, was also a footballer and a forward. He played youth football at Sporting.[76]
| Club | Season | League | National cup | League cup | Continental | Other | Total | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Porto | 2001–02[77] | Primeira Liga | 27 | 9 | 3 | 3 | — | 10[a] | 1 | — | 40 | 13 | ||
| 2002–03[77] | 31 | 13 | 3 | 0 | — | 13[b] | 5 | — | 47 | 18 | ||||
| Total | 58 | 22 | 6 | 3 | — | 23 | 6 | — | 87 | 31 | ||||
| Tottenham Hotspur | 2003–04[78] | Premier League | 19 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 1 | — | — | 24 | 2 | ||
| Porto | 2004–05[77] | Primeira Liga | 24 | 3 | 1 | 0 | — | 7[a] | 0 | 1[c] | 0 | 23 | 3 | |
| 2005–06[77] | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 | 0 | — | 2 | 0 | ||||
| 2006–07[77] | 24 | 11 | 0 | 0 | — | 7[a] | 1 | — | 31 | 12 | ||||
| 2007–08[77] | 6 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 4[a] | 0 | — | 11 | 2 | |||
| Total | 56 | 15 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 18 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 77 | 17 | ||
| Saint-Étienne (loan) | 2005–06[79] | Ligue 1 | 16 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | 16 | 2 | ||
| Panathinaikos (loan) | 2007–08[80] | Super League Greece | 11 | 2 | 1 | 0 | — | 2[b] | 0 | 3[d] | 0 | 17 | 2 | |
| Sporting CP | 2008–09[77] | Primeira Liga | 21 | 5 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 5[a] | 0 | 1[e] | 0 | 32 | 5 |
| 2009–10[77] | 22 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 7[f] | 0 | — | 32 | 1 | |||
| 2010–11[77] | 25 | 6 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 12[g] | 4 | — | 42 | 11 | |||
| 2011–12[77] | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2[g] | 0 | — | 5 | 0 | |||
| Total | 71 | 12 | 5 | 0 | 8 | 1 | 26 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 111 | 18 | ||
| Zaragoza | 2011–12[81] | La Liga | 33 | 9 | 1 | 0 | — | — | — | 34 | 9 | |||
| 2012–13[81] | 37 | 14 | 4 | 0 | — | — | — | 41 | 14 | |||||
| Total | 70 | 23 | 5 | 0 | — | — | — | 75 | 23 | |||||
| Valencia | 2013–14[81] | La Liga | 15 | 3 | 3 | 1 | — | 5[g] | 0 | — | 23 | 4 | ||
| Lazio (loan) | 2013–14[81] | Serie A | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | — | 5 | 0 | |||
| Deportivo La Coruña | 2014–15[81] | La Liga | 14 | 1 | 2 | 1 | — | — | — | 16 | 2 | |||
| Atlético Kolkata | 2015[81] | Indian Super League | 1 | 2 | — | — | — | — | 1 | 2 | ||||
| Rio Ave | 2015–16[81] | Primeira Liga | 10 | 5 | 1 | 0 | — | — | — | 11 | 5 | |||
| Atlético Kolkata | 2016[81] | Indian Super League | 11 | 2 | — | — | — | — | 11 | 2 | ||||
| Career total | 357 | 90 | 27 | 6 | 11 | 2 | 74 | 11 | 5 | 0 | 474 | 109 | ||
.jpg)
| National team | Year | Apps | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|
| Portugal | 2003 | 4 | 2 |
| 2004 | 7 | 4 | |
| 2005 | 10 | 3 | |
| 2006 | 6 | 0 | |
| 2007 | 4 | 1 | |
| 2008 | 3 | 1 | |
| 2009 | 0 | 0 | |
| 2010 | 3 | 3 | |
| 2011 | 9 | 5 | |
| 2012 | 11 | 4 | |
| 2013 | 9 | 4 | |
| 2014 | 5 | 0 | |
| Total | 71 | 27 | |
| No. | Date | Venue | Opponent | Score | Result | Competition |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 10 June 2003 | Estádio Nacional, Oeiras Municipality, Portugal |  Bolivia | 3–0 | 4–0 | Friendly |
| 2 | 10 June 2003 | Estádio Nacional, Oeiras Municipality, Portugal | Bolivia | 4–0 | 4–0 | Friendly |
| 3 | 5 June 2004 | Estádio do Bonfim, Setúbal, Portugal |  Lithuania | 4–1 | 4–1 | Friendly |
| 4 | 24 June 2004 | Estádio da Luz, Lisbon, Portugal |  England | 1–1 | 2–2 | UEFA Euro 2004 |
| 5 | 8 September 2004 | Estádio Dr. Magalhães Pessoa, Leiria, Portugal |  Estonia | 2–0 | 4–0 | 2006 World Cup qualification |
| 6 | 8 September 2004 | Estádio Dr. Magalhães Pessoa, Leiria, Portugal | Estonia | 4–0 | 4–0 | 2006 World Cup qualification |
| 7 | 26 March 2005 | Estádio Cidade de Barcelos, Barcelos Municipality, Portugal |  Canada | 3–0 | 4–1 | Friendly |
| 8 | 30 March 2005 | Tehelné pole, Bratislava, Slovakia |  Slovakia | 1–1 | 1–1 | 2006 World Cup qualification |
| 9 | 17 August 2005 | Estádio de São Miguel (Ponta Delgada), Ponta Delgada Municipality, Portugal |  Egypt | 2–0 | 2–0 | Friendly |
| 10 | 2 June 2007 | King Baudouin Stadium, Brussels, Belgium |  Belgium | 2–1 | 2–1 | UEFA Euro 2008 qualifying |
| 11 | 19 June 2008 | St. Jakob-Park, Basel, Switzerland |  Germany | 2–3 | 2–3 | UEFA Euro 2008 |
| 12 | 12 October 2010 | Laugardalsvöllur, Reykjavík, Iceland |  Iceland | 3–1 | 3–1 | UEFA Euro 2012 qualifying |
| 13 | 17 November 2010 | Estádio da Luz, Lisbon, Portugal |  Spain | 2–0 | 4–0 | Friendly |
| 14 | 17 November 2010 | Estádio da Luz, Lisbon, Portugal | Spain | 3–0 | 4–0 | Friendly |
| 15 | 4 June 2011 | Estádio da Luz, Lisbon, Portugal |  Norway | 1–0 | 1–0 | UEFA Euro 2012 qualifying |
| 16 | 10 August 2011 | Estádio Algarve, São João da Venda, Portugal |  Luxembourg | 1–0 | 5–0 | Friendly |
| 17 | 7 October 2011 | Estádio do Dragão, Porto, Portugal | Iceland | 3–0 | 5–3 | UEFA Euro 2012 qualifying |
| 18 | 15 November 2011 | Estádio da Luz, Lisbon, Portugal |  Bosnia and Herzegovina | 4–2 | 6–2 | UEFA Euro 2012 qualifying |
| 19 | 15 November 2011 | Estádio da Luz, Lisbon, Portugal | Bosnia and Herzegovina | 6–2 | 6–2 | UEFA Euro 2012 qualifying |
| 20 | 13 June 2012 | Arena Lviv, Lviv, Ukraine |  Denmark | 2–0 | 3–2 | UEFA Euro 2012 |
| 21 | 7 September 2012 | Stade Josy Barthel, Luxembourg City, Luxembourg | Luxembourg | 2–1 | 2–1 | 2014 World Cup qualification |
| 22 | 11 September 2012 | Estádio Municipal de Braga, Braga, Portugal |  Azerbaijan | 2–0 | 3–0 | 2014 World Cup qualification |
| 23 | 16 October 2012 | Estádio do Dragão, Porto, Portugal |  Northern Ireland | 1–1 | 1–1 | 2014 World Cup qualification |
| 24 | 6 February 2013 | Estádio D. Afonso Henriques, Guimarães, Portugal |  Ecuador | 2–1 | 2–3 | Friendly |
| 25 | 22 March 2013 | Ramat Gan Stadium, Ramat Gan, Israel |  Israel | 2–3 | 3–3 | 2014 World Cup qualification |
| 26 | 7 June 2013 | Estádio da Luz, Lisbon, Portugal |  Russia | 1–0 | 1–0 | 2014 World Cup qualification |
| 27 | 15 October 2013 | Estádio Cidade de Coimbra, Coimbra, Portugal | Luxembourg | 3–0 | 3–0 | 2014 World Cup qualification |
Porto
Sporting CP
Atlético Kolkata
Portugal
Orders
Medal of Merit,Order of the Immaculate Conception of Vila Viçosa (House of Braganza)[85]
Portugal squads | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
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