Matheus Bonifácio Saldanha Marinho (born 19 August 1999), commonly known as Matheus Saldanha, is a Brazilian professional footballer who plays as a forward for Hungarian club Ferencváros.

Matheus Saldanha
Saldanha with Neftçi in 2023
Personal information
Full name Matheus Bonifácio Saldanha Marinho
Date of birth (1999-08-18) 18 August 1999 (age 25)
Place of birth Uberaba, Brazil
Height 1.85 m (6 ft 1 in)
Position(s) Forward
Team information
Current team
Ferencváros
Number 11
Youth career
Santos
2016–2019 Audax
2018–2019Bahia (loan)
2019 Bahia
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2020–2022 Bahia 29 (3)
2021JEF United Chiba (loan) 31 (3)
2022–2023 JEF United Chiba 16 (1)
2022Chengdu Rongcheng (loan) 19 (3)
2023Neftçi (loan) 17 (5)
2023–2024 Partizan 28 (18)
2024– Ferencváros 5 (5)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 28 October 2024

Club career

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Born in Uberaba, Minas Gerais, Saldanha joined Bahia's youth setup in 2018, initially on loan from Audax.[1][2] On 1 July 2019, after impressing with the under-20 side, he was bought outright and signed a permanent three-year contract.[3]

Saldanha was promoted to the first team for the 2020 season, and made his senior debut on 22 January of that year by starting in a 1–1 Campeonato Baiano away draw against Juazeirense.[4] He scored his first senior goal on 9 February, netting his team's second in a 3–1 away win against Jacobina.[5]

Saldanha made his Série A on 12 August 2020, coming on as a second-half substitute for Rossi in a 1–0 home win against Coritiba.[6] His first goal in the category occurred on 16 September, as he scored his team's second in a 2–3 away loss against Corinthians.[7]

In 2021, Saldanha joined to J2 club, JEF United Chiba on loan transfer. One year later, he was announcement officially permanently transfer to JEF United Chiba has been confirmed after a season as loan player from EC Bahia.

In 2022, Saldanha loaned again to Chinese Super League club, Chengdu Rongcheng for during mid 2022 season. He leave from the club after a half season at Chengdu expiration contract.

He returned to JEF United Chiba for the 2023 season.[8]

Partizan

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On 28 July 2023, Saldanha signed a four-year contract with Serbian club Partizan for a reported fee of €1.3 million. Just one day later, Saldanha scored a goal on his debut in a 3–3 draw away at TSC.[9] A week later, Saldanha scored his second goal in a 2–0 win over Vojvodina.[10] In the third qualifying round for the UEFA Europa Conference League, Saldanha scored one goal in the two-legged tie against Sabah.[11] On 27 August, Saldanha scored his third SuperLiga goal in a 3–1 win against Javor.[12] In September and October, Saldanha continued his good form by scoring 6 goals and providing 3 assists. On 20 December 2023, Saldanha scored the winning goal in the 171st Eternal derby in a 2–1 win against arch rivals Red Star.[13] Saldanha scored against Red Star again at the Rajko Mitić Stadium on 9 March 2024, as Red Star and Partizan drew 2–2 in the 172nd Eternal derby.[14] Saldanha finished the 2023–24 Serbian SuperLiga having played 27 games and scored 17 goals, becoming its joint top scorer.

Ferencváros

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On September 3, 2024, he signed a contract with the Hungarian club Ferencváros.[15] On 15 September 2024, he debuted with a goal in a 3–0 victory against Budafoki MTE in the 2024–25 Magyar Kupa.[16] On 20 September 2024, he scored his first league goal in a 3–1 victory against MTK Budapest at Hidegkuti Nándor Stadion in the 2024–25 Nemzeti Bajnokság I.[17]

On 29 September 2024, he scored a hat-trick against Puskás Akadémia FC in the 2024-25 Nemzeti Bajnokság I at the Groupama Arena.[18][19]

Career statistics

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As of 28 October 2024[20]
Appearances and goals by club, season and competition
Club Season League State league[a] National cup[b] Continental Other Total
Division Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals
Bahia 2020 Série A 17 2 12 1 0 0 2[c] 0 3[d] 0 34 3
JEF United Chiba (loan) 2021 J2 League 31 3 1 0 32 3
JEF United Chiba 2022 16 1 0 0 16 1
Total 47 4 1 0 48 4
Chengdu Rongcheng (loan) 2022 Chinese Super League 19 3 0 0 19 3
Neftçi (loan) 2022–23 Azerbaijan Premier League 17 5 3 0 20 5
Partizan 2023–24 Serbian Superliga 27 17 3 0 4[e] 1 34 18
2024–25 1 1 5[f] 2 6 3
Total 28 18 3 0 9 3 40 21
Ferencváros 2024–25 Nemzeti Bajnokság 5 5 1 2 3[g] 0 9 7
Career total 133 37 12 1 8 2 14 3 3 0 170 43
  1. ^ Includes Campeonato Baiano
  2. ^ Includes Emperor's Cup, Azerbaijan Cup, Serbian Cup
  3. ^ Appearances in Copa Sudamericana
  4. ^ Appearances in Copa do Nordeste
  5. ^ Appearances in UEFA Conference League
  6. ^ Two appearances and two goals in UEFA Champions League, two appearances in UEFA Europa League
  7. ^ Three Appearances in UEFA Europa League

Honours

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Bahia

Individual

References

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  1. ^ "Bola dentro: Saldanha, um uberabense no EC Bahia" [Ball in: Saldanha, an uberabense in EC Bahia] (in Brazilian Portuguese). Jornal da Manhã. 13 August 2020. Archived from the original on 15 November 2020. Retrieved 14 November 2020.
  2. ^ Matheus Saldanha at zerozero.pt
  3. ^ "Saldanha" (in Brazilian Portuguese). EC Bahia. 1 July 2019. Archived from the original on 4 November 2021. Retrieved 14 November 2020.
  4. ^ "Bahia joga mal, Juazeirense perde gols, e times ficam no empate na estreia do Baianão" [Bahia play poorly, Juazeirense miss goals, and teams end up drawing in the debut of the Baianão] (in Brazilian Portuguese). GloboEsporte.com. 22 January 2020. Archived from the original on 31 October 2021. Retrieved 14 November 2020.
  5. ^ "Em jogo com erros de arbitragem, Bahia vence o Jacobina de virada e assume topo" [In a match with refereeing errors, Bahia defeat Jacobina and go top] (in Brazilian Portuguese). GloboEsporte.com. 9 February 2020. Archived from the original on 15 November 2020. Retrieved 14 November 2020.
  6. ^ "Rodriguinho marca de cavadinha, e Bahia vence o Coritiba no Brasileirão" [Rodriguinho scores with a Panenka, and Bahia defeat Coritiba in the Brasileirão] (in Brazilian Portuguese). UOL Esporte. 12 August 2020. Archived from the original on 17 November 2020. Retrieved 14 November 2020.
  7. ^ "Em meio a nova derrota, Saldanha comemora primeiro gol na Série A" [Amidst new defeat, Saldanha celebrates first goal in the Série A] (in Brazilian Portuguese). Correio 24 Horas. 17 September 2020. Archived from the original on 16 November 2020. Retrieved 14 November 2020.
  8. ^ "成都蓉城足球倶楽部よりFWサウダーニャが復帰【千葉】" [Forward Saldanha returns from Chengdu Rongcheng Football Club [Chiba] (in Japanese). Yahoo!. 4 January 2023. Archived from the original on 4 January 2023. Retrieved 4 January 2023.
  9. ^ "TSC VS. PARTIZAN 3 - 3". Soccerway.com. 29 July 2023.
  10. ^ "VOJVODINA VS. PARTIZAN 0 - 2". Soccerway.com. 6 August 2023.
  11. ^ "PARTIZAN VS. SABAH 2 - 0". Soccerway.com. 17 August 2023.
  12. ^ "PARTIZAN VS. JAVOR 3 - 1". Soccerway.com. 27 August 2023.
  13. ^ "PARTIZAN VS. RED STAR BELGRADE 2 - 1". Soccerway.com. 20 December 2023.
  14. ^ "RED STAR BELGRADE VS. PARTIZAN 2 - 2". Soccerway.com. 9 March 2024.
  15. ^ "WE HAVE SIGNED A TOP SCORER BRAZILIAN STRIKER". www.fradi.hu. Ferencvárosi TC. Retrieved 13 September 2024.
  16. ^ "Budafoki MTE vs. Ferencváros - 15 September 2024 - Soccerway". int.soccerway.com. Retrieved 20 September 2024.
  17. ^ "MTK vs. Ferencváros - 20 September 2024 - Soccerway". int.soccerway.com. Retrieved 20 September 2024.
  18. ^ "Saldanha mesterhármasával megverte a Fradi a Puskás Akadémiát". Nemzeti Sport (in Hungarian). 29 September 2024. Retrieved 29 September 2024.
  19. ^ "Matheus Saldanha beállt, majd bő negyedóra alatt triplázott a Puskás Akadémia ellen – VIDEÓ!". Nemzeti Sport (in Hungarian). 29 September 2024. Retrieved 29 September 2024.
  20. ^ Saldanha at Soccerway. Retrieved 1 January 2023.
  21. ^ "Tim sezone 2023/24 Mozzart Bet Super lige Srbije" (in Serbian). Serbian SuperLiga. 30 May 2024. Retrieved 30 May 2024.
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