Umaro Embaló

Úmaro Embaló
Personal information
Date of birth (2001-05-06) 6 May 2001 (age 23)
Place of birth Bissau, Guinea-Bissau
Height 1.70 m (5 ft 7 in)[1]
Position(s) Winger
Team information
Current team
Fortuna Sittard
Youth career
2014–2015 AD Oeiras
2015–2020 Benfica
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2018–2022 Benfica B 59 (6)
2022– Fortuna Sittard 27 (3)
2023–2024Cartagena (loan) 16 (0)
2024Rio Ave (loan) 14 (1)
International career
2015–2016 Portugal U16 12 (6)
2016–2018 Portugal U17 27 (16)
2019 Portugal U18 3 (1)
2018–2019 Portugal U19 13 (4)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 17 May 2024
‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 17 October 2019

Úmaro Embaló (born 6 May 2001) is a professional footballer who plays as a winger for Dutch Eredivisie club Fortuna Sittard.[2] Born in Guinea-Bissau, he was a youth international for Portugal.

Club career

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Benfica

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Embaló progressed through Benfica's youth academy, after being scouted AD Oeiras in 2015.[3] On 12 September 2017, Embaló made his debut for the under-19 team in the UEFA Youth League in a 5–1 home victory against CSKA Moscow, replacing Jota in the 75th minute and scoring the final goal of the game in the 89th minute.[4]

On 27 October 2018, he made his debut for Benfica's reserves in the Segunda Liga, coming on as a late substitute for Chris Willock in a 3–2 home win against Sporting da Covilhã.[5] In the 2018–19 season, he appeared in all six games with the under-19 team in the UEFA Youth League, scoring once and reaching the knockout stage, where they eventually lost to Montpellier.[2][6] He made three appearances for the reserves in the second division that season.[2]

Embaló scored his first Segunda Liga goal on 11 August 2019 against Estoril, catching opposing goalkeeper António Filipe on the wrong foot with a misplaced cross which sailed into the top corner, to secure a 2–1 victory.[7] He played in nine games in the second division and scored twice that season, before it was abandoned due to the COVID-19 pandemic in Portugal.[8] In the UEFA Youth League, the team made it to the final after defeating Dinamo Zagreb (3–1) and Ajax (3–0).[9][10] However, Benfica lost 3–2 to Real Madrid's under-19s in the final in which Embaló started, despite Gonçalo Ramos' brace.[11] Embaló made seven appearances and scored three goals in the Youth League that season.[2][12][13]

In the 2020–21 season, he missed the entire first half of the season due to various reasons, including testing positive for COVID-19. In the second half of the season, he made sixteen appearances.[2] During his time at Benfica, he was reported to having received interest by Real Madrid, Manchester United, RB Leipzig and PSV Eindhoven, but a move failed to come to fruition.[3][14]

Fortuna Sittard

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In August 2022, Embaló signed a four-year contract with Eredivisie club Fortuna Sittard for a fee reported to be in the region of €1 million with a 50% sell-on clause.[15] He made his debut for the club on 17 September in a 1–0 league victory against Excelsior, replacing Tijjani Noslin in the 55th minute.[16] On 2 October, he scored on his first ever start for Fortuna, curling a strike from distance into the top corner in a 2–0 Eredivisie win over Volendam.[17][18]

On 29 August 2023, Embaló was loaned to Spanish Segunda División side Cartagena for the 2023–24 season.[19] On 31 January 2024, he moved on a new loan to Rio Ave.[20]

Career statistics

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As of match played 21 May 2023[2]
Appearances and goals by club, season and competition
Club Season League KNVB Cup Europe Other Total
Division Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals
Benfica B 2018–19 LigaPro 3 0 3 0
2019–20 LigaPro 9 2 9 2
2020–21 LigaPro 16 0 16 0
2021–22 LigaPro 31 4 31 4
Total 59 6 59 6
Fortuna Sittard 2022–23 Eredivisie 26 3 1 0 27 3
Career total 85 9 1 0 0 0 0 0 86 9

Honours

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Benfica U19

References

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  1. ^ "Úmaro Embaló – Profiel". Voetbal International (in Dutch). Retrieved 24 May 2023.
  2. ^ a b c d e f g Umaro Embaló at Soccerway. Retrieved 2 January 2019.
  3. ^ a b "'PSV gaat bij Benfica bod van twintig miljoen uitbrengen op toptalent'". GOAL (in Dutch). 28 March 2019. Archived from the original on 11 February 2023. Retrieved 24 May 2023.
  4. ^ "SL Benfica – CSKA Moskva 5:1 (Youth Youth League 2017/2018, Group A)". WorldFootball.net. HEIM:SPIEL. Retrieved 24 May 2023.
  5. ^ "SL Benfica B – Sporting Covilhã 3:2 (Segunda Liga 2018/2019, 7. Round)". WorldFootball.net. HEIM:SPIEL. Retrieved 24 May 2023.
  6. ^ "Montpellier–Benfica | UEFA Youth League 2018/19". UEFA.com. Archived from the original on 20 May 2022. Retrieved 24 May 2023.
  7. ^ "Reviravolta encarnada colocou justiça no resultado". S.L. Benfica (in Portuguese). 11 August 2019. Archived from the original on 20 October 2021. Retrieved 24 May 2023.
  8. ^ "Nacional e Farense sobem, Casa Pia e Cova da Piedade despromovidos". Record (in European Portuguese). 5 May 2020. Archived from the original on 3 October 2020. Retrieved 24 May 2023.
  9. ^ "Dinamo Zagreb–Benfica | UEFA Youth League 2019/20". UEFA.com. Archived from the original on 1 February 2023. Retrieved 24 May 2023.
  10. ^ "Ajax–Benfica | UEFA Youth League 2018/19". UEFA.com. Archived from the original on 9 November 2020. Retrieved 24 May 2023.
  11. ^ a b "Desfecho imerecido, mas honraram a camisola até ao fim!". S.L. Benfica. 26 August 2020. Archived from the original on 5 December 2022. Retrieved 24 May 2023.
  12. ^ "Real Madrid keep eye on Benfica starlet Umaro Embalo". Tribuna. 12 February 2018. Retrieved 24 May 2023.
  13. ^ "Manchester United target Umaro Embalo reveals Red Devils flop and current PSG star Angel Di Maria to be his idol". GOAL. 31 March 2018. Retrieved 24 May 2023.
  14. ^ Jakobs, Geert-Jan (31 August 2022). "Fortuna Sittard gaat op Deadline Day nog voor aanvaller van Benfica". Voetbal International (in Dutch). Retrieved 24 May 2023.
  15. ^ Kleinen, Jelle (31 August 2022). "Fortuna Sittard haalt Úmaro Embaló van Benfica B". 1limburg (in Dutch). Archived from the original on 31 August 2022. Retrieved 14 May 2023.
  16. ^ "Fortuna Sittard vs. Excelsior – 17 September 2022". Soccerway. Perform Group. Retrieved 14 May 2023.
  17. ^ Puts, Wim (2 October 2022). "Embaló en Özyakup leiden Fortuna naar belangrijke zege". 1limburg (in Dutch). Archived from the original on 6 December 2022. Retrieved 14 May 2023.
  18. ^ Smit, Gideon (2 October 2022). "FC Volendam overtuigt niet op het moment dat het moet; Fortuna Sittard met 2-0 te sterk". Noordhollands Dagblad (in Dutch). Archived from the original on 1 December 2022. Retrieved 14 May 2023.
  19. ^ "Umaro Embaló, velocidad y desequilibrio para reforzar ambas bandas" [Umaro Embaló, speed and skill to bolster both wings] (in Spanish). FC Cartagena. 29 August 2023. Retrieved 29 August 2023.
  20. ^ "Úmaro Embaló é reforço do Rio Ave FC" [Úmaro Embaló is a Rio Ave FC reinforcement] (in European Portuguese). Rio Ave. 31 January 2024. Retrieved 3 February 2024.
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