João Paulo Moreira Fernandes (Portuguese: [ʒu.ˈɐ̃w ˈpaw.lu mu.ˈɾej.ɾɐ fɨɾ.ˈnɐ̃.dɨʃ]; born 26 May 1998), commonly known as João Paulo, is a Cape Verdean professional footballer who plays as a midfielder or a left-back for Liga I club FCSB and the Cape Verde national team.
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | João Paulo Moreira Fernandes | ||
| Date of birth | 26 May 1998 | ||
| Place of birth | Ribeira Grande de Santiago, Cape Verde | ||
| Height | 1.80 m (5 ft 11 in) | ||
| Positions | |||
| Team information | |||
Current team | FCSB | ||
| Number | 18 | ||
| Youth career | |||
| –2015 | Tchadense | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2016–2017 | Tchadense | ||
| 2017–2018 | Sporting Praia | 10 | (0) |
| 2018–2019 | Maria da Fonte | 30 | (3) |
| 2019–2021 | Leça | 41 | (5) |
| 2021–2023 | Feirense | 56 | (4) |
| 2023–2025 | Sheriff Tiraspol | 34 | (4) |
| 2025–2026 | Oțelul Galați | 20 | (1) |
| 2026– | FCSB | 14 | (1) |
| International career‡ | |||
| 2019 | Cape Verde U19 | 2 | (0) |
| 2021– | Cape Verde | 42 | (1) |
|
* Club domestic league appearances and goals as of 11 May 2026 ‡ National team caps and goals as of 31 May 2026 | |||
Club career
editIn June 2025, the player moved to Oțelul Galați from Liga I, signing a two-year contract.[1]
International career
editFernandes was called up to the Cape Verde national team for a pair of friendlies in June 2021.[2] He debuted with the Cape Verde national team in a friendly 2–0 loss to Senegal on 8 June 2021.[3]
Career statistics
editClub
edit- As of match played 29 May 2026[4]
| Club | Season | League | National cup[a] | Continental | Other | Total | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Tchadense | 2017 | Campeonato Caboverdiano de Futebol | ? | ? | ? | ? | — | — | ? | ? | ||
| Sporting Praia | 2018 | Campeonato Caboverdiano de Futebol | 10 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | 10 | 0 | ||
| Maria da Fonte | 2018–19 | Campeonato de Portugal | 30 | 3 | 3 | 1 | — | — | 33 | 4 | ||
| Leça | 2019–20 | Campeonato de Portugal | 17 | 3 | 3 | 0 | — | — | 20 | 3 | ||
| 2020–21 | 24 | 2 | 1 | 0 | — | — | 25 | 2 | ||||
| Total | 41 | 5 | 4 | 0 | — | — | 45 | 5 | ||||
| Feirense | 2021–22 | Liga Portugal 2 | 24 | 1 | 3 | 0 | — | 1[b] | 0 | 28 | 1 | |
| 2022–23 | 32 | 3 | 1 | 0 | — | 3[b] | 0 | 36 | 3 | |||
| Total | 56 | 4 | 4 | 0 | — | 4 | 0 | 64 | 4 | |||
| Sheriff Tiraspol | 2023–24 | Moldovan Super Liga | 20 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 13[c] | 0 | — | 36 | 6 | |
| 2024–25 | 14 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 6[d] | 0 | — | 23 | 0 | |||
| Total | 34 | 4 | 6 | 2 | 19 | 0 | — | 59 | 6 | |||
| Oțelul Galați | 2025–26 | Liga I | 20 | 1 | 2 | 0 | — | — | 22 | 1 | ||
| FCSB | 2025–26 | Liga I | 14 | 1 | 1 | 0 | — | 2[e] | 1 | 17 | 2 | |
| Career total | 205 | 18 | 20 | 3 | 19 | 0 | 6 | 1 | 250 | 22 | ||
- ↑ Includes Taça de Portugal, Cupa Moldovei, Cupa României
- 1 2 Appearances in Taça da Liga
- ↑ Four appearances in UEFA Champions League, nine appearances in UEFA Europa League
- ↑ Four appearances in UEFA Europa League, two appearances in UEFA Conference League
- ↑ Appearances in Liga I European play-offs
International
edit- As of match played 31 May 2026
| National team | Year | Apps | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cape Verde | 2021 | 4 | 0 |
| 2022 | 3 | 0 | |
| 2023 | 9 | 1 | |
| 2024 | 15 | 0 | |
| 2025 | 7 | 0 | |
| 2026 | 3 | 0 | |
| Total | 41 | 1 | |
- Scores and results list Cape Verde's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each João Paulo goal.
| No. | Date | Venue | Opponent | Score | Result | Competition |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 18 June 2023 | Estádio Nacional de Cabo Verde, Praia, Cape Verde |  Burkina Faso | 2–0 | 3–1 | 2023 Africa Cup of Nations qualification |
Honours
editReferences
edit- ↑ "Bem-vindo, Joao Paulo!" [Welcome, Joao Paulo!]. ascotelul.ro (in Romanian). 30 June 2025. Retrieved 30 June 2025.
- ↑ "Football: Newcomers Sixten Mohlin, João Correia, Rely Cabral and Alexis Gonçalves are new in Bubista's call-up | INFORPRESS". 27 May 2021. Archived from the original on 30 January 2022. Retrieved 9 June 2021.
- ↑ "Match Report of Senegal vs Cape Verde Islands – 2021-06-08 – FIFA Friendlies – Global Sports Archive". globalsportsarchive.com.
- ↑ João Paulo Fernandes at Soccerway. Retrieved 1 February 2026.
External links
edit- João Paulo Fernandes at Soccerway
- João Paulo Fernandes at ForaDeJogo (archived)
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