In this Portuguese name, the first or maternal family name is Pires and the second or paternal family name is Neto.

Cláudia Teresa Pires Neto (born 18 April 1988) is a Portuguese footballer who plays as a midfielder for Portuguese Campeonato Nacional Feminino club Sporting CP. She has previously played for Prainsa Zaragoza and RCD Espanyol in the Spanish Primera División, Linköping FC in the Swedish Damallsvenskan, VfL Wolfsburg in the German Frauen-Bundesliga, and Fiorentina in the Italian Serie A.

Club career

Spain

Neto started playing at the age of twelve futsal with União de Lagos.[1] With them she won all the trophies available in the Algarve Football Association.[2] In 2008, she turned to association football and signed for Prainsa Zaragoza in Spain's Superliga.[3][4] Five years later, in 2013, she moved to RCD Espanyol, where she played just one season.[5]

Linköping FC

Neto moved to Sweden and joined Linköping FC in June 2014, signing a one-and-a-half year contract.[6] She was one of the most influential players during the 2014 Damallsvenskan season, contributing with her precise passing and humble character. This led to her signing a two-year contract extension in September 2015.[7] In February 2017, Neto was nominated for the FIFPRO World 11 team.[8] During her time with Linköpings, she helped the club twice win the Svenska Cupen and win the league championship back-to-back in the 2016 and 2017 seasons.[9]

Wolfsburg VfL

In November 2017, together with Linköpings team-mate Kristine Minde, Neto joined German champions VfL Wolfsburg, signing a contract until June 2019.[10] After exceeding the high expectations the club had of her, they signed her to a one-year contract extension in October 2018, keeping her at the club until June 2020.[11] In all three of her seasons at the club they won both the Frauen-Bundesliga title and the DFB-Pokal Frauen each season.[12]

Fiorentina

In August 2020, Neto signed with Italian club Fiorentina until 2022.[13]

Sporting CP

In June 2022, Neto returned to Portugal, after 14 seasons overseas, and signed with Sporting CP.[14] In June 2024, Neto re-signed with Sporting CP for another season after scoring 17 goals in 54 matches since 2022. This kept her the oldest player of the squad.[15]

International career

Neto was called-up for Portuguese national youth teams from 2004.[1] In 2006, she made her debut for the Portuguese senior national team,[1] which she later captained, helping guide the team to the 2017 UEFA Women's European Championships.[16] She retired from international football in September 2021, having scored 19 goals in 136 caps since her debut in March 2006.[17]

Style of play

Neto stated that starting off her career playing futsal gave her technique and helped her think and execute faster due to playing in reduced spaces.[15]

Personal life

Neto was born as a premature baby in the Portuguese city Portimão.[18]

Honours

References

  1. ^ a b c "Cláudia Teresa Pires Neto" (in Portuguese). Sporting CP. Retrieved 12 March 2025.
  2. ^ Lopes, José Carlos (23 November 2014). "Cláudia Neto joga na equipa sueca do Linkoping" [Cláudia Neto plays for the Swedish team Linkoping] (in Portuguese). Rádio e Televisão de Portugal.
  3. ^ Cortés, A. (4 November 2009). "El Prainsa, a ritmo de fado" [The Prainsa, to the rhythm of fado]. Heraldo de Aragón (in Spanish).
  4. ^ Menayo, David (27 August 2011). "Macedonia de veteranía y juventud con acento maño" [Macedonia of veteran and youth with a Maño accent]. Marca (in Spanish).
  5. ^ Miedes, J.M. (3 June 2014). "Jamila y Claudia, primeras bajas" [Jamila and Claudia, first casualties]. Mundo Deportivo (in Spanish).
  6. ^ Larsson, Jimmie (26 June 2014). "Linköping värvar portugisisk stjärna" [Linköping signs Portuguese star]. Aftonbladet (in Swedish).
  7. ^ "Claudia Neto förlänger med LFC" [Claudia Neto extends with LFC] (in Swedish). Sveriges Television. 28 September 2015.
  8. ^ Cova, Tânia (23 February 2017). "Cláudia Neto candidata a melhor médio do Mundo" [Cláudia Neto nominated for best midfielder in the world]. Tribuna da Madeira (in Portuguese).
  9. ^ Lawson, Sophie (21 November 2017). "Wolfsburg swoop for Linköping pair". Vavel. Over the last three seasons in Sweden both Neto and Minde have shown their calibre, mastering their respective roles on the pitch, scooping two Svenska Cupen wins (2013–14, 2014–15) as well and becoming back-to-back league champions (2016, 2017).
  10. ^ "Futebol feminino: Cláudia Neto assina pelo Wolfsburgo" [Women's football: Cláudia Neto signs for Wolfsburg] (in Portuguese). CNN Portugal. 21 November 2017.
  11. ^ "Neto signs contract extension". VfL Wolfsburg. 29 October 2018.
  12. ^ "Futebolista internacional portuguesa Cláudia Neto assina pela Fiorentina" [Portuguese international footballer Claudia Neto signs for Fiorentina]. Visão (in Portuguese). 8 August 2020. depois de três temporadas no clube alemão, com a conquista de três edições da 'Bundesliga' e outras tantas da Taça da Alemanha. [after three seasons at the German club, winning three editions of the 'Bundesliga' and three editions of the German Cup.]
  13. ^ "Claúdia Neto é reforço da Fiorentina" [Claúdia Neto joins Fiorentina] (in Portuguese). Rádio Renascença. 8 August 2020.
  14. ^ "Cláudia Neto de regresso a Portugal, 14 épocas depois. A segunda jogadora mais internacional de sempre vai jogar no Sporting" [Cláudia Neto returns to Portugal, 14 seasons later. The second most capped player of all time will play for Sporting.]. Tribuna Expresso (in pr). 28 June 2022.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: unrecognized language (link)
  15. ^ a b "OFICIAL: Cláudia Neto renova com o Sporting" [OFFICIAL: Cláudia Neto renews with Sporting] (in Portuguese). CNN Portugal. 5 June 2024.
  16. ^ Profile in UEFA's website
  17. ^ "Cláudia Neto anuncia retirada da seleção de futebol de Portugal" [Cláudia Neto announces retirement from Portugal national football team]. Bancada (in Portuguese). 3 September 2021. Retrieved 4 September 2021.
  18. ^ "Cláudia Neto nasceu em Portimão de parto prematuro. Hoje coleciona títulos no futebol" [Cláudia Neto was born prematurely in Portimão. Today she collects football titles]. Expresso (in Portuguese). 30 August 2022.
Allikas: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cl%C3%A1udia_Neto
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