In this Portuguese name, the first or maternal family name is Varela and the second or paternal family name is Lopes.

Nilton Varela Lopes (born 25 May 2001) is a Portuguese professional footballer who plays as a left-back or winger for Primeira Liga club Estrela da Amadora.

Club career

Varela alternated between Lisbon-based clubs Sporting CP and C.F. Os Belenenses in his youth. He made his professional debut with Belenenses SAD in a 2–0 Primeira Liga loss away to Sporting on 10 November 2019.[1] The following 26 January, he scored his first goal in a 2–1 home win over Portimonense SC, with his uncle scoring the other.[2] He was a regular in the second half of the season as Petit replaced Pedro Ribeiro as manager, earning his place from unrelated Spaniard Francisco Varela.[3]

In March 2022, Portugal's Constitutional Court ordered B-SAD to pay over €30,000 in compensation to C.F. Os Belenenses for his development as a player.[4]

Varela transferred to FC Porto B on 19 August 2022, on a two-year deal.[5]

On 30 January 2024, Varela returned to the Primeira Liga, joining Estrela da Amadora.[6]

International career

Born in Portugal, Varela is of Cape Verdean descent.[7] He represented the Cape Verde under-19 teams in a friendly 2–0 loss to the Portuguese equivalent on 30 January 2019.[8] He then switched to represent the latter, making an appearance in a 3–1 win over France under-19 on 25 February 2020.[9]

Personal life

Varela made his professional debut for Belenenses SAD alongside his uncle Silvestre Varela, a winger who played mainly for FC Porto and was a long-time international for Portugal.[1] He was also his teammate at Porto B.[5]

References

  1. ^ a b "Nilton Varela e a estreia com o tio: "É um dia que vai ficar marcado na minha vida"" [Nilton Varela and debut with uncle: "It's a day that will remain etched in my life"]. Record (in Portuguese). 10 November 2019. Retrieved 14 January 2020.
  2. ^ "Família Varela penaliza erros do Portimonense" [Varela family punish Portimonense's errors] (in Portuguese). Bancada. 26 January 2020. Retrieved 27 January 2020.
  3. ^ Gouveia Pereira, Miguel (23 May 2020). "Francisco Varela não deve voltar ao Belenenses SAD" [Francisco Varela must not return to Belenenses SAD]. O Jogo (in Portuguese). Retrieved 13 August 2020.
  4. ^ "Belenenses SAD condenado a pagar mais de 30 mil euros ao Belenenses pela formação de Nilton Varela" [Belenenses SAD ordered to pay over 30 thousand euros to Belenenses for Nilton Varela's development]. Record (in Portuguese). 17 March 2022. Retrieved 14 May 2022.
  5. ^ a b "FC Porto anuncia Nilton Varela como reforço da equipa B" [FC Porto announce Nilton Varela as B-team addition]. Record (in Portuguese). 19 August 2022. Retrieved 16 September 2022.
  6. ^ "Deixa FC Porto B e reforça Estrela da Amadora... para seguir pisadas do tio" [Leaves FC Porto B and reinforces Estrela da Amadora... to follow his uncle's footsteps]. O Jogo (in Portuguese). 30 January 2024. Retrieved 30 January 2024.
  7. ^ "Criolos No Estrangeiro: Futebol Portugal – Nilton Varela estreia-se na primeira liga portuguesa de futebol" [Creoles Abroad: Portugal Football – Nilton Varela debuts in Portuguese football's Primeira Liga] (in Portuguese). Criolo Sports. 11 November 2019. Retrieved 14 January 2020.
  8. ^ "Seleção Sub-19 - Ficha de Jogo, resultados e equipas". www.fpf.pt.
  9. ^ "Seleção Sub-19 - Ficha de Jogo, resultados e equipas". www.fpf.pt.
Allikas: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nilton_Varela
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