Pizzi

Luis Miguel Afonso Fernandes is a Portuguese professional footballer who was born on October 6, 1989. He is also known as Pizzi and plays as a central midfielder, currently for the club Benfica and Potugal National Football Team.

But on some occasions, he has been seen in the left as well as in the right midfield as well. He was attacked by a fan of the rival team, Porto in December 2017.

Background

Pizzi started his youth career in football at the age of 10 years when he joined the G. D. Braganca Football Club which was his home town club.

It was through this club that he learnt the sport in detail and brushed up his skills. He continued with G.D. Braganca Club until 2007, when he joined the S.C. Braga Football Club of the Primeira Liga.

But he played only 2 matches for the club and scored no goal as most of the time, he was on loan to other clubs. But his passing skills were praised by all and he was selected in the Portugal U-19 Team in 2008.

Debut

Pizzi made his International debut on January 22,2008 in the Portugal U-19 team. But his senior team debut came on November 14, 2012 against Gabon.

Pizzi scored a goal in that match through a penalty kick but the match ended in a draw with a score of 2-2.

Rise to Glory

Although Pizzi was a member of the S.C. Braga Club and he failed to score for them, but he had a nice record as a loaned player. He scored a total of 14 goals in 92 matches while on loan. His nice skills with right foot made him a sought after players in the 2010s.

After the Atletico Madrid finished second in the UEFA League of 2011-12 season and won the UEFA Europa League 2011-12 while he was on a loan, he was given a permanent contract by the team for the 2012-13 season.

He thus got to showcase his skills a lot many times on the field as the number of matches had increased for him.

Club Career

The Portuguese player became a regular player of the Atletico Madrid Club in 2012-13 season. But that season didn't go well for him and he couldn't play a single match for Atletico Madrid.

He was then loaned to Deportivo La Coruna the next season and he scored 8 goals in 35 appearances on the field. But that didn't prove out to be useful as his team finished second last in the League.

In 2014-15 season, Pizzi joined his current club, Benfica. This club has been nice for him as his team has won a lot of tournaments since he came to play for them. Pizzi has Primera Liga titles of 2014-15, 2015-16 and 2016-17 along with the Taca da Liga of 2014-15 and 2015-16.

He has also been awarded with the Primera Liga Player of the Year 2016 and Player of the Month for three times in a row.