Alan Varela
Argentine footballer
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Alan Gonzalo Varela (born 4 July 2001) is an Argentine professional footballer who plays as a defensive or central midfielder for Primeira Liga club Porto.[4]
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Alan Gonzalo Varela[1] | ||
| Date of birth | 4 July 2001[1] | ||
| Place of birth | Isidro Casanova, Argentina | ||
| Height | 1.77 m (5 ft 10 in)[1] | ||
| Position(s) | |||
| Team information | |||
Current team | Porto | ||
| Number | 22 | ||
| Youth career | |||
| Barcelona Luján | |||
| 2012–2020 | Boca Juniors | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2020–2023 | Boca Juniors | 78 | (0) |
| 2023– | Porto | 79 | (4) |
| International career‡ | |||
| 2019 | Argentina U20 | 3 | (0) |
| 2024 | Argentina U23 | 4 | (0) |
|
* Club domestic league appearances and goals as of 15:20, 3 February 2026 (UTC) ‡ National team caps and goals as of 9 November 2025 | |||
Club career
Boca Juniors
Varela joined Boca Juniors in 2012 from Barcelona Luján; a subsidiary of Barcelona, who later became known as Barcelona Juniors following a partnership with Boca.[3] After training with Boca's senior side during 2019, a year that also saw him sign his first professional contract, Varela made the breakthrough into Miguel Ángel Russo's first-team in 2020.[5][6][7] He was an unused substitute seven times in all competitions between September and December, including for the first time on 17 September for a Copa Libertadores win over Libertad.[4] Varela's senior debut came on 20 December in a Copa de la Liga Profesional game with Independiente.[4][8][9][10]
Porto
On 16 August 2023, Primeira Liga club Porto announced the signing of Varela on a five-year contract,[11] for a reported fee of €8 million + €3 million in performance-related add-ons.[12] He made his debut on 3 September, coming off the bench to replace Stephen Eustáquio at half-time in a 1–1 league draw at home against Arouca.[13] Twelve days later, Varela made his first start for the Dragons, away at Estrela da Amadora, where he made a last-minute goal-line clearance to guarantee a 1–0 Porto win.[14] On 20 January 2024, he scored his first goal for Porto, in a 5–0 league victory at home to Moreirense.[15]
International career
In 2019, Varela was selected by Argentina U20 manager Esteban Solari for the COTIF Tournament in Spain.[5][16]
Career statistics
- As of match played 2 February 2026[17]
| Club | Season | League | National cup[a] | League cup[b] | Continental | Other | Total | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Boca Juniors | 2020 | Argentine Primera División | 4 | 0 | 3 | 0 | — | — | — | 7 | 0 | |||
| 2021 | Argentine Primera División | 20 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 7[c] | 0 | — | 27 | 0 | |||
| 2022 | Argentine Primera División | 30 | 0 | 4 | 0 | — | 7[c] | 1 | 2[d] | 0 | 43 | 1 | ||
| 2023 | Argentine Primera División | 24 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | 8[c] | 1 | 1[e] | 0 | 34 | 1 | ||
| Total | 78 | 0 | 8 | 0 | — | 22 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 111 | 2 | |||
| Porto | 2023–24 | Primeira Liga | 30 | 2 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 8[f] | 0 | — | 44 | 2 | |
| 2024–25 | Primeira Liga | 31 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 9[g] | 0 | 4[h] | 0 | 47 | 0 | |
| 2025–26 | Primeira Liga | 18 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 5[g] | 0 | 0 | 0 | 27 | 2 | |
| Total | 79 | 4 | 11 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 22 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 118 | 4 | ||
| Career total | 157 | 4 | 19 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 44 | 2 | 7 | 0 | 229 | 6 | ||
- Includes Copa Argentina, Taça de Portugal
- Includes Taça da Liga
- Appearances in Copa Libertadores
- One appearance in Trofeo de Campeones de la Liga Profesional, one appearance in Supercopa Argentina
- Appearance in Supercopa Internacional
- Appearances in UEFA Champions League
- Appearances in UEFA Europa League
- One appearance in Supertaça Cândido de Oliveira, three appearances in FIFA Club World Cup