Marco Paixão
Portuguese footballer (born 1984)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Marco Filipe Lopes Paixão (born 19 September 1984) is a Portuguese former professional footballer who played as a forward.
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Marco Filipe Lopes Paixão[1] | ||
| Date of birth | 19 September 1984[1] | ||
| Place of birth | Sesimbra, Portugal[1] | ||
| Height | 1.85 m (6 ft 1 in)[1] | ||
| Position | Forward | ||
| Youth career | |||
| 1994–1995 | Alfarim | ||
| 1995–2003 | Sesimbra | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2003–2005 | Sesimbra | ||
| 2005–2006 | Porto B | 9 | (0) |
| 2006–2007 | Guijuelo | 37 | (9) |
| 2007–2008 | Logroñés | 38 | (9) |
| 2008–2009 | Cultural Leonesa | 33 | (13) |
| 2009–2011 | Hamilton Academical | 51 | (6) |
| 2012 | Naft Tehran | 16 | (3) |
| 2012–2013 | Ethnikos Achna | 31 | (15) |
| 2013–2015 | Śląsk Wrocław | 57 | (27) |
| 2015 | Sparta Prague | 3 | (0) |
| 2016–2018 | Lechia Gdańsk | 66 | (34) |
| 2018–2023 | Altay | 174 | (104) |
| 2024 | Şanlıurfaspor | 17 | (10) |
| 2024–2025 | Bandırmaspor | 41 | (19) |
| 2025–2026 | Athens Kallithea | 12 | (1) |
| Total | 585 | (250) | |
| * Club domestic league appearances and goals | |||
Club career
Early career
Born in Sesimbra, Setúbal District, Paixão spent his early career in Portugal and Spain, playing with lowly teams in both countries – his hometown's G.D. Sesimbra, FC Porto B,[2] CD Guijuelo, Logroñés CF and Cultural y Deportiva Leonesa.
In 2007–08, he suffered relegation from Segunda División B with Logroñés, and in the following season scored 13 goals for Leonesa.[3]
Hamilton Academical
Paixão's first taste of professional football came in 2009 as he signed for Scottish Premier League club Hamilton Academical on 6 August, alongside twin brother Flávio.[4] He made his league debut late in the month, against Aberdeen.[5]
On 11 April 2011, it was announced that Paixão would leave at the end of the campaign.[6] However, just three days later, he was released from his contract with immediate effect, alongside his sibling.[7] He appeared in 56 official matches for the Accies, scoring six goals.
Naft Tehran
On 5 January 2012, Paixão joined his brother in Iran after signing with Naft Tehran F.C. until the end of the season.[8] He made his debut in a 3–1 home loss against Foolad F.C. five days later,[9] scoring his first goal in a 1–0 win over Malavan F.C. on 8 February.[10]
Ethnikos and Poland
In the summer of 2012, Paixão joined Cypriot side Ethnikos Achna FC. He netted his first goal for his new club on 3 November, in a 1–1 draw at AEL Limassol.[11]
In June 2013, Paixão signed a two-year contract with Śląsk Wrocław in Poland.[12] He scored a career-best 21 goals in 2013–14, but his team could only qualify for the relegation play-offs.[13]
In June 2015, Paixão put pen to paper to a two-year deal at AC Sparta Prague.[14] The following January, after being barely used by the Czech club, he returned to the Ekstraklasa with Lechia Gdańsk after agreeing to a two-and-a-half-year contract;[15] his twin joined him a month later.[16]
Paixão concluded the 2016–17 season with hat-tricks in 4–0 home wins over Jagiellonia Białystok and Pogoń Szczecin. This brought his final tally to 18, joint with Lech Poznań's Marcin Robak as the top scorer.[17]
Turkey and Greece
In March 2018, Paixão was removed from the first team when manager Piotr Stokowiec accused him of feigning an injury,[18] and when his contract expired in June, he moved to Altay S.K. in the TFF First League.[19] He was top scorer in his first season with the İzmir-based team, netting 29 times in 33 games.[20]
Paixão signed for Şanlıurfaspor also of the Turkish second tier in December 2023, with effect from January 2024.[21][22] On 2 September 2025, the 40-year-old joined Athens Kallithea F.C. of Super League Greece 2.[23]
International career
During their spell in Poland, both Paixão and his sibling were repeatedly poised to be called up to the Portugal national team, but nothing came of it.[24]
Personal life
Career statistics
- As of 16 April 2020[26]
| Club | Season | League | National cup[a] | League cup[b] | Other | Total | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Hamilton Academical | 2009–10 | Scottish Premier League | 33 | 5 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | — | 36 | 6 | |
| 2010–11 | Scottish Premier League | 18 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | 21 | 1 | ||
| Total | 51 | 6 | 4 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 57 | 7 | ||
| Naft Tehran | 2011–12 | Persian Gulf Cup | 16 | 3 | 0 | 0 | — | — | 16 | 3 | ||
| Ethnikos Achna | 2012–13 | Cypriot First Division | 31 | 15 | 2 | 0 | — | — | 33 | 15 | ||
| Śląsk Wrocław | 2013–14 | Ekstraklasa | 37 | 21 | 2 | 0 | — | 5[c] | 5 | 44 | 26 | |
| 2014–15 | Ekstraklasa | 20 | 6 | 2 | 1 | — | — | 22 | 7 | |||
| Total | 57 | 27 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 5 | 66 | 33 | ||
| Sparta Prague | 2015–16 | Czech First League | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | 2[d] | 0 | 6 | 0 | |
| Lechia Gdańsk | 2015–16 | Ekstraklasa | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | 3 | 0 | ||
| 2016–17 | Ekstraklasa | 35 | 18 | 2 | 0 | — | — | 37 | 18 | |||
| 2017–18 | Ekstraklasa | 27 | 16 | 0 | 0 | — | — | 27 | 16 | |||
| Total | 65 | 34 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 67 | 34 | ||
| Altay | 2018–19 | TFF First League | 33 | 29 | 2 | 1 | — | — | 35 | 30 | ||
| 2019–20 | TFF First League | 27 | 17 | 1 | 0 | — | — | 28 | 17 | |||
| Total | 60 | 46 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 63 | 47 | ||
| Career total | 233 | 113 | 13 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 7 | 5 | 253 | 121 | ||
- Includes Scottish Cup, Cypriot Cup, Polish Cup, Czech Cup, Turkish Cup
- Includes Scottish League Cup
- Appearances in UEFA Europa League
- One appearance in UEFA Champions League, one appearance in UEFA Europa League
Honours
Individual
- Ekstraklasa top scorer: 2016–17 (18 goals, joint with Marcin Robak)[27]
- TFF First League top scorer: 2018–19 (29 goals),[28] 2019–20 (22 goals)[29] 2020–21 (22 goals)[30] 2022–23 (21 goals)[31]
