Matheus Saldanha
Brazilian footballer
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Matheus Bonifácio Saldanha Marinho (born 19 August 1999), commonly known as Matheus Saldanha, is a Brazilian professional footballer who plays as a forward for Emirati club Sharjah, on loan from Al Wasl.
|
Saldanha with Neftçi in 2023 | |||
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Matheus Bonifácio Saldanha Marinho | ||
| Date of birth | 18 August 1999 | ||
| Place of birth | Uberaba, Brazil | ||
| Height | 1.85 m (6 ft 1 in) | ||
| Position | Forward | ||
| Team information | |||
Current team |
Sharjah (on loan from Al Wasl) | ||
| Number | 90 | ||
| Youth career | |||
| Santos | |||
| 2016–2019 | Audax | ||
| 2018–2019 | → Bahia (loan) | ||
| 2019 | Bahia | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2020–2022 | Bahia | 29 | (3) |
| 2021 | → JEF United Chiba (loan) | 31 | (3) |
| 2022–2023 | JEF United Chiba | 16 | (1) |
| 2022 | → Chengdu Rongcheng (loan) | 19 | (3) |
| 2023 | → Neftçi (loan) | 17 | (5) |
| 2023–2024 | Partizan | 28 | (18) |
| 2024–2025 | Ferencváros | 22 | (10) |
| 2025– | Al Wasl | 10 | (0) |
| 2026– | → Sharjah (loan) | 7 | (0) |
| * Club domestic league appearances and goals as of 1 May 2026 | |||
Career
Born in Uberaba, Minas Gerais, Saldanha joined Bahia's youth setup in 2018, initially on loan from Audax.[1][citation needed] On 1 July 2019, after impressing with the under-20 side, he was bought outright and signed a permanent three-year contract.[2]
Saldanha was promoted to the first team for the 2020 season, and made his senior debut on 22 January of that year by starting in a 1–1 Campeonato Baiano away draw against Juazeirense.[3] He scored his first senior goal on 9 February, netting his team's second in a 3–1 away win against Jacobina.[4]
Saldanha made his Série A on 12 August 2020, coming on as a second-half substitute for Rossi in a 1–0 home win against Coritiba.[5] His first goal in the category occurred on 16 September, as he scored his team's second in a 2–3 away loss against Corinthians.[6]
In 2021, Saldanha joined to J2 club, JEF United Chiba on loan transfer. One year later, he was announcement officially permanently transfer to JEF United Chiba has been confirmed after a season as loan player from EC Bahia.
In 2022, Saldanha loaned again to Chinese Super League club, Chengdu Rongcheng for during mid 2022 season. He leave from the club after a half season at Chengdu expiration contract.
He returned to JEF United Chiba for the 2023 season.[7]
Partizan
On 28 July 2023, Saldanha signed a four-year contract with Serbian club Partizan for a reported fee of €1.3 million. Just one day later, Saldanha scored a goal on his debut in a 3–3 draw away at TSC.[8] A week later, Saldanha scored his second goal in a 2–0 win over Vojvodina.[9] In the third qualifying round for the UEFA Europa Conference League, Saldanha scored one goal in the two-legged tie against Sabah.[10] On 27 August, Saldanha scored his third SuperLiga goal in a 3–1 win against Javor.[11] In September and October, Saldanha continued his good form by scoring 6 goals and providing 3 assists. On 20 December 2023, Saldanha scored the winning goal in the 171st Eternal derby in a 2–1 win against arch rivals Red Star.[12] Saldanha scored against Red Star again at the Rajko Mitić Stadium on 9 March 2024, as Red Star (Drzavni projekat) and Partizan drew 2–2 in the 172nd Eternal derby.[13] Saldanha finished the 2023–24 Serbian SuperLiga having played 28 games and scored 17 goals, becoming its joint top scorer.
Ferencváros
On 3 September 2024, he signed a contract with the Hungarian club Ferencváros.[14] On 15 September 2024, he debuted with a goal in a 3–0 victory against Budafoki MTE in the 2024–25 Magyar Kupa.[15] On 20 September 2024, he scored his first league goal in a 3–1 victory against MTK Budapest at Hidegkuti Nándor Stadion in the 2024–25 Nemzeti Bajnokság I.[16]
On 29 September 2024, he scored a hat-trick against Puskás Akadémia FC in the 2024-25 Nemzeti Bajnokság I at the Groupama Arena.[17][18]
Al Wasl
On 11 July 2025, Saldanha signed to Emirati club Al Wasl.[19]
Sharjah (loan)
On 1 February 2026, Saldanha signed to Emirati club Sharjah on loan.[20]
Career statistics
- As of 12 May 2025[21]
| Club | Season | League | State league[a] | National cup[b] | Continental | Other | Total | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Bahia | 2020 | Série A | 17 | 2 | 12 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2[c] | 0 | 3[d] | 0 | 34 | 3 |
| JEF United Chiba (loan) | 2021 | J2 League | 31 | 3 | — | 1 | 0 | — | — | 32 | 3 | |||
| JEF United Chiba | 2022 | J2 League | 16 | 1 | — | 0 | 0 | — | — | 16 | 1 | |||
| Chengdu Rongcheng (loan) | 2022 | Chinese Super League | 19 | 3 | — | 0 | 0 | — | — | 19 | 3 | |||
| Neftçi (loan) | 2022–23 | Azerbaijan Premier League | 17 | 5 | — | 3 | 0 | — | — | 20 | 5 | |||
| Partizan | 2023–24 | Serbian Superliga | 27 | 17 | — | 3 | 0 | 4[e] | 1 | — | 34 | 18 | ||
| 2024–25 | 1 | 1 | — | — | 5[f] | 2 | — | 6 | 3 | |||||
| Total | 28 | 18 | — | 3 | 0 | 9 | 3 | — | 40 | 21 | ||||
| Ferencváros | 2024–25 | Nemzeti Bajnokság | 22 | 10 | — | 6 | 3 | 10[g] | 1 | — | 38 | 14 | ||
| Career total | 150 | 42 | 13 | 1 | 12 | 3 | 21 | 4 | 3 | 0 | 199 | 50 | ||
- Includes Campeonato Baiano
- Includes Emperor's Cup, Azerbaijan Cup, Serbian Cup
- Appearances in Copa Sudamericana
- Appearances in Copa do Nordeste
- Appearances in UEFA Conference League
- Two appearances and two goals in UEFA Champions League, two appearances in UEFA Europa League
- Appearances in UEFA Europa League
Honours
Bahia
Ferencváros
Individual
- Serbian SuperLiga Team of the Season: 2023–24[22]
- Nemzeti Bajnokság I Player of the Month: September 2024[23]
