Afonso Sousa

In this Portuguese name, the first or maternal family name is De Pinho and the second or paternal family name is Sousa.

Afonso Gamelas de Pinho Sousa (born 3 May 2000) is a Portuguese professional footballer who plays for Ekstraklasa club Lech Poznań as a central midfielder.

Afonso Sousa

Sousa with Lech Poznań in 2022
Personal information
Full name	Afonso Gamelas de Pinho Sousa[1]
Date of birth	(2000-05-03) 3 May 2000 (age 24)[1]
Place of birth	Aveiro, Portugal[1]
Height	1.74 m (5 ft 9 in)[1]
Position(s)	Central midfielder
Team information
Current team	Lech Poznań
Number	7
Youth career
2008–2009	Beira-Mar
2009–2010	Porto
2010–2012	Beira-Mar
2012–2013	Gafanha
2013–2019	Porto
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps	(Gls)
2019–2020	Porto B	21	(6)
2020–2022	B-SAD	62	(3)
2022–	Lech Poznań	61	(12)
2022	Lech Poznań II	1	(0)
International career
2015	Portugal U15	2	(0)
2016	Portugal U16	10	(2)
2016–2017	Portugal U17	15	(0)
2018	Portugal U18	2	(0)
2018–2019	Portugal U19	3	(0)
2019	Portugal U20	4	(0)
2021–2023	Portugal U21	13	(3)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 18:45, 2 February 2025 (UTC)

Club career

Porto

Born in Aveiro, Sousa returned to FC Porto's youth academy at the age of 13, after a first spell in 2009.^[2] He made his senior debut with the reserve team in the LigaPro on 25 August 2019, playing the entire 3–1 away win against S.C. Farense and scoring in the match.^[3]

Sousa was part of the squad that won the 2018–19 UEFA Youth League, notably netting in the 3–1 victory over Chelsea in the final.^[4]

B-SAD

On 9 September 2020, Sousa signed a four-year contract with Primeira Liga club B-SAD, with Porto retaining 50% of the player's rights.^[5][6] He played his first game in the competition nine days later, coming on as a 67th-minute substitute for Silvestre Varela in the 1–0 away defeat of Vitória de Guimarães.^[7][8] He scored his first goal on 6 December, just before half-time in a 2–1 home win over S.C. Braga.^[9]

Lech Poznań

On 30 June 2022, Sousa moved to defending Polish Ekstraklasa champions Lech Poznań on a four-year deal, for a fee reported around €1,200,000.^[10][11] He made his competitive debut on 9 July, coming on as a substitute in a 2–0 Polish Super Cup loss to Raków Częstochowa.^[12]

International career

Sousa earned 42 caps for Portugal across all youth levels, starting with the under-15 team in 2015. His first appearance for the under-21s came on 7 October 2021 in an 11–0 home rout of Liechtenstein in 2023 UEFA European Championship qualification.^[13] He scored his first goal the following 24 September, closing the 4–1 friendly win over Georgia.^[14]

Personal life

Both Sousa's father, Ricardo, and grandfather António, played as midfielders and later worked as managers.^[15][16]

Career statistics

As of match played 6 December 2024

Appearances and goals by club, season and competition

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
Porto B	2019–20[17]	LigaPro	21	6	—		—		—		—		21	6
B-SAD	2020–21[17]	Primeira Liga	32	2	3	0	0	0	—		—		35	2
	2021–22[17]	Primeira Liga	30	1	3	2	1	0	—		—		34	3
	Total		62	3	6	2	1	0	—		—		69	5
Lech Poznań	2022–23[17]	Ekstraklasa	24	4	1	1	—		8[c]	2	1[d]	0	34	7
	2023–24[17]	Ekstraklasa	18	0	1	0	—		4[c]	0	—		23	0
	2024–25[17]	Ekstraklasa	18	6	1	0	—		—		—		19	6
	Total		60	10	3	1	—		12	2	1	0	76	13
Lech Poznań II	2022–23[17]	II liga	1	0	0	0	—		—		—		1	0
Career total			144	19	9	3	1	0	12	2	1	0	167	24

1. Includes Taça de Portugal and Polish Cup
2. Includes Taça da Liga
3. Appearances in UEFA Europa Conference League
4. Appearance in Polish Super Cup

Honours

Porto

• UEFA Youth League: 2018–19^[4]

References

1. "Afonso Sousa" (in Portuguese). Mais Futebol. Retrieved 23 September 2020.
2. "Afonso Sousa despede-se do FC Porto: "Foram nove anos..."" [Afonso Sousa says goodbye to FC Porto: "It was nine years..."]. O Jogo (in Portuguese). 8 September 2020. Retrieved 23 September 2020.
3. "FC Porto B alcança primeira vitória e na casa de um candidato" [FC Porto B get first win and away to a candidate]. O Jogo (in Portuguese). 25 August 2019. Retrieved 23 September 2020.
4. Almeida, Isaura (29 April 2019). "FC Porto é campeão Europeu Sub-19" [FC Porto are Under-19 European champions]. Diário de Notícias (in Portuguese). Retrieved 23 September 2020.
5. Morais, André; Gouveia Pereira, Miguel (8 September 2020). "Afonso Sousa deixa o FC Porto, que mantém 50 por cento do passe" [Afonso Sousa leaves FC Porto, who keep 50 per cent of his rights]. O Jogo (in Portuguese). Retrieved 23 September 2020.
6. "Oficial: Belenenses SAD anuncia Afonso Sousa" [Official: Belenenses SAD announce Afonso Sousa]. O Jogo (in Portuguese). 9 September 2020. Retrieved 23 September 2020.
7. "Derrota no arranque da Liga" [Loss to kickstart League] (in Portuguese). Mais Guimarães. 18 September 2020. Retrieved 23 September 2020.
8. ""O Afonso sentiu que no FC Porto não seria aposta"" ["Afonso felt people would not bet on him at FC Porto"]. A Bola (in Portuguese). 20 September 2020. Retrieved 23 September 2020.
9. "Belenenses SAD vence SC Braga e tira minhotos do pódio" [Belenenses SAD beat SC Braga and knock Minho team off podium] (in Portuguese). TSF. 6 December 2020. Retrieved 15 January 2022.
10. Koźmiński, Piotr (29 June 2022). "Ile Lech zapłacił za Afonso Sousę? Znamy ostateczną cenę za Portugalczyka!" [How much did Lech pay for Afonso Sousa? We know the Portuguese's final price!] (in Polish). Sportowe Fakty. Retrieved 30 June 2022.
11. "Afonso Sousa piłkarzem Lecha" [Afonso Sousa a Lech player] (in Polish). Lech Poznań. 30 June 2022. Retrieved 30 June 2022.
12. "Tsitaishvili i Sousa z debiutami" [Debuts for Tsitaishvili and Sousa] (in Polish). Lech Poznań. 9 July 2022. Retrieved 16 July 2022.
13. "Portugal–Liechstenstein, 11–0 Alguém vai esquecer Vizela?" [Portugal–Liechstenstein, 11–0 Is anyone going to forget Vizela?] (in Portuguese). Digital de Vizela. 7 October 2021. Retrieved 15 January 2022.
14. "Portugal goleia Geórgia por 4–1 num encontro particular" [Portugal rout Georgia 4–1 in friendly match]. Record (in Portuguese). 24 September 2022. Retrieved 25 September 2022.
15. Calhau, Pedro (2 October 2015). "Afonso Sousa: filho e neto que já joga em nome próprio aos 15 anos" [Afonso Sousa: son and grandson already plays for himself at 15] (in Portuguese). Mais Futebol. Retrieved 23 September 2020.
16. Aleixo, Mário (30 April 2019). "António Sousa antevê futuro brilhante ao neto Afonso" [António Sousa foresees bright future for grandson Afonso] (in Portuguese). Rádio e Televisão de Portugal. Retrieved 23 September 2020.
17. Afonso Sousa at Soccerway

External links

• Afonso Sousa at ForaDeJogo (archived)
• Afonso Sousa national team profile at the Portuguese Football Federation (in Portuguese)