| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Abel Jorge Pereira da Silva | ||
| Date of birth | August 21, 1969 | ||
| Place of birth | Lisbon, Portugal | ||
| Height | 1.70 m (5 ft 7 in) | ||
| Playing position | Right back | ||
| Youth career | |||
| 1978–1984 | Atlético | ||
| 1984–1988 | Benfica | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps† | (Gls)† |
| 1988–1994 | Benfica | 16 | (1) |
| 1989–1990 | → Académica (loan) | 14 | (2) |
| 1990–1991 | → Penafiel (loan) | 33 | (1) |
| 1991–1992 | → Marítimo (loan) | 22 | (0) |
| 1995 | Vitória Setúbal | 9 | (0) |
| 1995–1996 | Felgueiras | 23 | (0) |
| 1996–1997 | Campomaiorense | 21 | (0) |
| 1997–1998 | Estoril | 20 | (0) |
| 1998–2000 | Alverca | 39 | (0) |
| 2000–2001 | Atlético | ||
| National team | |||
| 1989 | Portugal U20 | 5 | (1) |
| Teams managed | |||
| 2004–2005 | Benfica (assistant) | ||
| 2005–2007 | Al-Nassr (assistant) | ||
| 2007 | Famalicão (assistant) | ||
| 2007– | Portosantense | ||
| * Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only. † Appearances (Goals). |
|||
Abel Jorge Pereira da Silva (born 21 August 1969 in Lisbon), sometimes known as Abel, is a retired Portuguese footballer and a current coach.
One of the players who scored (both editions combined) goals in Portugal's two consecutive FIFA World Youth Championship triumphs, the right defender played for a total of ten clubs.
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In 1987, at the age of 18, Abel was invited to play for S.L. Benfica's youth teams. He performed well, winning many youth awards, and moved to the first team after just one season. He was on squad for Portugal when it won the 1989 FIFA World Youth Championship, scoring the opener in the final against Nigeria (2–0).[1]
After a first unspectacular season, only playing one game (his debut came against SC Braga, on 2 April 1989, in a 1–0 win), Silva transferred to Académica de Coimbra on loan, where he was given his first real chance, totalling 14 appearances during the season and scoring two goals.[2] His next season was at F.C. Penafiel, in the same predicament, where he made 33 appearances and scored one goal, ultimately his last as a professional.
Abel experienced a final loan spell with C.S. Marítimo, in the 1991–92 season, then returned to Benfica. In January 1995, he was finally released, and joined Vitória Futebol Clube, for whom he played nine times in the remainder of the season.
Subsequently, Silva represented F.C. Felgueiras, S.C. Campomaiorense, G.D. Estoril Praia, F.C. Alverca and Atlético Clube de Portugal, with an average of about 20 appearances per season, before retiring from the game after 2000–01.
In 2004–05, Abel took up coaching, being part of Giovanni Trappatoni's staff as the Reds put an end to an 11-year drought and won the national league.
After more assistant spells, with F.C. Famalicão and Al-Nassr FC, he began his head coaching career in 2007, with lowly C.D. Portosantense.