Nuno Morais
 Morais as a Chelsea player | |||
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Nuno Miguel Barbosa Morais | ||
| Date of birth | 29 January 1984 | ||
| Place of birth | Penafiel, Portugal | ||
| Height | 1.85 m (6 ft 1 in) | ||
| Playing position | Defensive midfielder / Centre back | ||
| Club information | |||
Current team | APOEL | ||
| Number | 26 | ||
| Youth career | |||
| 1994–2002 | Penafiel | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps† | (Gls)† |
| 2002–2004 | Penafiel | 49 | (2) |
| 2004–2007 | Chelsea | 4 | (0) |
| 2005–2006 | → Marítimo (loan) | 17 | (0) |
| 2007– | APOEL | 216 | (16) |
| National team | |||
| 2004 | Portugal U20 | 3 | (0) |
| 2004–2006 | Portugal U21 | 14 | (0) |
| * Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 25 April 2015. † Appearances (Goals). | |||
Nuno Miguel Barbosa Morais (born 29 January 1984) is a Portuguese professional footballer who plays for Cypriot club APOEL FC. Mainly a defensive midfielder, he can also appear as a central defender.
He was signed by Chelsea in 2004, but only stayed a few months with the club, going on to spend the vast majority of his career with APOEL and win ten major titles, including four national championships.
Football career
Born in Penafiel, Morais started his career at his hometown club F.C. Penafiel, but in August 2004 was signed by England's Chelsea for an undisclosed fee, in a three-year contract after a successful trial period.[1] He made his Chelsea debut in an FA Cup win against Scunthorpe United in January 2005, playing the full 90 minutes. His first Premier League appearance occurred on 10 May 2005, as a late substitute in a 3–1 away success over Manchester United.[2]
Due to the fact that Morais struggled to get first team action in his first season, he was loaned to C.S. Marítimo in 2005–06, alongside compatriot Filipe Oliveira. In that summer, he appeared twice for the Portuguese under-21s at the 2006 UEFA European Under-21 Championship on home soil, with Oliveira.
Returning to Chelsea Morais only appeared twice in the league, totalling less than twenty minutes in home draws against Manchester United and Everton and playing three times the FA Cup and the Football League Cup combined.[3][4][5] On 11 May 2007 he signed a two-year deal with Cypriot champions APOEL FC, on a free transfer.[6]
During his time in Nicosia, Morais was reconverted to a defensive midfielder, and signed a new contract until June 2012. Since his debuts he was an essential defensive unit as the side won, amongst other trophies, four championships, two cups and four super cups; he also appeared in all six group stage matches of the club in its first participation in the UEFA Champions League.
In the 2011–12 Champions League, Morais was an undisputed starter for APOEL as it reached the quarter-finals for the first time ever, playing all ten matches – including the round-of-16 triumph over Olympique Lyonnais where he converted his attempt in the penalty shootout.[7] On 4 May 2012, he agreed to a three-year extension to his link.[8]
During 2013–14, Morais appeared in every group stage match in APOEL's UEFA Europa League campaign, and scored the 2–1 winner against FC Girondins de Bordeaux at GSP Stadium.[9] The following season, he was also an automatic first-choice in his team's Champions League campaign.[10]
Club statistics
| Club | Season | League | National Cup | League Cup | Continental | Other[nb 1] | Total | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Penafiel | 2002–03 | Liga de Honra | 17 | 0 | 2 | 1 | – | – | – | – | – | – | 19 | 1 |
| 2003–04 | Liga de Honra | 32 | 2 | 3 | 0 | – | – | – | – | – | – | 35 | 2 | |
| Total | 49 | 2 | 5 | 1 | – | – | – | – | – | – | 54 | 3 | ||
| Chelsea | 2004–05 | Premier League | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | – | – | 4 | 0 |
| Marítimo | 2005–06 | Primeira Liga | 17 | 0 | 3 | 0 | – | – | – | – | – | – | 20 | 0 |
| Total | 17 | 0 | 3 | 0 | – | – | – | – | – | – | 20 | 0 | ||
| Chelsea | 2006–07 | Premier League | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 0 |
| Total | 4 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 9 | 0 | ||
| APOEL | 2007–08 | Cypriot First Division | 15 | 0 | 8 | 1 | – | – | 2 | 0 | – | – | 25 | 1 |
| 2008–09 | Cypriot First Division | 30 | 3 | 5 | 0 | – | – | 6 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 42 | 3 | |
| 2009–10 | Cypriot First Division | 29 | 1 | 5 | 0 | – | – | 11 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 46 | 1 | |
| 2010–11 | Cypriot First Division | 30 | 0 | 2 | 0 | – | – | 3 | 0 | – | – | 35 | 0 | |
| 2011–12 | Cypriot First Division | 28 | 1 | 3 | 2 | – | – | 16 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 48 | 4 | |
| 2012–13 | Cypriot First Division | 27 | 4 | 2 | 0 | – | – | 6 | 0 | – | – | 35 | 4 | |
| 2013–14 | Cypriot First Division | 34 | 5 | 7 | 0 | – | – | 10 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 52 | 6 | |
| 2014–15 | Cypriot First Division | 23 | 2 | 5 | 0 | – | – | 10 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 39 | 2 | |
| Total | 216 | 16 | 37 | 3 | – | – | 64 | 2 | 5 | 0 | 322 | 21 | ||
| Career total | 286 | 18 | 48 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 65 | 2 | 5 | 0 | 405 | 24 | ||
Honours
- Chelsea
- APOEL
- Cypriot First Division: 2008–09, 2010–11, 2012–13, 2013–14
- Cypriot Cup: 2007–08, 2013–14
- Cypriot Super Cup: 2008, 2009, 2011, 2013
Notes
- ↑ Includes Cypriot Super Cup matches.
References
- ↑ Chelsea snap up Morais; BBC Sport, 29 August 2004
- ↑ Man Utd 1–3 Chelsea; BBC Sport, 10 May 2005
- ↑ Chelsea 6–1 Macclesfield; BBC Sport, 6 January 2007
- ↑ Chelsea 3–0 Nottingham Forest; BBC Sport, 28 January 2007
- ↑ Chelsea 4–0 Wycombe; BBC Sport, 23 January 2007
- ↑ Chelsea's Morais moves to Cyprus; BBC Sport, 12 May 2007
- ↑ Lyon stunned as APOEL fairy tale continues; UEFA.com, 7 March 2012
- ↑ Ανανέωσε ο Μοράϊς (in Greek). APOEL FC. 6 May 2012. Retrieved 6 May 2012.
- ↑ "Alexandrou rocket helps APOEL achieve lift-off". UEFA.com. 7 November 2013. Retrieved 7 November 2013.
- ↑ "APOEL FC". UEFA.com. Retrieved 12 December 2014.
- ↑ "Nuno Morais". ForaDeJogo. Retrieved 29 December 2013.
- ↑ "Nuno Morais". Soccerbase. Retrieved 29 December 2013.
- ↑ "Nuno Morais". Soccerway. Retrieved 29 December 2013.
External links
- APOEL official profile
- Stats and profile at Zerozero
- Nuno Morais profile at ForaDeJogo
- Nuno Morais career statistics at Soccerbase
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