Rafael Pires Vieira
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Rafael Pires Vieira | ||
| Date of birth | August 1, 1978 | ||
| Place of birth | Criciúma, Brazil | ||
| Height | 1.85 m (6 ft 1 in) | ||
| Playing position | Centre Forward | ||
| Club information | |||
Current team | FC Lahti | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps† | (Gls)† |
| 1997 | HJK Helsinki | 21 | (11) |
| 1998-1999 | FC Jazz | 31 | (7) |
| 1999-2000 | HJK Helsinki | 32 | (19) |
| 2000–2002 | SC Heerenveen | 6 | (0) |
| 2002–2003 | Denizlispor | 0 | (0) |
| 2004 | FJK | 21 | (17) |
| 2005– | FC Lahti | 250 | (103) |
| * Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 1 December 2014. † Appearances (Goals). | |||
Rafael Pires Vieira (born August 1, 1978), better known simply as Rafael, is a Brazilian football center forward. He has been one of the most prolific strikers in the Finnish Veikkausliiga.
He is the top goalscorer in the history of FC Lahti, as well one of the best scorers of all time in the Veikkausliiga. He is nicknamed "Angel" in a reference to the famous Finnish song "Rafaelin enkeli" ("Rafael's Angel") by Pekka Ruuska.
Rafael is a popular sportsman in Finland and currently receives corporate sponsorship from PlanMill, a Finnish software company based in Lahti and Espoo, Finland.
Honours
- Veikkausliiga (1997) - champion
- Finnish League Cup (1997, 2007)
- Veikkausliiga - leading scorer 1997, 2007
External links
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