Álvaro Pereira

Álvaro Pereira

Pereira in action for Porto
Personal information
Full name	Álvaro Daniel Pereira Barragán
Date of birth	(1985-11-28) 28 November 1985 (age 26)
Place of birth	Montevideo, Uruguay
Height	1.84 m (6 ft 0 in)
Playing position	Wingback Right back
Club information
Current club	Porto
Number	5
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps†	(Gls)†
2003–2004	Miramar Misiones	32	(1)
2005–2007	Quilmes	34	(0)
2007–2008	Argentinos Juniors	35	(11)
2008–2009	CFR Cluj	29	(1)
2009–	Porto	71	(2)
National team‡
2008–	Uruguay	37	(5)
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 24 April 2012. † Appearances (Goals). ‡ National team caps and goals correct as of 24 July 2011

Álvaro Daniel Pereira Barragán (Spanish pronunciation: [ˈalβaɾo peˈɾeiɾa]; born 28 November 1985) is an Uruguayan footballer who plays for Futebol Clube do Porto in Portugal.

On the left side, he can play as either a defender or midfielder.

Club career

Early years

Born in Montevideo, Pereira started his career with Miramar Misiones in 2003, moving to Argentina with Quilmes Atlético Club two years later. After the club's relegation from the first division at the end of 2006–07, he signed with Argentinos Juniors.

In the summer of 2008, Pereira signed with Romania's CFR Cluj, moving for €2.5 million; he started in all the club's matches in their valiant UEFA Champions League debut campaign.

Porto

For €4.5 million, Pereira joined Futebol Clube do Porto in the summer of 2009, with the Portuguese acquiring 80% of the player's rights. In his first year, he mostly operated as a left back, as the northerners finished third and won the domestic cup. He scored his first goal for the club on 21 February 2010, grabbing the second goal in a 5–1 home thrashing of S.C. Braga.^[1]

In Pereira's second season at the Estádio do Dragão, he featured in 21 league fixtures (all starts), adding 12 UEFA Europa League appearances as Porto won the treble. He also started in the campaign's Portuguese Cup final, against Vitória de Guimarães on 22 May 2011, scoring an own goal in the 21st minute to bring the sides level, in an eventual 6–2 triumph.^[2]

After Porto rejected a deal from English Premier League side Chelsea in the summer for Pereira's services, he signed a new deal on 3 October 2011 to stay at the Estádio do Dragão until 2016.^[3] His release clause was maintained at £25.7 million. In late December, he heavily criticised Manchester United's Patrice Evra for reporting alleged racist abuse from Pereira's national team colleague Luis Suarez - including a claim from Evra that Suarez "doesn't speak to black players" - saying that "what happens on the pitch stays on the pitch", adding that the French would have to "wear body armour" if the players' future international friendly was to take place immediately instead of in late 2012.^[4][5]

International career

Pereira made his debut for Uruguay against France, on 19 November 2008,^[6] scoring in his next match, another friendly, now with Libya, in Tripoli (3–2 win).^[7]

He was an undisputed starter for the nation during the second half of the 2010 FIFA World Cup qualifiers, also starting in both legs of the successful playoffs against Costa Rica, as the Charrúas returned to the FIFA World Cup. In the finals in South Africa, he played in all the matches except two, scoring through a rare header in a 3–0 group stage win against the hosts.^[8]

Pereira was selected to the 2011 Copa América in Argentina, being first-choice and scoring two goals in the group stage, including the game's only against Mexico,^[9] as Uruguay won its 15th continental tournament.^[10]

International goals

#	Date	Venue	Opponent	Score	Result	Competition
1.	11 February 2009	June 11 Stadium, Tripoli, Libya	Libya	2–3	2–3	Friendly
2.	27 May 2010	Estadio Centenario, Montevideo, Uruguay	Israel	2–1	4–1	Friendly
3.	16 June 2010	Loftus Versfeld Stadium, Pretoria, South Africa	South Africa	0–3	0–3	2010 FIFA World Cup
4.	9 July 2011	Estadio Malvinas Argentinas, Mendoza, Argentina	Chile	1–0	1–1	2011 Copa América
5.	12 July 2011	Estadio Ciudad de La Plata, La Plata, Argentina	Mexico	1–0	1–0	2011 Copa América

Honours

Club

• Cluj:
  • Cupa României: 2008–09^[11]

• Porto:
  • UEFA Europa League: 2010–11
  • Primeira Liga: 2010–11, 2011–12
  • Taça de Portugal: 2009–10, 2010–11
  • Supertaça Cândido de Oliveira: 2009, 2010, 2011
  • UEFA Super Cup: Runner-up 2011
  • Taça da Liga: Runner-up 2009–10

Country

• Copa América: 2011

References

External links

• BDFA profile (Spanish)
• Argentine League statistics (Spanish)
• Stats and profile at Zerozero
• Stats at ForaDeJogo (Portuguese)
• National team data (Spanish)
• Álvaro Pereira at National-Football-Teams.com

Uruguay squads v t e Uruguay squad – 2010 FIFA World Cup Fourth Place 1 Muslera 2 Lugano (c) 3 Godín 4 Fucile 5 Gargano 6 Victorino 7 Cavani 8 Eguren 9 Suárez 10 Forlán 11 Á. Pereira 12 Castillo 13 Abreu 14 Lodeiro 15 Pérez 16 M. Pereira 17 Arévalo Ríos 18 I. González 19 Scotti 20 Á. Fernández 21 S. Fernández 22 Cáceres 23 Silva Coach: Tabárez v t e Uruguay squad – 2011 Copa América Winners (15th Title) 1 Muslera 2 Lugano (c) 3 Godín 4 Coates 5 Gargano 6 Victorino 7 Rodríguez 8 Eguren 9 Suárez 10 Forlán 11 Á. Pereira 12 J. Castillo 13 Washington Abreu 14 Lodeiro 15 Pérez 16 M. Pereira 17 Arévalo Ríos 18 Hernández 19 Scotti 20 González 21 Cavani 22 Cáceres 23 Silva Coach: Tabárez