Rúben Neves

1.1. Early life

Rúben Neves was born on March 13, 1997, in Mozelos, within the Aveiro District of Portugal. Growing up, Neves was a keen supporter of his hometown club, FC Porto.

1.2. Youth academy

Neves began his football journey in 2005, joining FC Porto's esteemed youth system at the age of eight. During his development within the academy, he also spent a season on loan at Padroense during the 2012-13 season, a club which effectively functioned as Porto's under-16 team. His progress through the youth ranks was notable, with reserve team manager Luís Castro describing him as a player possessing "extraordinary mental qualities, to go along with technical and tactical skills."

Ahead of the 2014-15 season, Neves was initially slated to bypass Porto's under-19 team to play directly with the reserves. However, an injury to teammate Mikel Agu led to him being called up by manager Julen Lopetegui to join the main squad's pre-season preparations. Neves's performance during this period impressed the coach, securing his place with the senior squad for the remainder of the pre-season.

2.1. FC Porto

On August 15, 2014, at the age of 17 years and five months, Rúben Neves made his professional debut for FC Porto in a Primeira Liga match. He started and scored in a 2-0 home victory against Marítimo, becoming the youngest player in the club's history to score a goal in the competition. Just five days later, he made his UEFA Champions League debut in a 1-0 win over Lille during the play-off round, featuring for 73 minutes. In doing so, he broke another record, previously held by Cristiano Ronaldo, by becoming the youngest Portuguese player to appear in the tournament.

On December 10, 2014, during a Champions League group stage fixture against Shakhtar Donetsk, Neves suffered a right knee injury after a collision in midfield with Alex Teixeira. The club confirmed he had sustained a sprain with apparent damage to the internal lateral ligament. He spent nearly a month on the sidelines, returning to play in a Taça da Liga match against União da Madeira, a 3-1 home win. Following his injury, his midfield role was largely taken over by Casemiro, and Neves spent the remainder of the season behind the Brazilian in the pecking order.

On October 20, 2015, aged 18 years and 221 days, Neves made history by becoming the youngest player to start as captain in the Champions League. This occurred during Porto's 2-0 victory against Maccabi Tel Aviv in the group stage of the 2015-16 UEFA Champions League, surpassing the previous record holder, Rafael van der Vaart, who had held the record since September 16, 2003. On December 5, in a 2-1 win over Paços de Ferreira at the Estádio do Dragão, he set another club record by becoming the youngest player to reach 50 appearances for Porto, a milestone that surpassed previous club legends like Fernando Gomes and Jaime Magalhães.

2.2. Wolverhampton Wanderers

On July 8, 2017, Rúben Neves made a significant move to EFL Championship club Wolverhampton Wanderers. The transfer fee, though undisclosed, was widely reported to be around 15.80 M GBP, setting a new club record and also a record for the Championship at the time. Upon joining Wolves, he was reunited with his former Porto manager, Nuno Espírito Santo. Neves scored his first goal for the club on August 15, in a 3-2 away victory over Hull City.

In April 2018, Neves's exceptional performances earned him nominations for both the EFL Championship Player of the Season and Young Player of the Season awards. He was also included in the Championship Team of the Season alongside teammates Conor Coady and John Ruddy. His impressive form continued as Wolves were ultimately promoted as champions. Neves contributed 6 goals in 42 appearances during this season, notably scoring all of his goals from outside the penalty box. At the season's end, he swept up three club awards: Player of the Season, Player's Player of the Season, and Goal of the Season. His remarkable goal against Derby County at Molineux on April 11, 2018, also earned him the prestigious EFL Goal of the Year award for 2018.

In July 2018, Wolves announced that Neves had signed a new contract, extending his stay until June 2023; this contract was later revealed in May 2021 to run until 2024. In the first match of the 2018-19 Premier League season, he scored his first Premier League goal and assisted Raúl Jiménez in the latter's competitive debut, as Wolves twice came from behind to draw 2-2 against Everton. His appearance in this match, alongside fellow Portuguese players Rui Patrício, João Moutinho, Diogo Jota, and Hélder Costa, set a new Premier League record for the most Portuguese players named in a starting line-up.

On October 6, 2018, Neves made his 50th appearance for Wolves, contributing to the build-up for Matt Doherty's winning goal in a 1-0 victory over Crystal Palace. The following January, his 55th-minute winning goal against Liverpool at Molineux in the FA Cup, a powerful dipping shot from 31 yd that beat Simon Mignolet at his near post, was voted the best goal of the third round by visitors to BBC Sport's website. On September 25, 2019, Neves was handed the captain's armband for the first time for Wolves, leading the team in the absence of regular captain Conor Coady as Wolves secured progression to the 2019-20 EFL Cup fourth round with a penalty shoot-out victory over Reading at Molineux in the third round. He reached his 100th appearance in the Premier League in a goalless draw away to Aston Villa on March 6, 2021.

Neves made his 200th competitive appearance for Wolves across all competitions in a 2-0 away win against Tottenham Hotspur in the Premier League on February 13, 2022. On March 13, his 25th birthday, he assisted the only goal by Coady in a victory at Everton. This win marked Wolves's 1,000th victory in top-flight football (over 67 seasons dating back to 1888) and also secured the club's first league double over Everton since the 1972-73 season. Days later, a knee injury sustained in the first half of a home game against Leeds United ruled him out for approximately a month. He returned to action on April 30 against Brighton & Hove Albion but was substituted at half-time.

In the first game of the 2022-23 season against Leeds United on August 6, 2022, Neves assumed the captain's armband as Conor Coady was kept on the substitutes' bench. He was subsequently appointed Wolves's full-time captain after Coady's loan departure to Everton. Neves scored his first goal of the season, and his twenty-fifth goal in a Wolves shirt, in a 1-1 Premier League draw with Newcastle United at Molineux on August 28. In May 2023, with only one year remaining on his contract and uncertainty surrounding his future, Neves publicly expressed his desire to play in the Champions League, leading to him being linked with clubs like Barcelona.

2.3. Al Hilal

On June 23, 2023, Wolverhampton Wanderers confirmed Neves's departure from the club. Saudi Arabia's Al-Hilal subsequently confirmed his transfer, which reportedly set a new record sale for Wolverhampton Wanderers at 47.00 M GBP. Neves signed a three-year contract with the Saudi club.

3.1. Youth national teams

Neves began his international youth career representing Portugal at the under-15 level in 2012, making two appearances. He then progressed to the Portugal U16 team (2012-2013), earning 10 caps and scoring one goal, and the Portugal U17 team (2012-2014), where he made 31 appearances and scored two goals. In 2013, he also played two matches for the Portugal U18 squad.

He captained Portugal at the 2014 UEFA European Under-17 Championship, helping the country reach the semi-finals. For his exceptional performances, he was named among the top ten talents of the tournament by a selection of UEFA reporters.

On August 29, 2014, at just 17 years old, Neves received a call-up from coach Rui Jorge to join the under-21 team. He scored his first goal for the U21s on October 14, in a thrilling 5-4 home victory against the Netherlands in the play-off round of the 2015 UEFA European Under-21 Championship. When the finals commenced in the Czech Republic, Neves broke a new record by becoming the youngest player to debut for the Portuguese under-21s in the tournament, aged 18 years and 3 months, playing five minutes to help secure a 1-0 win over England in the group stage opener. This was his sole appearance in the tournament, as Portugal ultimately reached the final, where they lost to Sweden in a penalty shoot-out. He also made one appearance for the Portugal Olympic team (U23) in 2016, scoring one goal.

3.2. Senior national team

Rúben Neves received his first call-up to the senior team on November 10, 2015. This came as an injury replacement for João Moutinho ahead of friendlies against Russia and Luxembourg. He made his senior debut in the match against Russia, playing 17 minutes in the 1-0 loss in Krasnodar. He then played the entire 2-0 victory against Luxembourg at the Stade Josy Barthel, where he formed a midfield partnership with former Porto teammates Danilo Pereira and André André.

Neves was initially selected by manager Fernando Santos for a preliminary 35-man squad for the 2018 FIFA World Cup but did not make the final 23-man squad.

At the 2019 UEFA Nations League Finals, held on home soil, Neves played in Portugal's 3-1 semi-final win over Switzerland. However, he was dropped from the starting eleven for the final against the Netherlands in favor of the more defensive Danilo. He came on as a substitute in added time for William Carvalho in that match at his former club ground, the Estádio do Dragão, as Portugal secured a 1-0 victory.

Neves was one of four Wolves players included in the Portugal squad for UEFA Euro 2020. He made his only appearance in the delayed competition on June 23, as a substitute in a 2-2 group stage draw with France in Budapest. Neves was also chosen for the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar. He was again part of the Portugal squad for UEFA Euro 2024.

5.1. Club

5.2. International