Fernando Meira

Fernando José da Silva Freitas Meira (Portuguese pronunciation: [fɨɾˈnɐ̃du ˈmɐjɾɐ]; born 5 June 1978) is a Portuguese retired footballer who played mainly as a central defender.
In his country, he represented most notably Vitória de Guimarães, also playing one year with Benfica. After a lengthy spell in Germany with VfB Stuttgart, he went on to appear for teams in Turkey, Russia and Spain.
A strong and skillful defender, Meira gained more than 50 caps for the Portugal national team, representing the nation in one World Cup and one European Championship.

Early career / Benfica

Born in Guimarães, Meira began his professional career with hometown's Vitória de Guimarães, but only had one solid season with its first team, in 1999–2000 (precisely his last), as he appeared in 30 of his 53 games with the Minho club. In 1998, he was also loaned to Felgueiras in the second division, being an essential defensive unit as the side narrowly missed out on promotion after finishing fifth.

In the summer of 2002, Meira joined Portuguese top flight giants Benfica for a €4 million transfer fee plus one player. He played 31 matches in his first season – 30 starts – and was also awarded team captaincy, but the Lisbon club did not win any silverware during his stint.

VfB Stuttgart

In January 2002, Meira signed for VfB Stuttgart in Germany, joining the Bundesliga outfit for €7.5 million – it was the club's record transfer fee until July 2007, when Stuttgart signed Ciprian Marica from Shakhtar Donetsk for €8 million, and general manager Rolf Rüssmann described the player as a "trophy" signing, showing great ambitions for the future. He made his league debut on the 26th in a 3–0 home win over Hamburger SV, playing the entire game as a stopper.

On 23 February 2002, Meira scored his first goal for Stuttgart, in a 1–1 draw at Hansa Rostock where he also conceded a penalty which resulted in the opponents' goal. His second came on 7 April in a 2–0 away victory over SC Freiburg, and he finished his first year with 14 league appearances to help his side finish in eighth position.

In the 2002–03 season, Felix Magath fielded Meira in 31 league games, and only a suspension prevented him from featuring in all 34 as Stuttgart finished second behind Bayern Munich to achieve qualification honours to the UEFA Champions League. He missed two UEFA Cup matches, including the home defeat against Celtic in the fourth round's first leg, and found the net in the second round's 2–0 home win against Ferencváros.

For the 2006–07 campaign, Meira was named captain by manager Armin Veh, making him the first Portuguese captain ever in the Bundesliga. He appeared in 20 matches and added three goals as the Baden-Württemberg club was crowned national champions for the first in 15 years, adding four in the runner-up campaign in the DFB-Pokal.

During his six-and-a-half-year spell with Stuttgart, Meira made 230 official appearances and scored 13 goals. He left the club in the 2008 summer, aged 30.

Galatasaray

On 20 July 2008, at the end of the 2007–08 season, Stuttgart stripped Meira of the team captaincy and announced their intention to sell the player. Two days later, he signed with Galatasaray for a €4.5 million transfer fee; he signed a four-year contract.

Meira made his official team debut in the season's Turkish Super Cup, a 2–1 win victory against Kayserispor, but left the Istanbul outfit at the end of the campaign, with his team only finishing in fifth place in the final Süper Lig table.

Zenit

In mid-March 2009, after reported interest from Zenit Saint Petersburg as the player grew unsettled at Galatasaray, Meira signed for the Russian club for €4.5 million, being awarded the number 3 shirt previously worn by Martin Škrtel.

Meira made his Russian Premier League debut on 15 March 2009, starting in a 1–1 draw against Spartak Moscow. On 5 April, he netted his first goal for his new team in a 3–0 win over Tom Tomsk.

Later years

On 15 August 2011, aged 33, Meira signed with Real Zaragoza in Spain after mutually terminating his contract with Zenit. He made his official debut on 28 August, starting and being booked in a 0–6 home loss against Real Madrid.

In his spell with the Aragonese, Meira featured almost exclusively as a defensive midfielder, partnering Leonardo Ponzio. He rescinded his link on 1 February 2012, with the club ranking last in the league; late into the year, not being able to find a new club, he retired from football.

After having gained 20 caps for the under-21s, Meira made his full debut for the Portuguese full team in 2000. In 2004 he played in three games at the Summer Olympic Games, in an eventual group stage exit.

Meira was selected for the 2006 FIFA World Cup in Germany: benefitting from injury to Jorge Andrade he played in all of Portugal's seven contests in the tournament, as the national team finished fourth. He continued to be a regular fixture at UEFA Euro 2008 in Austria and Switzerland, appearing in three group stage matches but missing the quarter-final clash against Germany, a 2–3 loss.

Fernando Meira: International goals

Goal	Date	Venue	Opponent	Score	Result	Competition
1	4 June 2005	Estádio da Luz, Lisbon, Portugal	Slovakia	1–0	2–0	2006 World Cup qualification
2	17 August 2005	Estádio de São Miguel (Ponta Delgada), Ponta Delgada, Portugal	Egypt	1–0	2–0	Friendly

Club

International

Club

VfB Stuttgart

• Bundesliga: 2006–07
• DFB-Pokal: Runner-up 2006–07
• DFB-Ligapokal: Runner-up 2005

Galatasaray

• Turkish Super Cup: 2008

Zenit

• Russian League: 2010
• Russian Cup: 2009–10
• Russian Super Cup: 2011

Orders

• Medal of Merit, Order of the Immaculate Conception of Vila Viçosa (House of Braganza)

• "Selecção distinguida pelo Duque de Bragança" [National team honoured by Duke of Bragança] (in Portuguese). Cristiano Ronaldo News. 30 August 2006. Retrieved 30 August 2006.