Quick Facts
LeoBiography
Pedro Alexandre dos Santos Barbosa (born 6 August 1970; Portuguese pronunciation: [ˈpedɾu bɐɾˈbɔzɐ]) is a Portuguese retired professional footballer who played as an attacking midfielder.
Best known for his spell at Sporting, he appeared in 367 games in the Primeira Liga and scored 59 goals, being a player with above-average skills.
Barbosa represented Portugal in one World Cup and one European Championship.
Club career
Born in Gondomar, Porto, Barbosa unsuccessfully graduated from FC Porto's academy, making his professional debuts with lowly S.C. Freamunde in the second division.
He first came to prominence at Vitória de Guimarães, making his Primeira Liga debuts at age 21, and joined Sporting Clube de Portugal in 1995–96, remaining at the club for the next ten seasons. Already a veteran, he contributed heavily to the capital side's 2000 and 2002 league titles, appearing in respectively 31 (two goals scored) and 27 games (three).
In his penultimate year, Barbosa netted a career-best nine goals to help Sporting rank in third position. In his last the 34-year-old played 13 matches as the Lions reached the 2005 UEFA Cup Final played on home soil, scoring all of his two goals against Middlesbrough in the round-of-16.
Having played in more than 300 official games for the club, Barbosa subsequently became the Lisbon club's director of football, leaving the post in early November 2009 after coach Paulo Bento's resignation.
International career
Barbosa won 22 caps for the Portuguese national team and scored five goals, during ten years. He represented the nation at UEFA Euro 1996 (playing the last 30 minutes of the 3–0 group stage win against Croatia) and the 2002 FIFA World Cup (no matches).
| Goal | Date | Venue | Opponent | Score | Result | Competition |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 22 February 1995 | Philips Stadion, Eindhoven, Netherlands |  Netherlands | 0–1 | 0–1 | Friendly |
| 2 | 20 August 1997 | Estádio do Bonfim, Setúbal, Portugal |  Armenia | 3–1 | 3–1 | 1998 World Cup qualification |
| 3 | 6 September 1997 | Olympic Stadium (Berlin), Berlin, Germany |  Germany | 0–1 | 1–1 | 1998 World Cup qualification |
| 4 | 6 June 2001 | Estádio José Alvalade (1956), Lisbon, Portugal |  Cyprus | 2–0 | 6–0 | 2002 World Cup qualification |
| 5 | 6 June 2001 | Estádio José Alvalade (1956), Lisbon, Portugal | Cyprus | 3–0 | 6–0 | 2002 World Cup qualification |
Honours
Club
- Primeira Liga: 1999–2000, 2001–02
- Taça de Portugal: 2001–02; Runner-up 1995–96, 1999–2000
- Supertaça Cândido de Oliveira: 1995, 2000, 2002
- UEFA Cup: Runner-up 2004–05
Individual
- Primeira Liga: Player of the Month November 2003