Joao Cancelo

Joao Cancelo is a Portuguese professional footballer who plays for Premier League club Manchester City and the Portugal national team.

Portuguese right-back Joao Cancelo joined City from Juventus in August 2019.

The defender penned a deal that keeps him at the Etihad Stadium until the summer of 2025 and followed Angelino and Rodrigo to become Pep Guardiola’s third signing of the summer.

Whilst in Turin, Cancelo established himself as one of Serie A’s best full-backs. Comfortable on either flank and also capable of playing in a more advanced position, Cancelo provides great delivery from wide areas and boasts exceptional athleticism, using his pace to good effect in both offensive and defensive situations.

His professional career began with Benfica, where he progressed through their academy and won the 2013 Portuguese U19 Championship alongside Bernardo Silva.

He made his senior debut the following season when the Lisbon giants claimed a domestic treble, but joined Valencia on a year-long loan in 2014/15 and did enough in 13 games to convince Los Che to make the deal permanent.

He went on to play 77 times over the next two campaigns before heading off on loan again, this time to Inter Milan, where he thrived.

Cancelo’s form convinced Juventus to swoop for him last summer and he continued to impress in Turin, winning praise for his committed attacking play which yielded one goal and five assists in 34 games as Juve lifted an eighth successive Serie A title.

He followed that up with his first taste of international success, winning the inaugural UEFA Nations League title with Portugal this summer.