Leonardo Lelo

In this Portuguese name, the first or maternal family name is da Cruz and the second or paternal family name is Lelo.
Leonardo Lelo
Personal information
Full name Leonardo Filipe da Cruz Lelo[1]
Date of birth (2000-03-30) 30 March 2000[1]
Place of birth Olhão, Portugal
Height 1.75 m (5 ft 9 in)[1]
Position Left-back
Team information
Current team
 Braga
Number 5
Youth career
2011–2016 Olhanense
2016–2017 Vitória Setúbal
2017 Louletano
2017–2018 Olhanense
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2018–2021 Olhanense 56 (0)
2020–2021 → Portimonense (loan) 0 (0)
2021–2025 Casa Pia 126 (8)
2025– Braga 22 (0)
International career
2019 Portugal U20 2 (0)
2022–2023 Portugal U21 5 (0)
* Club domestic league appearances and goals as of 22:38, 21 February 2026 (UTC)

Leonardo Filipe da Cruz Lelo (born 30 March 2000) is a Portuguese professional footballer who plays as a left-back for Primeira Liga club Braga.

Club career

Olhanense

Lelo was born in Olhão, Algarve, and finished his development in the academy of S.C. Olhanense. After starting his senior career with the club in the third division,[2] he was loaned to Portimonense S.C. of Primeira Liga for the 2020–21 season, but only managed to appear for their under-23 side.[3]

Casa Pia

On 16 June 2021, Lelo signed a contract with Casa Pia A.C. of unspecified duration.[4] He made his professional debut on 24 July, scoring in a in a 4–1 away win against Académico de Viseu F.C. in the first round of the Taça da Liga.[5] His first appearance in the Liga Portugal 2 took place on 7 August against the same opponents, now in a 2–1 loss.[6] He netted five times from 34 games in his debut campaign, helping to a return to the top division for the first time in 83 years; for his displays, he was included in the Team of the Year.[7][8]

Lelo made his top-flight debut on 7 August 2022, missing a penalty in the tenth minute of a 0–0 draw away to C.D. Santa Clara.[9] He scored his first goal also from the 11-meter spot, helping to a 2–1 victory at C.S. Marítimo on 3 October.[10]

Braga

On 22 May 2025, Lelo joined S.C. Braga on a four-year deal with a €30 million buyout clause.[11]

International career

Lelo represented Portugal at under-20 and under-21 levels.[12] He earned his first cap for the latter on 24 September 2022, being booked as a second-half substitute in a 4–1 home friendly win over Georgia in Covilhã.[13][14]

Career statistics

As of match played 12 March 2026[15]
Appearances and goals by club, season and competition
Club Season League Taça de Portugal Taça da Liga Europe Total
Division Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals
Olhanense 2018–19 Campeonato de Portugal 32 0 1 0 — — 33 0
2019–20 24 0 2 0 — — 26 0
Total 56 0 3 0 — — 59 0
Portimonense (loan) 2020–21 Primeira Liga 0 0 0 0 0 0 — 0 0
Casa Pia 2021–22 Liga Portugal 2 34 5 4 1 2 1 — 40 7
2022–23 Primeira Liga 27 1 2 0 2 0 — 31 1
2023–24 33 1 1 0 4 0 — 38 1
2024–25 32 1 1 0 0 0 — 33 1
Total 126 8 8 1 8 1 — 142 10
Braga 2025–26 Primeira Liga 22 0 4 0 2 1 11[a] 0 39 1
Career Total 204 8 15 1 10 2 11 0 240 11
  1. ^ Appearances in UEFA Europa League

Honours

Individual

References

  1. ^ a b c "Leonardo Lelo" (in Portuguese). Mais Futebol. Retrieved 19 January 2026.
  2. ^ Mateus, Rita (15 May 2020). "#14 Leonardo Lelo – A paixão algarvia do promissor esquerdino" [#14 Leonardo Lelo – The Algarvean passion of the promising lefty] (in Portuguese). Cem Oportunidades. Retrieved 15 July 2022.
  3. ^ "Leonardo Lelo: «Adaptação a Lisboa tem sido muito boa»" [Leonardo Lelo: "Adjustment to Lisbon has been very good"]. Record (in Portuguese). 20 August 2021. Retrieved 19 January 2026.
  4. ^ Gouveia Pereira, Miguel (17 June 2021). "Casa Pia oficializou Leonardo Lelo, que chega do Portimonense" [Casa Pia confirmed Leonardo Lelo, who arrives from Portimonense]. O Jogo (in Portuguese). Retrieved 15 July 2022.
  5. ^ "Casa Pia atira Académico de Viseu para fora da Taça da Liga" [Casa Pia throw Académico de Viseu out of the League Cup]. Jornal de Notícias (in Portuguese). 24 July 2021. Retrieved 19 January 2026.
  6. ^ "Ac. Viseu-Casa Pia, 2–1: beirões arrancam campeonato com reviravolta" [Ac. Viseu-Casa Pia, 2–1: boys from Beira kickstart championship with a win]. Record (in Portuguese). 7 August 2021. Retrieved 19 January 2026.
  7. ^ "Casa Pia regressa à I Liga 83 anos depois da única participação" [Casa Pia return to I League 83 years after only presence] (in Portuguese). SIC Notícias. 15 May 2022. Retrieved 19 January 2026.
  8. ^ "Otávio é o quinto jogador do FC Porto eleito para a equipa do ano da I Liga" [Otávio is the fifth FC Porto player voted to the I League's team of the year]. Observador (in Portuguese). 24 June 2022. Retrieved 19 January 2026.
  9. ^ Paiva, Rui Pedro (7 August 2022). "Santa Clara-Casa Pia, 0–0 (crónica)" [Santa Clara-Casa Pia, 0–0 (report)] (in Portuguese). Mais Futebol. Retrieved 19 January 2026.
  10. ^ "Casa Pia sobe ao quarto lugar da I Liga" [Casa Pia climb to fourth place in I League] (in Portuguese). Rádio e Televisão de Portugal. 3 October 2022. Retrieved 19 January 2026.
  11. ^ Gonçalves, André (22 May 2025). "Oficial: Leonardo Lelo reforça Sp. Braga" [Official: Leonardo Lelo bolsters Sp. Braga]. Record (in Portuguese). Retrieved 19 January 2026.
  12. ^ Pires, Edgar (7 November 2019). "Futebol: Jogador do Olhanense chamado à seleção nacional de sub-20" [Football: Olhanense player called to the under-20 national team] (in Portuguese). diariOnline Região Sul. Retrieved 15 July 2022.
  13. ^ "Portugal goleia Geórgia por 4–1 num encontro particular" [Portugal rout Georgia 4–1 in friendly match]. Record (in Portuguese). 24 September 2022. Retrieved 19 January 2026.
  14. ^ "Euro sub-21: Leonardo Lelo adverte para fator casa e leque reforçado da Geórgia" [Under-21 Euro: Leonardo Lelo issues warnings of home factor and Georgia's bolstered options]. Record (in Portuguese). 18 June 2023. Retrieved 19 January 2026.
  15. ^ Leonardo Lelo at Soccerway
  16. ^ "Leonardo Lelo named Left-Back of the Year of Liga Portugal SABSEG". Liga Portuguesa de Futebol Profissional. 22 June 2022. Retrieved 18 October 2023.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is available under Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 unless otherwise noted. Additional terms may apply for the media files.