António Silva

Benfica

Early career

Born in Viseu, Silva began his youth career with hometown club Viseu United, aged 11, and also had spells at Penalva do Castelo and Repesenses. He quickly stood out, subsequently began having multiple training sessions with Sporting CP, while Porto also showed an interest in signing him, but he ended up joining their rivals and his boyhood club Benfica's youth academy in 2016. Struggling with homesickness, Silva returned to his hometown to spend time with his family, but with the help of the club's psychologist, he managed to overcome his mental health problems and went back to Benfica a year later, after adjusting to life in Lisbon.

2021–22: Youth League and development

On 28 November 2021, Silva signed his first professional contract with Benfica B. He made his professional debut with Benfica B in a 2–1 LigaPro loss to Mafra on 2 April 2022. During that season, Silva played a major role in the 2021–22 UEFA Youth League, where Benfica U19 topped their group against Dynamo Kyiv, Barcelona and Bayern Munich. In the final phases, he scored the equaliser in a 3–2 win over Midtjylland, after his side were two goals behind and in the final, he helped his side keep a clean sheet in a 6–0 win over Red Bull Salzburg to help Benfica win their first Youth League title, and their first title in European football since the 1961–62 European Cup.

2022–23: First-team breakthrough and league title

Having appeared for the…

Silva represented Portugal at under-16, under-17, under-18 and under-19, for a total of 18 caps, serving as captain for the latter. On 24 September 2022, Silva made his under-21 debut, replacing André Amaro in a 4–1 friendly defeat of Georgia. In October 2022, he was named in Portugal's preliminary 55-man squad for the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar, being included in the final 26-man squad for the tournament. He made his senior international debut in a friendly against Nigeria on 17 November, starting in Portugal's 4–0 win. With Portugal having secured qualification from their group, he started in the last fixture, featuring in the 2–1 loss to South Korea in Al Rayyan. In doing so, he became the youngest player ever to represent Portugal at the World Cup at 19 years, one months and three days old. On 21 May 2024, he was selected in the 26-man squad for the UEFA Euro 2024. After Portugal secured qualification from their group, he made his debut in the competition, starting in the last fixture against Georgia. In the match, he committed an error leading to Georgia's first goal before he conceded a penalty, resulting in a 2–0 for Portugal, earning various criticisms for his performance. He would not feature for Portugal in the knockout stage as they were eliminated from the tournament in the quarter-finals after losing to France 5–3 in a penalty shootout. Silva was called up to the Portugal senior team on 20 May 2025, for the 2025 UEFA Nations League Finals that were played in…

Silva is right-footed central defender usually perceived as having a high tactical intelligence, and ability to read the game. Comfortable with both feet, he also shows proficiency when distributing the ball, whether maintaining possession, switching play, or breaking lines with vertical passes. His defensive strengths include anticipation, marking, and positional awareness, while his mobility and technical skills enable him to contribute effectively both defensively and in transition. Silva is also recognized for his leadership qualities, with former Portuguese international Abel Xavier depicting his "security, maturity, game vision, assertiveness, aggression, and leadership". Xavier emphasized that, regardless of his age, Silva has the potential to be the future captain of Benfica. Silva admires Cristiano Ronaldo and Benfica legend Luisão and has also mentioned that he considers Rúben Dias, Antonio Rüdiger and Virgil van Dijk as inspirations.

Club

As of match played 8 September 2026

International

As of match played 31 March 2026