Fábio Coentrão

Rio Ave

Born in Vila do Conde, Coentrão grew up in the Caxinas fishing neighbourhood, as did his long-time international teammates Bruno Alves and Hélder Postiga. He joined his hometown's Rio Ave F.C. in 2004 at the age of 16, playing three Primeira Liga games in the following season for a northern side that would be relegated. In 2006–07 he established himself as first-choice, as Rio Ave barely missed promotion back and had a good run in the Taça de Portugal, ended by Sporting CP with a 2–1 win in Lisbon; whilst playing for the club, he earned the nickname "Figo das Caxinas". After that season, where he was voted the divisions' Breakthrough Player of the Year, many clubs showed interest in Coentrão, most notably Sporting and S.L. Benfica, with him choosing the latter in July 2007. His playing style was likened to that of Arjen Robben by World Soccer Magazine, in its 50 World Talents 2007 issue.

Benfica

On 1 January 2008, having received insignificant playing opportunities at Benfica, Coentrão joined Madeira's C.D. Nacional on loan until the end of the season. On 3 May, he scored twice in a 3–0 away victory against already crowned league champions FC Porto. In the summer of 2008, Coentrão transferred to Real Zaragoza, recently relegated into Spain's Segunda División. After almost no appearances during the campaign, however, he returned to Portugal and Rio Ave in January 2009, still owned by Benfica. On 15 February he scored following an individual effort,…

An international for Portugal at youth level, Coentrão was voted MVP in the 2007 Madeira Cup for the under-20 team, also being crowned the competition's top scorer. Subsequently, he represented the nation in the 2007 FIFA U-20 World Cup and, two years later, made his under-21 debut, notably taking part in the Toulon Tournament and scoring a hat-trick in the 6–0 group stage rout of Qatar. After consistent performances at Benfica, although he started rarely in the early 2009–10, Coentrão earned his first senior call-up in November 2009, for the decisive 2010 FIFA World Cup qualification playoffs against Bosnia and Herzegovina, and made his debut in the first leg on 14 November at the Estádio da Luz, playing 21 minutes in the 1–0 win. Coentrão was chosen for Carlos Queiroz's squad of 23 for the final stages, starting as left-back ahead of another adapted player, Duda. He played all the matches in South Africa, in an eventual round of 16 exit. On 10 August 2011, Coentrão scored his first international goal, netting through a rare header in a 5–0 victory over Luxembourg. He played all the games and minutes at UEFA Euro 2012, acting as left-back for the semi-finalists. Coentrão suffered an injury in the second half of Portugal's first game at the 2014 World Cup, against Germany, and was ruled out for the remainder of the tournament. He played a key role in a 2–1 home defeat of Serbia on 29 March 2015, which put them top of the Euro 2016 qualifying group, crossing for the opening…

Club

International

Scores and results list Portugal's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Coentrão goal.

Coentrão's second cousin, Rui, was also a footballer in the same position. He spent most of his career with Varzim SC, and was a youth international. After retiring from professional football, Coentrão decided to become a shipowner fisherman, following in the footsteps of his father. He told Empower Brands Channel: "Life in the sea is not a shame, as many people think. It is a job like any other. Not only that, the sea is beautiful and we need it. People who love the sea and who want to experience the sea need to follow their dream. It is also a job for the new generations. My father had a boat, he used to fish and I always went with him as a child. My life was the sea... the sea and fishing. Of course, I knew that football would one day end and that I should take a new direction in my life. And my happiness is this boat and this is the life I want to lead."