Nélson Marcos

Early years

Born in Sal, Cape Verde, Nélson started his professional career with Vilanovense. He began making a name in the Primeira Liga with Boavista, having joined from soon-to-be-extinct Salgueiros also in Porto. In May 2005, Nélson was involved in a car crash along with former Boavista player José Bosingwa, who represented Porto at the time. The latter, behind the wheel of his jeep at the time of the accident, was travelling too quickly and due to wet conditions he crashed the car into an embankment which was followed by the car bursting into flames; one passenger required his foot to be amputated, whilst the other three were unharmed.

Benfica

Nélson signed a five-year contract with Benfica in summer 2005, for €1.5 million. He made the right-back spot his own upon his arrival, making 25 appearances during his first season; in the 2006–07 campaign, he was also a starter. In the 2006–07 UEFA Champions League, after having faced Manchester United in the same competition and stage the season before, Nélson scored with a long-range shot into Edwin van der Sar's top-right hand corner at Old Trafford on 6 December 2006; eventually, the game was lost 3–1 and his team had to settle for a place in the UEFA Cup after finishing third.

Betis

In late August 2008, Nélson joined Real Betis in Spain for €6 million, on a five-year deal. He quickly became a starter, as the Andalusian club was eventually relegated. On 30 August 2010, Nélson was loaned to…

Nélson was granted Portuguese citizenship in December 2005, and played in the 2006 UEFA European Under-21 Championship. He received his first call-up to the senior team in the UEFA Euro 2008 qualifier against Kazakhstan on 15 November 2006, but did not leave the bench. Nélson finally made his full debut on 31 March 2009, appearing in a 2–0 friendly win with South Africa in Lausanne, Switzerland.

AEK Larnaca

Cypriot Cup: 2017–18