Raul Meireles

Boavista

Meireles was born in Porto, and joined local Boavista's youth system at the age of seven. He spent two years on loan to Aves in the Segunda Liga, being presented on 8 July 2001. Meireles scored his first senior goal on 25 May 2003, in a 2–1 home win over União da Madeira where he fired from 30 metres into the net. He finished that season with 26 appearances, helping his team to finish in sixth position. For the 2003–04 campaign, Meireles returned to Boavista. He made his debut in the Primeira Liga on 17 August against Benfica, being chosen as Player of the match of the 0–0 home draw by newspaper Record.

Porto

On 7 July 2004, Porto signed Meireles on a five–year contract, being presented in a press conference held five days later. His first competitive match took place on 22 September against União de Leiria at the Estádio do Dragão, coming off the bench early into the first half on an eventual 1–1 league draw. On 18 February of the following year he made his first start, in an away victory over Belenenses. Five days later, he made his debut in the UEFA Champions League by featuring the full 90 minutes in a 1–1 home draw with Inter Milan in the round-of-16 first leg; he finished his first year with 15 appearances in all competitions (no goals). Meireles started in Porto's first league fixture of 2005–06, against Estrela da Amadora, sustaining an ankle injury that sidelined him for one month. He returned to action in October, in a Taça de Portugal…

Youth

Meireles represented the Portuguese under-16 team at the 2000 UEFA European Championship, which was won in Israel after a 2–1 defeat of the Czech Republic. He subsequently participated in the 2001 Meridian Cup with the under-17s, starting three times in an eventual third-place finish. In November 2001, Meireles was named in the under-19 squad for the 2003 European Championship qualifying tournament, scoring in a 1–2 loss to Belarus but helping his country qualify. On 2 June 2003, he was selected by the under-20 side for the Toulon Tournament, winning the competition and being voted its second-best player. Meireles featured regularly in the qualifying phase for the 2004 European Under-21 Championship, including a play-off tie against France where the played the full 90 minutes in a 4–1 penalty shootout victory. He was then selected by coach José Romão for the finals, appearing in four of five games to help the country qualify for the Summer Olympics– he missed the semi-finals against Italy due to suspension; in the ensuing Olympic tournament in Athens, he started twice and appeared as a second-half substitute against Iraq, as Portugal exited in the group stage with three points.

Senior

Meireles' first game for the Portuguese senior team took place on 15 November 2006, when he played the entire 3–0 win over Kazakhstan for the UEFA Euro 2008 qualifiers. He was picked for the final stages in Austria and Switzerland, marking his debut in a major…

Meireles could play in any position in the midfield, but preferred to operate as a central midfielder. He was capable of being deployed in both a defensive and attacking role, depending on the players available and coaches' strategies. At Porto, he was used initially as a defensive midfielder, but tactical factors saw him switch to attacking midfielder; in an opposite approach, when Paulo Bento was appointed as the Portuguese head coach in 2010, the player was eventually played in a more defensive position after starting out in attacking midfield. Under his Liverpool manager Roy Hodgson, Meireles was also deployed as a deep-lying playmaker on occasion. A versatile, tactically astute and mobile player, his main traits were his passing and tackling, although he was also known for his work-rate and powerful long–range shooting abilities.

Club

International

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