Germano de Figueiredo

Born in Alcântara, Lisbon, Germano started playing with local Atlético Clube de Portugal, spending seven of his nine seasons in the Primeira Liga. In the summer of 1960 he moved to neighbouring S.L. Benfica, where he remained the following six years, being a leading defensive unit of the sides that won four national championships and two European Cups (against FC Barcelona and Real Madrid); in the latter competition's 1964–65 edition, he was placed in goal following his teammate's Costa Pereira injury in the final against Inter Milan, and kept a clean sheet for more than 30 minutes, albeit in a 1–0 loss. Germano retired in 1967, after one year with S.C. Salgueiros of the Segunda Liga. He died in Linda-a-Velha, at the age of 71.

Germano won 24 caps for Portugal over 13 years. He was part of the squad that appeared at the 1966 FIFA World Cup but only played at the second game against Bulgaria, and was benched for the rest of the tournament, which ended with a third-place conquest.

A hard-working and strong-tackling defender, Germano was noted for his towering presence in Benfica's back-three defending formation, alongside left-back Ângelo and right-back Mário João. He possessed excellent ball control. Germano ranked 53rd in UEFA's 50 Greatest Footballers of the Last 50 Years jubilee list.

Benfica

Primeira Liga: 1960–61, 1962–63, 1963–64, 1964–65 Taça de Portugal: 1961–62, 1963–64 Taça de Honra (2) European Cup: 1960–61, 1961–62 Atlético

Segunda Liga: 1958–59 Portugal

FIFA World Cup third place: 1966 Individual

World Soccer World XI: 1961, 1962, 1965