João Vieira Pinto

As a youth, Pinto played for Bairro do Falcão (where he was born, in Campanhã, Porto's east side) and Águias da Areosa, finishing his development at Boavista after joining its academy as a 12-year-old. Early on, he impressed with his speed and ball control, and was subsequently one of the brightest stars in Portugal's wins in the FIFA U-20 World Cup in Riyadh and Lisbon, being one of three players ever to have been on the winning side in this competition twice along with goalkeeper Fernando Brassard (whom however did not play in the first tournament) and Argentinian Sergio Agüero. Additionally, he made his Primeira Liga debut at only 17. Pinto's performance in the first youth competition earned him a transfer to Atlético Madrid in 1990, but he was placed instead with the reserve team. After a forgettable season he rejoined Boavista, appeared in every match, scored eight goals and won the Taça de Portugal, in a final against city rivals Porto. Shortly after, he signed for Benfica. Whilst with Benfica, Pinto's career was threatened in late 1992 by a collapsed lung during an international match for Portugal in Scotland for the 1994 FIFA World Cup qualifiers, eventually recovering but being unable to help his team win the title. However, the next season, he played arguably his best football there, his best moment coming in the Lisbon derby against Sporting CP, where he scored three goals and was on the play of the remaining three in a 6–3 win at the Estádio José Alvalade; this…

Club

International

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

Still in his teens, Pinto had two children from his first marriage to Carla Baía; the elder, Tiago, first played professionally with Olivais e Moscavide. In 2008 he married television presenter Marisa Cruz, with the couple divorcing five years later. Pinto's younger brother, Sérgio, was also a footballer, having competed almost exclusively in the lower leagues of Portugal and one year in England.

Boavista

Taça de Portugal: 1991–92 Benfica

Primeira Liga: 1993–94 Taça de Portugal: 1992–93, 1995–96 Sporting CP

Primeira Liga: 2001–02 Taça de Portugal: 2001–02 Supertaça Cândido de Oliveira: 2000 Portugal

FIFA U-20 World Cup: 1989, 1991 UEFA European Under-21 Championship runner-up: 1994 UEFA European Under-18 Championship runner-up: 1988, 1990 UEFA European Under-16 Championship runner-up: 1988 Individual

CNID Footballer of the Year: 1992, 1993, 1994 Portuguese Golden Ball: 1993, 1996 SJPF Player of the Month: February 2006