Pedro Santos

Early career

Born in Lisbon, Santos played youth football with three clubs, including Casa Pia A.C. from ages 13 to 19. He spent his first seasons as a senior in the lower leagues, scoring a career-best 17 goals in 2009–10 to help the team promote to the third division. Subsequently, Santos moved to the professionals after signing with Leixões S.C. from the Liga de Honra. In his second year at the Estádio do Mar, he started in 23 of his 27 appearances (four goals) and the side finished in 11th position. In the summer of 2012, Santos joined Vitória de Setúbal, making his debut in the Primeira Liga on 19 August of that year by coming as a 68th-minute substitute in a 2–2 away draw against C.D. Nacional, where he won a penalty and was also booked. His first goal in the league arrived on 4 November, when he played 79 minutes and helped the hosts defeat Sporting CP 2–1.

Braga

Santos moved to S.C. Braga also in the top tier in June 2013. Before the end of the transfer window he was loaned to Romanian club FC Astra Giurgiu, and scored to cap a 4–0 win at FC Oţelul Galaţi on his 15 September debut after coming on at half time for Gabriel Enache. Having made just three more appearances in all competitions, his loan was terminated in December. On 8 January 2014, Santos was loaned again to Rio Ave F.C. in Braga's league until the end of the season alongside teammate Stanislav Kritsyuk. He played 22 total games for the team from Vila do Conde, and scored once to…

Santos earned two caps for the Portugal under-19 team, in as many friendlies against Spain in March 2007.

A versatile player, Santos is capable of playing on either wing, cutting inside from the right or advancing down the line on the left, and has also been deployed as an attacking midfielder and a left-back. He is known for his "magic" left foot, which allows him to deliver a variety of passes and crosses. While playing as a more attack-minded full-back, he is recognized for his positional awareness, work rate and willingness to track back after making overlapping runs. Jacob Myers of The Columbus Dispatch described Santos during his time with the Columbus Crew as "one of the Crew’s hardest workers on both sides of the ball," noting that "he covers a lot of ground with a high motor and isn’t afraid to go in for a tackle." However, the former also observed that the latter "has shown a proclivity to dribble into defenders and lose the ball."

As of 29 October 2024