Carlos Martins (footballer)

This name uses Portuguese naming customs. The first or maternal family name is Neto and the second or paternal family name is Martins.
Carlos Martins

Martins in action with Portugal in 2011
Personal information
Full name Carlos Jorge Neto Martins
Date of birth (1982-04-29) 29 April 1982
Place of birth Oliveira do Hospital, Portugal
Height 1.72 m (5 ft 7 12 in)
Playing position Midfielder
Youth career
1990–1993 Tourizense
1993–2000 Sporting CP
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2000–2003 Sporting B 29 (3)
2000–2007 Sporting CP 76 (9)
2001–2002Campomaiorense (loan) 27 (1)
2003Académica (loan) 9 (0)
2007–2008 Recreativo 32 (6)
2008–2014 Benfica 79 (6)
2011–2012Granada (loan) 29 (3)
2014 Benfica B 9 (0)
2015–2016 Belenenses 37 (3)
National team
2001–2002 Portugal U20 12 (1)
2002–2004 Portugal U21 14 (7)
2006–2013 Portugal 17 (2)

* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 15 May 2016.


Carlos Jorge Neto Martins (born 29 April 1982) is a Portuguese professional footballer. An attacking midfielder, he is noted for his long-range shots.

His career, during which he represented both Sporting and Benfica, was marred by injury and indiscipline problems.[1][2][3][4] He also competed professionally in Spain, with Recreativo and Granada, and amassed Primeira Liga totals of 201 games and 18 goals over the course of 12 seasons.

A member of Portugal's team at the 2004 Olympics, Martins earned 17 senior caps for his nation.

Club career

Sporting

Born in Oliveira do Hospital, Coimbra, Martins was a youth product of Sporting Clube de Portugal, joining its ranks at the age of 11. He made his professional debuts with modest S.C. Campomaiorense in the second division[5] and, from January–June 2003, was again loaned, to Primeira Liga side Académica de Coimbra.

In the 2005–06 season, despite suffering from several physical problems as well as disciplinary issues, Martins was still able to score two goals in only 13 starts.

Recreativo

However, in February 2007, after several bouts of indiscipline at Sporting, coach Paulo Bento ostracized Martins for the final three months of the season, and although a player still under contract, moving abroad was the only option for the player and, in June, he transferred to La Liga team Recreativo de Huelva.[6]

In November, Portuguese network RTP Internacional interviewed Martins about his situation at Sporting and the player responded: "My situation with coach Bento has been a very bad one. I was constantly pressured to perform and when I did eventually get the call-up to the national side, it got so far that it almost turned into a physical confrontation". Bento denied this despite media sources releasing information of the two that went back to the manager's playing career at Sporting.[7][8][9]

Martins finished the season with seven goals in 35 competitive appearances. He was a fan favourite at the Nuevo Colombino and was dubbed their version of Steven Gerrard by media sources and fans, also being nicknamed Carlitos.

Benfica

On 1 July 2008, Martins signed a five-year deal with S.L. Benfica, with the club paying €3 million for the transfer[10](40% to Recreativo, 40% to Sporting and 20% to the player). Regularly used during his debut campaign although never an undisputed starter, he netted his first goal for the team in a 2–0 win at Vitória de Guimarães for the Portuguese League Cup; also in that competition, he scored the decider in the penalty shootout final win over former side Sporting, on 21 March 2009.[11]

Early into the following season, Martins lost some starting XI room, mainly due to recurrent injuries. However, in the second part of the campaign, he bounced back and figured prominently for Jorge Jesus' side. On 21 March 2010, exactly 365 days after the last final, he helped Benfica renew their League Cup supremacy, as he netted in a 3–0 win against FC Porto from a 30-meter free kick.

On 13 August 2011, Benfica loaned Martins to Granada CFrecently promoted to the Spanish top division – in a season-long move.[12] He appeared regularly as a starter during his spell but, although the Andalusians attempted to renew his loan deal, the Portuguese rejected, only allowing the player to leave on a permanent basis.[13]

After a successful 2012 preseason, where he scored several goals, Benfica renewed Martins' contract in August, until 2016.[14] Appearing sporadically throughout the campaign, he did feature as a substitute in a match against G.D. Estoril-Praia on 6 May 2013: with the game tied 1–1 and Benfica looking to score, he was booked in the 70th minute and, eight minutes later, was sent off after another foul in an eventual home draw that eventually saw his team lose the title race to Porto.[15] He was subsequently told to look for a new club after manager Jesus deemed him surplus to requirements[16] but, after being unable to do so, he spent the entire 2013–14 with Benfica B in the second level, only appearing after the winter transfer window.[17][18]

Belenenses

On 16 September 2014, Martins terminated his contract with Benfica.[19] The following month he signed for one year with fellow league club C.F. Os Belenenses,[20] making his official debut on 7 January 2015 by starting in a 1–7 away loss against S.C. Braga for the Portuguese Cup.[21]

Martins scored a brace to help his team defeat IFK Göteborg 2–1 at the Estádio do Restelo on 30 July 2015, in the first leg of the third qualifying round of the UEFA Europa League.[22]

International career

Martins (right) playing for Portugal against Argentina, in 2011

After Portugal finished in fourth place at the 2006 FIFA World Cup Martins, a former under-21 international, was called to the senior squad for the first time for a friendly with Denmark and a UEFA Euro 2008 qualifier against Finland in September,[23] making his debut in the former on the first day of the month.

Appearing rarely in the following four years, he received a surprise callup in September 2010 for the Euro 2012 qualifying campaign matches against Denmark and Iceland, as former Sporting coach Bento was in charge of the national team: he started in both games, consecutive 3–1 wins.[24][25]

After featuring regularly in the qualifiers Martins missed the final stages in Poland and Ukraine however, after contracting an injury in late May 2012, already in training camp.[26]

Carlos Martins: International goals
Goal Date Venue Opponent Score Result Competition
1 20 August 2008 Estádio Municipal, Aveiro, Portugal  Faroe Islands 1–0 5–0 Friendly
2 17 November 2010 Estádio da Luz, Lisbon, Portugal  Spain 1–0 4–0 Friendly

Personal life

On 15 November 2011, during Portugal's Euro 2012 playoff home fixture against Bosnia and Herzegovina, it was announced that Martins' three-year-old son Gustavo suffered from a rare bone marrow condition, needing an urgent transplant.[27][28] The player spent nearly two weeks in his country,[29] returning to action for Granada (as a starter) in a home game against RCD Mallorca on the 20th, scoring the 1–1 equalizer and being booked shortly afterwards for a reckless challenge, with the game being eventually suspended minutes later after a 15-year-old vandal hit the assistant referee with an umbrella.[30]

Martins' younger brother, João, is also a footballer and a midfielder. He also graduated from Sporting's youth academy, but spent most of his career in the lower leagues.[31]

Club statistics

As of 8 January 2015[32]
Club Season League Cup League Cup Europe Total
AppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoals
Sporting 2000–01 1000000010
Campomaiorense 2001–02 271200000291
Sporting 2002–03 6011001081
Académica 2002–03 90200000110
Sporting 2003–04 142100020172
Sporting 2004–05 225220070317
Sporting 2005–06 212300000242
Sporting 2006–07 120100030160
Recreativo 2007–08 326000000326
Benfica 2008–09 240105150351
Benfica 2009–10 173124280307
Benfica 2010–11 2534030130453
Granada 2011–12 28300283
Benfica 2012–13 220202050310
Benfica B 2013–14 9090
Belenenses 2014–15 001010
Total (Portugal) 141131230013016616
Total (Spain) 326000000326
Career totals 2802818512339030833

Honours

Sporting
Benfica

References

  1. "Carlos Martins: "Quero ser campeão no Sporting"" [Carlos Martins: "I want to be champion with Sporting"] (in Portuguese). Record. 14 April 2003. Retrieved 23 July 2013.
  2. "Carlos Martins fora da Champions" [Carlos Martins out of Champions] (in Portuguese). Zerozero. 2011. Retrieved 23 July 2013.
  3. "Jorge Jesus manda recado a Carlos Martins" [Jorge Jesus sends message to Carlos Martins] (in Portuguese). A Bola. 15 February 2013. Retrieved 23 July 2013.
  4. "O lado negro de Carlos Martins" [The dark side of Carlos Martins] (in Portuguese). Record. 22 July 2013. Retrieved 23 July 2013.
  5. "Carlos Martins e Chiquinho cedidos" [Carlos Martins and Chiquinho loaned] (in Portuguese). Record. 28 June 2001. Retrieved 15 September 2013.
  6. El Recreativo ficha a Carlos Martins (Recreativo signs Carlos Martins); Fichajes, 4 June 2007 (Spanish)
  7. "O fado de Martins" [The fate of Martins] (in Portuguese). Record. 11 December 2006. Retrieved 3 August 2015.
  8. "Paulo Bento: "Quem quiser ficar tem de o demonstrar"" [Paulo Bento: "Whoever wants to stay has to show it"] (in Portuguese). Record. 20 December 2006. Retrieved 3 August 2015.
  9. "Carlos Martins: "Paulo Bento desiludiu-me"" [Carlos Martins: "Paulo Bento has let me down"] (in Portuguese). Record. 7 December 2007. Retrieved 3 August 2015.
  10. Martins wends his way to Benfica; UEFA.com, 1 July 2008
  11. Quim the hero of Benfica triumph; UEFA.com, 21 March 2009
  12. "El Benfica cede a Carlos Martins al Granada" [Benfica loans Carlos Martins to Granada] (in Spanish). Super Deporte. 13 August 2011. Retrieved 21 November 2011.
  13. "Javier Rufete: "O Benfica não quer emprestar Carlos Martins"" [Javier Rufete: "Benfica does not want to loan Carlos Martins"] (in Portuguese). Record. 23 July 2012. Retrieved 6 August 2014.
  14. "Carlos Martins renova até 2016" [Carlos Martins renews until 2016] (in Portuguese). Record. 3 August 2012. Retrieved 6 August 2014.
  15. "Afinal foi mesmo o Estoril quem conseguiu travar o Benfica na Luz" [Turns out it was Estoril that stopped Benfica at the Luz] (in Portuguese). Público. 6 May 2013. Retrieved 6 August 2014.
  16. "Martins deixa de contar para Jesus" [Martins no longer counts to Jesus] (in Portuguese). Correio da Manhã. 8 May 2013. Archived from the original on 12 August 2014. Retrieved 6 August 2014.
  17. "Carlos Martins aguarda colocação" [Carlos Martins awaits placement] (in Portuguese). Record. 13 July 2013. Retrieved 6 August 2014.
  18. "Carlos Martins voltou 277 dias depois" [Carlos Martins returned 277 days later] (in Portuguese). Zerozero. 7 February 2014. Retrieved 6 August 2014.
  19. "Carlos Martins rescindiu o contrato" [Carlos Martins terminated contract] (in Portuguese). Record. 19 September 2014. Retrieved 19 September 2014.
  20. "Carlos Martins é oficial" [Carlos Martins is official] (in Portuguese). Record. 24 October 2014. Retrieved 8 January 2015.
  21. "Braga atropela Bélem a caminho de Vila do Conde" [Braga runs Bélem over on the way to Vila do Conde] (in Portuguese). Rádio Renascença. 7 January 2015. Retrieved 20 May 2015.
  22. ""Bis" de Carlos Martins garante vantagem mínima para a Suécia" [Carlos Martins brace confirms minimal advantage to Sweden] (in Portuguese). Rádio Renascença. 30 July 2015. Retrieved 3 August 2015.
  23. "Portugal answer Martins' prayers". UEFA.com. 22 August 2006. Retrieved 23 April 2014.
  24. "Denmark defeated on Bento's Portugal debut". UEFA.com. 9 October 2010. Retrieved 9 June 2011.
  25. "Portugal revival goes on in Iceland". UEFA.com. 13 October 2010. Retrieved 9 June 2011.
  26. Portugal replace Martins with Viana; FIFA.com, 23 May 2012
  27. "Denmark defeated on Bento's Portugal debut". UEFA.com. 9 October 2010. Retrieved 9 June 2011.
  28. "Seleccao support for Carlos Martins". PortuGOAL. 17 November 2011. Archived from the original on 23 June 2013. Retrieved 21 November 2011.
  29. "Martins apura su estancia en Portugal en busca de ayuda para su hijo" [Martins extends stay in Portugal in seek of help for son] (in Spanish). Marca. 17 November 2011. Retrieved 21 November 2011.
  30. "Match abandoned after assistant ref hit". ESPN Soccernet. 20 November 2011. Retrieved 21 November 2011.
  31. "Carlos Martins defronta o irmão: "Não merece o que lhe fizeram"" [Carlos Martins faces brother: "He does not deserve what has been done to him"] (in Portuguese). Mais Futebol. 21 February 2014. Retrieved 27 November 2014.
  32. "Carlos Martins". Soccerway. Retrieved 23 April 2014.
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