Top facts about Nani, one of the best Portuguese wingers ever

Luis Carlos Almeida da Cunha, better known by his nickname

, is a Portuguese professional footballer who currently plays as a winger and captain for Orlando City SC in Major League Soccer. He has played for the senior national team over 100 times and has represented Portugal at the international level.

Today we want to talk about the

top facts about Nani

and tell you some special facts about this star.

Top facts about Nani you need to know

Nani is of Cape Verdean origin and was born in Amadora, Portugal. Real Massamá, a local team, was where he began his football career. When he was nine years old, he began practicing on alternate days with Sporting CP and S.L.

, eventually joining Sporting's youth group after receiving pre-season training.

Nani made his professional debut with the club in 2005, and he won the Taça de Portugal in his second season. Nani was named SJPF Young Player of the Month in May 2007, and his performances with Sporting led to a €25 million transfer to Manchester United in July 2007.

Nani won the Community Shield on his Manchester United debut and went on to win a slew of trophies in his first season, including the Premier League and the Champions League. He became a first-choice winger at United, winning three Premier League crowns, the Football League Cup, one FIFA Club World Cup, and three Community Shield trophies along the way.

Nani was a finalist for the Professional Footballers' Association (PFA) Young Player of the Year award in 2011 and was named to the Premier League Team of the Year on one occasion. He was bought by Fenerbahçe for £4.25 million in July 2015 after a loan spell with Sporting, during which he won the Taça de Portugal and

a year later. He returned to Sporting CP in July 2018.

Nani is also a Portugal international. After starting his career at the under-21 level, he made his senior Portugal debut in September 2006 in a friendly against Denmark, scoring his first goal in the 4–2 defeat in Copenhagen.

Nani has represented Portugal in four major competitions, including three European Championships (2008, 2012, and 2016), where he reached the semi-finals of Euro 2012 and won Euro 2016, and the 2014 FIFA World Cup. Since his debut, he has made over 100 international games and scored 24 goals.

Some quick top facts about Nani

We will discover everything you want to know about Nani personal life and then in the next parts, we will review the

top facts about Nani

.

Nani biography

• Full Name:

  Luís Carlos Almeida da Cunha

• Nickname:

  Nani

• Date of Birth:

  17 November 1986

• Birth Place:

  Amadora, Lisbon, Portugal

• Marital Status:

  Married

• His wife:

  Daniela Martins

• Age:

  34 years old

• Profession:

  Footballer

• Nationality:

  Portuguese

• Zodiac Sign:

  Scorpio

• Height:

  1.75 m

• Weight:

  66 Kg

• Position:

   Winger

• Clubs:

  Sporting CP, Manchester United, Fenerbahçe, Valencia, Lazio, Orlando City

With all of the background details in hand, we'll look at Nani's childhood as well as his family and career in the next segment of interesting and top facts about Nani.

Nani early life

Nani was born in the Amadora neighborhood of Lisbon, Portugal, and is of Cape Verdean descent. After his parents abandoned him, he was raised by his aunt Antónia on the Santa Filomena farm in Amadora. When he was five years old, his father departed for a vacation in Cape Verde and never returned, and when he was twelve years old, his mother left Portugal to start a new life in the Netherlands.

Nani is the youngest of nine siblings born to his mother, while he has five siblings born to his father. Nani's nickname was given to him by an older sister when he was little.

Nani learned to play football from his older brother and used to play with midfielder Manuel Fernandes, a childhood friend. When Nani was approximately 14 years old, his older brother took him to train with Real Massamá.

Nani's first club helped him get an ID card and a passport by giving him money, food, and advice. Nani began alternating days between Sporting CP and Benfica when he was 16 years old. Nani walked miles to and from practice until Sporting provided him pre-season training. Despite growing up in Lisbon, Nani and his brother supported FC Porto as children, and his footballing hero was Luis Figo.

Following the

top facts about Nani

, there is a good percent you want to continue the rest of the article so we intend to bring up a new topic.

Nani career

The first team he played in was

and now we want to know about it.

Sporting CP

Nani joined Sporting CP from Real Massamá, where he had previously played. After two seasons with the youth squad, where he won the National Junior Championship in 2004–05, Nani was promoted to the main squad early in the 2005–06 season.

Nani helped Sporting win the Taça de Portugal in 2006–07, capturing the cup on May 27, 2007, after a 1–0 win over Belenenses. He was named the SJPF Young Player of the Month in May 2007. Nani made 40 appearances and scored six goals in all competitions in his second season with Sporting, compared to his first.

On August 19, 2014, Nani returned to Sporting CP on a season-long loan from Manchester United. In the first match of the 2014–15 UEFA Champions League group stage, he scored his first goal of the loan in a 1–1 draw at Maribor on September 17. He was also handed the title of Man of the Match. Nani's return to Sporting CP was announced on July 11, 2018.

Manchester United

Nani was transferred for €25.5 million to Manchester United, with 5% of the revenues going to his first professional club, Real Massamá. He passed his physical and signed a five-year contract with Manchester United on June 6, 2007, joining compatriot Cristiano Ronaldo, with whom he shared an apartment during his Manchester United tenure.

In the 2008 UEFA Champions League Final,

came on as a substitute for Wayne Rooney, and United triumphed 6–5 on penalties following a 1–1 stalemate after extra time. In the shootout, Nani took and converted Manchester United's critical fifth penalty.

Nani was anticipated to rise up from his role as a bit player following Cristiano Ronaldo's departure to Real Madrid in the 2009 close season and replace his compatriot. Nani made his United debut in the 2009 FA Community Shield, scoring in the tenth minute, however United lost on penalties following a 2–2 draw.

On September 5, 2013, Nani's contract with Manchester United was extended, keeping him at the club until 2018.

Fenerbahçe

Nani signed a three-year contract with Fenerbahçe in Turkey on July 6, 2015, for a fee of £4.25 million. Nani and his former United teammate Robin van Persie made their Champions League debuts 22 days later, in a goalless draw at home against

in the season's third qualifying round. He scored two goals against Antalyaspor on August 30, one of which was the game-winner, a free-kick in second-half stoppage time.

Valencia

Nani signed a three-year deal with Valencia in July 2016, with

paying an undisclosed fee – estimated to be £7.2 million – to complete the move.

Loan to Lazio

Nani was signed on a season-long loan deal by Lazio on August 31, 2017. On October 29, he scored his first goal for Lazio, the game-winning goal in a 5–1 away victory over Benevento.

Orlando City

On February 18, 2019, Nani signed a three-year Designated Player deal with

. Nani made his Orlando City FC debut on March 2nd, coming on as a 70th-minute substitute against New York City FC in the team's home opener.

On July 31, 2020, he missed a penalty in regulation time against Los Angeles FC in the MLS is Back Tournament quarterfinals, but then assisted the last-minute equalizer and scored the winning penalty in an extra time shootout. Orlando City finished second in the tournament, falling to Portland Timbers in the final.

International

Nani made his debut in a 0–1 loss against France U21 on May 23, 2006, as the youngest member of Portugal's Under-21 squad at the 2006 UEFA Under-21 Championship.

On August 20, 2008, Nani scored his fourth international goal in

's penultimate friendly encounter before the commencement of their World Cup qualifying campaign, a 5–0 win against the Faroe Islands.

Nani made his World Cup debut for Portugal in the tournament's opening match against Germany.

After Cristiano Ronaldo was taken off after a challenge from Dimitri Payet in the first 25 minutes of the final against host-nation France on 10 July, Nani was awarded the captain's armband. Portugal won 1–0 in extra-time thanks to a 109th-minute strike by substitute Eder.

He was named in Portugal's preliminary 35-man squad for the 2018 World Cup, which will be held in Russia in May 2018 however, he did not make the final 23.

Nani family and relationship

The only name you'll see here is Daniela Martins, as the Orlando City star has maintained his undying love for the lady from Lisbon, Portugal. The fact that Daniela and Nani met for the first time in 2007-08 after the right-winger had moved on to Manchester United, adds to the story's charm.

Nani's wife, Daniela, also has a bachelor's degree in journalism from London. It's important to remember that Nani and Daniela like to keep their private lives hidden from inquisitive eyes.

Lucas da Cunha, Nani and Daniela's son, was born into their family. Nani's son Lucas was on the ground celebrating with him after Portugal's Euro 2016 triumph over Croatia, despite Nani's desire to keep his personal life out of the spotlight.

Nani style of play

Nani's talent and playing style generated comparisons to

, a Manchester United club and international teammate, in the early stages of his career, although Nani's style grew into a more traditional winger than Ronaldo's development into a center forward.

Nani can play on either flank, but his preferred position is on the right, where he has been known to use his speed, as well as his complex dribbling abilities and cunning, to create space in huge areas and provide crosses for teammates.

Despite being adept at cutting inside from either wing to strike at a goal from distance, Nani scores fewer goals but produces a substantially higher proportion of assists than his compatriot Ronaldo. As a result of his great offensive ability, he can enjoy a lot of other roles as a forward, including inverted winger on the left, second striker, or even in a more central position as the main striker, as he has done regularly for Portugal.

Nani honors

Nani, as a winger with 146 goals scored in various clubs and Portugal team, has a very interesting statistic, especially in the two teams of Sporting CP, and Manchester United. However, in the national competitions in the Portugal team, Nani won UEFA European Championship in the 2016.

Sporting CP

• Taça de Portugal:

   2006–07, 2014–15, 2018–19

• Taça da Liga: 

  2018–19

Manchester United

• Premier League: 

  2007–08, 2008–09, 2010–11, 2012–13

• Football League Cup: 

  2008–09, 2009–10

• FA Community Shield:

   2007, 2008, 2010, 2011

• UEFA Champions League: 

  2007–08

• FIFA Club World Cup:

   2008

Portugal

• UEFA European Championship:

   2016

Individual

• SJPF Young Player of the Month: 

  May 2007

• PFA Team of the Year: 

  2010–11 Premier League

• Manchester United Players' Player of the Year: 

  2010–11

• SJPF Player of the Month: 

  October/November 2014

• Sporting CP Footballer of the Year:

  2015

• MLS All-Star: 

  2019

Orders

• Commander of the Order of Merit:

  2016

Nani issues

While some footballers at various levels have certainly had legal problems, Nani has never had a legal dispute in his lifetime.

Nani Net Worth

Nani's net worth is estimated to be at $30 million as of 2021, with the majority of his wealth coming from his football career. His current yearly weekly income is €21,000, which equates to about €1,092,000 per year with Orlando City SC.

His market value was estimated to be €5 million in January 2019. His yearly income from Lazio was roughly € 2.4 million in 2018, with a weekly income of €47,000, and he has a current market value in the amount of £6.75 million as of 2018.

He used to earn £4.8 million a year while playing for Manchester United in 2013, with a weekly income of £110,000. His salary at Sp Lisbon during his loan period was reportedly rumored to be £4.8 million. In his first season at Valencia, he earned a net yearly salary of £2.2 million.

Nani's net worth increased to $30 million in 2018 after playing for elite clubs such as Manchester United and Valencia CF.

Nani Citizenship

As a child, he moved with his parents from the African islands of Cape Verde to Portugal. Nani grew up in a poor home under less-than-ideal circumstances.

He is the youngest of ten children. On the streets of Portugal, he began honing his soccer talents by playing with other kids.

His life was difficult but enjoyable, and the only issue he faced was hunger. They didn't have adequate living circumstances at home, and there wasn't much food. And it was his brother Paulo who would occasionally bring home food, such as cookies.

Live With Cristiano Ronaldo

Nani moved in with Cristiano Ronaldo when he relocated to England to play for Manchester United. Ronaldo assisted him in acclimating to his new nation and culture. Nani told the Daily Mail that he had to start his own life at some point.

Nani remarked. The most difficult aspect was living alone and not knowing the language. There was a time when I lived at Cristiano's house, and it was a wonderful experience. We had everything – a swimming pool, a jacuzzi, tennis, and ping-pong – and everyone was always happy. My family was never missed by me. However, I eventually had to leave Cristiano's to start my own life. It was difficult because it was a large house that looked like a witch's home at night.

Some Short Top Facts about Nani

• He was born in Amadora, Portugal, on November 17, 1986, and is of Cape Verde origin.

• He was raised by his aunt Antonia and has a total of 14 siblings (9 from his mother and 5 from his father).

• At the age of 14, he began his career with the local side Real Massamá in Lisbon.

• He used to be a fan of Porto, a Portuguese footballing powerhouse.

• In 2006, he was named to Portugal's national squad.

• In 2007, he joined Manchester United.

• In 2010, he was named Manchester United's Player of the Year.

• Former Sporting Lisbon teammates Yannick Djalo and Miguel Veloso are his dearest buddies.

• Cristiano Ronaldo is a good friend of his.

• He is a pianist who plays the piano.

• Nani moved to Portugal with his family when he was a child.

• Nani's father went on vacation to Cape Verde and never returned. Simultaneously, his mother relocated to the Netherlands and began a new life.

• Luis was given the nickname "Nani" by his older sister.

• He began playing football as a child with his brother and buddy Manuel Fernandes, who went on to play professionally.

• Nani joined Real Massama when he was 14 years old.

• Luis began training with Benfica and Sporting CP when he was 16 years old.

• Nani and his brother were FC Porto followers as children.

• Luis Figo was his idol.

• Luis signed a five-year contract with Manchester United on June 6, 2007, after passing his medical tests.

• Nani's contract at Manchester United was extended for another five years on September 5, 2013.

• Luis was loaned out to Sporting CP on August 19, 2014.

• Nani moved to Fenerbahce on July 6, 2015, and signed a three-year contract worth 4.25 British pounds.

• In July 2016, he joined Valencia and signed a three-year contract with the Spanish club.

• At the 2014 FIFA World Cup, he was a member of Portugal's national squad.

• He celebrates every goal with the "Leap of Death," which he learned from Obafemi Martins and Lomana LuaLua.

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