Top facts about Raul Meireles, former Portuguese footballer

Raul José Trindade Meireles (born 17 March 1983) is a former Portuguese footballer who played as a midfielder.

Raul Meireles age

is 39. Here, you can find the most important facts about Raul Meireles, the Ex-Liverpool midfielder.

After beginning his career at Boavista, he joined

in 2004 and went on to play in 198 official games, winning ten major trophies, including four consecutive Primeira Liga titles.

An important fact about Raul Meireles is that he played in the Premier League for Liverpool and Chelsea from 2010 to 2012, winning the 2012 Champions League with the latter; he also spent time in Turkey with Fenerbahçe.

Meireles has been a Portugal international since 2006, appearing in two World Cups and as many European Championships, earning a total of 73 caps and ten goals. In 2004, he also competed in Olympic football.

Top facts about Raul Meireles:

FC Porto signed Meireles to a five-year contract on July 7, 2004, which was announced at a press conference on July 12. Meireles made his Porto debut on September 22nd against Unio de Leiria at the Estádio do Drago, coming off the bench in the 59th minute as they drew 1–1.

He made his first appearance in the starting eleven on February 18, 2005, in an away league victory over Belenenses.

Raul Meireles early life

Regarding

Raul Meireles parents

, it should be mentioned that his father, Raul Meireles Sr., worked as a masseuse for Boavista and urged his son to play football for the club when he was only six years old.

Meireles was born in Porto and joined the youth system of local club Boavista FC when he was seven years old. Speaking about

Raul Meireles childhood

, it is worth mentioning that he was loaned to C.D. Aves in the Segunda Liga for two years before being presented on July 8, 2001.

Meireles scored his first senior goal in a 2–1 home win over C.F. Unio on May 25, 2003, when he fired a 30-yard shot into the net.

A notable fact about Raul Meireles is that he made 26 appearances in his second season, helping his team to a sixth-place finish. Meireles returned to Boavista for the 2003–04 season.

He made his Primeira Liga debut on August 17 against

, winning Player of the Match in the 0–0 home draw, according to newspaper Record.

Raul Meireles personal life

He married Ivone, with whom he had been in a long-term relationship, in 2008. The pair met when he was still a young player, and their wedding was conducted at Martim Church in Barcelos.

The couple's clothing was created by Fátima Lopes, and their daughter Lara was christened there as well.

The pair started a clothing store in Ermesinde on February 17, 2009, and Ivone said that the concept made sense since both she and Meireles were interested in fashion.

On January 2019, he got critical praise for his performance of António Variaçes' O Corpo é que Paga in the debut of Lip Sync Portugal.

Since he was 18 years old, Meireles has been a tattoo enthusiast. Ivone and Lara's photos were among the many that decorated his body.

He also had a gigantic black and red Chinese-style dragon tattoo, which was drawn in two phases and sprawled over his back, as well as a large necklace tattoo with a skull, which he got a week after his twenty-eighth birthday.

Following his move to Anfield, Meireles joked with Liverpool's official website that he intended to win the "ink championship" against colleagues Daniel Agger and Martin Skrtel, due to their mutual love of tattoos.

The player is an admirer of Dodge cars and he once owned the Hellcat version of the famous Dodge Challenger, and in 2016, the player put his Dodge Challenger SRT8 up for sale on the Standvirtual website for around 85,000 euros.

Raul Meireles professional career

Raul Meireles started his career as a trainee with Boavista but was loaned to Desportivo das Aves from Liga de Honra, where he made his professional debut.

After a two-year loan spell he returned to Boavista where he made his Primeira Liga debut. By his great performances, Meireles was brought to the Portuguese club, FC Porto, winning three Primeira Liga titles in a row, adding two Portuguese Cups and three Portuguese Supercups.

In 2010, he moved to

where he won the 2011 PFA Fans' 'Player of the Year' award following a very successful first season in Premier League.

Meireles' time in England came to an end in September 2012 when he joined Fenerbahce. After four seasons with the Turkish club, he eventually retired.

Along the way, he had added to his medal collection with victories in the Super Lig, Turkish Cup, and the Turkish Super Cup.

Raul Meireles club career

Desportivo das Aves of the Liga de Honra (second level of Portuguese football competition) signed Meireles on loan from Boavista in the summer of 2001, and he made his debut on July 8, 2001.

On August 8, 2001, he made his senior debut in a friendly match against Gondomar, which Desportivo das Aves won 3–0. Meireles appeared in only 16 league games during his rookie season.

On May 25, 2003, during the 2002-03 season, he scored his first major goal against Unio da Madeira, firing a shot 30 meters out beyond the reach of the Unio goalkeeper. He only had one goal in twenty-six league games this season.

After a two-year loan, he returned to Boavista for the 2003-04 season. Meireles made his debut in the Portuguese first league against Benfica on August 17, 2003, and was named the match's man of the match by the Portuguese daily recording.

He did not score any goals that season, but he did make 29 league appearances, demonstrating his importance to the team.

Porto

FC Porto signed Meireles to a five-year contract on July 7, 2004, and he was introduced at a press conference five days later.

On September 22, he made his competitive debut at the Estádio do Drago against U.D. Leiria, coming off the bench early in the first half of a 1–1 league draw.

On 18 February the following year, he made his first start in an away win over C.F. Os Belenenses; five days later, he made his UEFA Champions League debut by playing the full 90 minutes in a 1–1 home draw to

in the round-of-16 first leg; and he finished his first year with 15 appearances in all competitions (no goals).

Meireles made his league debut against C.F. Estrela da Amadora in 2005–06, but suffered an ankle injury that kept him out for a month. In October, he made his comeback in a Taça de Portugal encounter against F.C. Marco.

An important

fact about Raul Meireles

is that he scored his first goal for the Dragons in his 50th league appearance on February 19, 2006, in a 1–0 home win against C.S. Martimo.

Three matchdays later, he scored his second goal in a 2–0 win against Vitória de Setbal, as the season came to a close with a double triumph.

A notable fact about Raul Meireles is that he was a mainstay in Porto's midfield for the next four years, winning the domestic title three more times. He commonly partnered Fernando and Lucho González.

During the 2006–07 Champions League season, he scored his first goal in a 1–1 last-16 home tie against Chelsea, managed by

.

Liverpool

Meireles went to Liverpool for £11.5 million on August 29, 2010. He was given the No. 4 jersey, which had been vacated by Alberto Aquilani, who had gone on loan to Juventus.

On September 12, he made his Premier League debut, playing 14 minutes in a 0–0 draw against Birmingham City, and four days later, he made his UEFA Europa League debut, playing the full game in a 4–1 group stage triumph over FC Steaua București at Anfield.

Meireles made his league debut against Manchester United on September 19, 2010, in a 2–3 defeat. He scored his first goal for his new side in a 2–2 home tie against

on January 16, 2011, which also happened to be Kenny Dalglish's first home game back as manager.

Six days later, in a 3–0 triumph against Wolverhampton Wanderers, he scored his second goal, a diving 25-yard volley into the top corner of the net in the 50th minute.

An important

fact about Raul Meireles

is that he scored his fifth league goal in seven games on February 12, 2011, putting the hosts ahead halfway through the first half, but Wigan Athletic ultimately leveled it 1–1 as Liverpool tried to reorganize after his substitution due to a stomach virus.

His goal-scoring spree earned him the ESPN PFA Fans' Player of the Month award for February, and he was a key component in the Reds' ascent up the table.

A notable fact about Raul Meireles is that he played 33 times during the season, assisting on the team's sixth-place finish and winning the PFA Fans' Player of the Year award, beating out Dimitar Berbatov, David Luiz, Samir Nasri, and Fernando Torres.

After replacing Dirk Kuyt in the second match of the 2011–12 season, Meireles played 19 minutes and assisted Luis Suárez in a 2–0 triumph against Arsenal, the first time they had beaten the opponents on their own turf in 11 years. However, on August 31, he requested to be transferred.

Chelsea

Chelsea needed a midfielder after Michael Essien's long-term injury, and after a failed move to recruit

from Tottenham Hotspur, the former signed Meireles to a four-year agreement on August 31, 2011, for an unknown cost rumored to be in the region of £12 million.

He picked the squad number 16 since he wore it often when on international duty, and subsequently said that he never intended to leave Liverpool but that the prospect to work with André Villas-Boas, with whom he had previously worked at Porto, was too good to pass up.

A notable fact about Raul Meireles is that he made his debut against Sunderland on September 10, 2011, in a 2–1 away victory, with a long ball setting up Daniel Sturridge's goal.

He scored his first goal for the club in a 5–0 Champions League group stage victory against K.R.C. Genk the following month. On the 12th of December, he scored his first domestic league goal in a 2–1 home triumph against league leaders Manchester City, also at Stamford Bridge.

On March 18, 2012, Meireles scored a goal and assisted on two more for Torres, who broke a 24-game goal drought with a 5–2 home victory against Leicester City in the FA Cup quarter-finals.

He scored a hat trick in the final minutes of a 2–1 Champions League quarter-final victory over Benfica on 4 April, securing a last-four tie with reigning champions FC Barcelona; he won his first title in English football on 5 May, after a 2–1 win over his former club Liverpool in the FA Cup final, in which he replaced Ramires for the final 15 minutes.

He missed the Champions League final against FC Bayern Munich after earning a yellow card against

at Camp Nou, although he was nevertheless awarded a medal for his involvement after the 4–3 penalty shootout triumph.

Fenerbahçe

A notable fact about Raul Meireles is that he was transferred to Fenerbahçe SK for £8 million on September 3, 2012. In his debut season, he was set to earn €3 million, plus a €10,000 per-match incentive.

On 4 October, he scored his first goal for the Turkish club in a 4–2 Europa League group stage win against Borussia Mönchengladbach. On November 25, he made his Süper Lig debut, winning 4–1 over Gençlerbirlii.

Meireles was given an eleven-match suspension by the Turkish Football Federation in December 2012 for spitting at a referee.

Following the alleged acts, he was accused of making homophobic slurs after receiving a second yellow card in the second half of Galatasaray SK's 1–2 away loss.

The suspension was reduced to four games on appeal because it was determined that he could not have spit at the referee and was merely guilty of verbal abuse.

In 2013–14, Meireles scored once in 20 games, helping his side win the national title after a three-year drought. He shared teams with countrymen Bruno Alves, Nani, and Vtor Pereira throughout his time at Istanbul.

Raul Meireles international career

Meireles was a member of the Portuguese under-16 squad at the 2000 UEFA European Championship, which they won after defeating the Czech Republic 2–1 in Israel.

Following that, he competed in the 2001 Meridian Cup with the under-17s, starting three games and finishing third.

Meireles was nominated to the under-19 team for the 2003 European Championship qualifying event in November 2001, scoring in a 1–2 loss to Belarus but assisting his nation to qualification.

On June 2, 2003, he was named to the under-20 side for the Toulon Tournament, which he won and was awarded the tournament's second-best player.

Meireles was a regular in the 2004 European Under-21 Championship qualifying phase, including a play-off meeting against France in which he played the whole 90 minutes in a 4–1 penalty shootout victory.

Coach José Romo then chose him for the finals, and he played in four of the five games to help his nation qualify for the Summer Olympics, because to suspension, he missed the semi-finals against Italy; at the next Olympic tournament in Athens, he started twice and came on as a second-half replacement against Iraq, as Portugal finished third in their group.

Meireles made his senior team debut on November 15, 2006, when he played the complete 3–0 victory against Kazakhstan in the UEFA Euro 2008 qualifications.

After making his debut in a major international tournament with a goal in a 2–0 group stage victory against Turkey (also his first), he was selected for the knockout stages in Austria and Switzerland.

He subsequently began the last group match, a 0–2 loss to Switzerland, with many reserve players; four days later, he replaced Joo Moutinho in the first half of a 2–3 quarter-final loss to Germany.

Meireles scored a crucial goal in a 1–0 away win against Bosnia and Herzegovina in the second play-off game on November 18, 2009, clinching qualifying for the 2010 FIFA World Cup.

He was picked to Carlos Queiroz's 23-man squad and started the whole tournament, scoring in a 7–0 demolition of North Korea in the group stage in Cape Town.

Meireles also played in the Euro 2012 (five starts for the semifinalists) and 2014 World Cup (two games, group stage exit) tournaments for Portugal. Meireles may play in any position in the midfield, although he prefers to play as a center midfielder.

Depending on the players available and the coaches' ideas, he might be used in both defensive and offensive roles.

He began his career with Porto as a defensive midfielder, but due to tactical considerations, he was quickly moved to an offensive midfielder; When Paulo Bento was named as the Portuguese head coach in 2010, the player was ultimately moved to a more defensive role after beginning out in attacking midfield.

Meireles was sometimes used as a deep-lying playmaker under Liverpool manager

. His major skills were passing and tackling, but he was also noted for his work rate and his long-range shooting powers. He was a versatile, tactically savvy, and agile midfielder.

Some more facts about Raul Meireles:

Meireles made his UEFA Champions League debut five days later, on February 23, against Inter Milan, playing the full 90 minutes. During that season, he only made 13 league appearances, ten of which were as a substitute, and scored no goals.

During the 2005–06 season, on February 19, 2006, Meireles scored his first league goal in his 50th appearance, giving the team a 1–0 home win against Martimo.

He scored his second league goal of the season three games later, on March 10, in a 2-0 win over Vitória de Setbal. During that season, he scored two goals in 18 appearances, winning his first career title, the Portuguese league, and his second, the Portuguese Cup, a few days later.

Meireles was a regular in Porto's midfield for the next four seasons. On February 21, 2007, he scored his first Champions League goal against Chelsea during the 2006–07 season. In 2006-07, 2007-08, and 2008-09, he won three consecutive Portuguese Leagues, as well as two Portuguese Cups in 2009 and 2010.

An important fact about Raul Meireles is that he joined Liverpool for €13 million on August 29, 2010, and was given the number #4 shirt, which was canceled by Alberto Aquilani, who joined Juventus on loan in Italy.

The club signed him as an immediate replacement for Argentine Javier Mascherano, who had joined FC Barcelona earlier that summer.

On September 12, 2010, he made his Premier League debut as a substitute in a 0–0 draw against Birmingham City. Only four days later, he made his Europa League debut against Bucharest's Steaua in a 4-1 win at Anfield.

On September 19, he made his first league start in a 3–2 loss to Manchester United at Old Trafford. Meireles scored his first goal for Liverpool against Everton in a 2–2 draw at Anfield in the Premier League on January 16, 2011, coinciding with the arrival of

as the club's new manager.

His second goal came just six days later, in a 3-0 away win against Wolverhampton Wanderers, with an impressive right-footed volley.

On 2 February 2011, he scored his third goal in four games in a 2–0 win over Stoke City, and four days later he made it four out of five by scoring the game-winning goal at Stamford Bridge.

Bridge versus Chelsea Meireles' personal tally for the club increased to five goals in six Premier League games on 12 February, when he scored against Wigan Athletic.

He finished the 2010–11 Premier League season with 5 goals in 33 league appearances, helping Liverpool to sixth place with 58 points. He had a very successful first season in England, winning the 2011 Fans PFA Player of the Year award, beating out Fernando Torres, Samir Nasri, Dimitar Berbatov, and David Luiz.

An important

fact about Raul Meireles

is that he debuted in the 2011–12 Premier League season as a 75th-minute substitute against Sunderland.

In the following match, against Arsenal, he did not start again, instead coming off the bench in the 71st minute to assist on a goal. He submitted a written transfer request a few days later, on August 31, 2011, in the final minutes of the transfer window.

With Chelsea in need of a midfielder following Michael Essien's long-term injury and a failed attempt to sign Luka Modri from Spurs, Meireles signed for

on a four-year contract worth an undisclosed sum in the region of EUR 12 million on August 31, 2011.

Following in the footsteps of Arjen Robben and manager Roberto Di Matteo, he chose the squad number 16, which he regularly wears when on international duty. A few days later, Meireles claimed that he never wanted to leave Liverpool, but the chance to work with André Villas-Boas, with whom he had previously worked at FC Porto, was too good to pass up.

On 10 September 2011, he made his debut for him against Sunderland, which ended in a 2–1 victory for Chelsea, with Meireles' set-up Daniel Sturridge eluding the goal with a long, fine pass.

The following month, he scored his first goal for Chelsea in a 5–0 group stage win over Racing Genk in the UEFA Champions League.

Meireles scored his first Premier League goal for the Blues in a 2–1 win over league leaders Manchester City on December 12. Three months later, on March 7, 2012, he scored his third goal of the season, this time from a powerful long-range effort in the FA Cup fifth round against Birmingham City in a replay victory.

On 18 March, Meireles scored a goal and two assists for Fernando Torres, ending his goal drought, in a 5–2 win over Leicester City, securing a semi-final berth. -The FA Cup final at Wembley Stadium.

The following month, on April 4, he scored a Belter in the dying minutes of Chelsea's 2–1 win over Benfica in the UEFA Champions League quarter-finals.

He was present in the round-trip matches against FC Barcelona, which Chelsea won with a 3-2 aggregate result, with an important role in the game, receiving a couple of warnings that will prevent him from playing in the UEFA Champions League final in Munich. In Turkey, he now plays for Fenerbahçe.

Raul Meireles made his debut for the Portugal national team in a Euro 2008 qualifying match against Kazakhstan in November 2006. Meireles was named to the Portuguese squad for Euro 2008 on May 12, 2008. Portugal's first match of the group stage was against Turkey, in which he came on as a substitute in the 83rd minute, and he scored his first international goal.

As a result, he started alongside Portugal's reserves in their third match against host nation Switzerland.

Four days later, Meireles made his third appearance in the tournament, replacing Joo Moutinho after 31 minutes in the final quarter of a 3–2 loss to Germany.

Meireles appears in qualifying matches for the 2010 FIFA World Cup on a regular basis. After scraping a 1–0 win in Lisbon, he scored an important goal in a 1–0 win over Bosnia and Herzegovina in the second play-off game.

Portugal won the match 2–0 on aggregate and qualified for the finals in South Africa. Unsurprisingly, Meireles was named to the Portuguese squad for the 2010 FIFA World Cup on May 10, 2010.

An important fact about Raul Meireles is that he started all of Portugal's matches in the tournament, scoring a goal in the second group stage match against North Korea in Cape Town. Portugal advanced to the round of 16, where they were defeated 1–0 by eventual champions Spain.

Raul Meireles social media

Regarding

Raul Meireles social media

, it should be mentioned that he has an Instagram page (

) with more than 20k followers. On the page, we can see various pictures of him along with his fans and family.

Raul Meireles body measurements

Speaking about

Raul Meireles body measurements

, it should be mentioned that the former player is 179cm and 78kg.

Raul Meireles net worth and salary

Raul Meireles’ net worth

is estimated to be around $9 million, according to Wikipedia, Forbes, and Business Insider.

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