Former Santos defender Thiago Balieiro celebrates cup triumph with Vitória de Guimarães | OneFootball

Former Santos defender Thiago Balieiro celebrated lifting the Taça Liga with Vitória de Guimarães after a 2-1 win over Braga at Magalhães Pessoa on 10 January. He was an unused substitute.

According to Diario Do Peixe, he called it indescribable, saying it was his first trophy as a professional and hoping it is the first of many with the Conquistadores. He said arriving in Portugal in mid-2024 as a recent academy graduate and now earning his place at a giant club competing for titles felt like a dream.

Since joining, Balieiro has registered nine Liga 3 appearances, two in the Taça de Portugal, one in Liga Portugal and one in the Allianz Cup.

Born in Campinas in 2003, he featured for Rio Branco at under-11 to under-13 from 2014 to 2016, then joined Santos in 2019 for the under-17s, making seven appearances in 2020. In 2021 he stepped up to under-20 level in the Paulista, Copa Paulista and Brasileiro.

In 2022 he featured four times in the Brasileiro, seven in the Copa São Paulo and 17 in the Paulista, winning the state title. The following season brought one goal in five Copinha outings, two in 20 Paulista games, plus three Copa do Brasil and eight Brasileiro appearances.

In January 2024 he scored once in six matches at his final Copinha, then played the Equality Cup in Qatar in February. After ageing out he trained with Santos’ Group B before leaving, later joining Leixões and moving to Vitória last year.

Source: Diario Do Peixe