Official! Varandas agrees deal with Sporting's left-footed centre-back | OneFootball

It’s official. Sporting have signed a professional contract with Alexandre Rosado, a 17-year-old centre-back who is part of the under-17 squad - which won its last match. In the 2025/26 season, the left-footed player has already made 27 appearances and scored two goals for Sporting’s under-17s, continuing to establish himself as one of the green-and-white academy’s brightest prospects.

Born in Borba, the player began his journey at Borbense before moving to Alcochete in 2019, when he was just 10 years old. Seven years later, he has reached another important stage in his development by signing his first professional contract with the Alvalade club.

At the time of signing the deal, the youngster said he was delighted to achieve a goal he had been chasing for several years: "It is a feeling of pride and accomplishment. I have just achieved a great dream, and now I have to keep working to reach even bigger goals".

The centre-back also took the opportunity to thank everyone who had supported him throughout his development, highlighting the role of his family and everyone at Sporting: "I have to thank my family and everyone who works at the Cristiano Ronaldo Academy for the support they have given me so far".

With ambitions of reaching the first team and winning titles with the senior side, Alexandre Rosado also revealed that Gonçalo Inácio is his role model: "He plays in my position. I have similar characteristics to him, such as playing out from the back and the intelligence in the way I see the game, and that is why he is my reference".

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇵🇹 here.