Rafa Silva facts for kids
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Silva with Beşiktaş in 2024
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| Personal information | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Full name | Rafael Alexandre Fernandes Ferreira da Silva | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Date of birth | 17 May 1993 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Place of birth | Vila Franca de Xira, Portugal | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Height | 1.70 m (5 ft 7 in) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Position(s) | Attacking midfielder, winger, second striker | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Team information | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Current team
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Beşiktaş | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Number | 27 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Youth career | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2002–2003 | Povoense | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2003–2011 | Alverca | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2011–2012 | Feirense | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Senior career* | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2012–2013 | Feirense | 41 | (10) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2013–2016 | Braga | 88 | (13) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2016–2024 | Benfica | 206 | (64) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2024– | Beşiktaş | 35 | (12) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| International career | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2013 | Portugal U20 | 2 | (0) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2013–2015 | Portugal U21 | 13 | (3) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2014–2021 | Portugal | 25 | (0) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Medal record
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| *Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 22:13, 1 June 2025 (UTC) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Rafael Alexandre Fernandes Ferreira da Silva (born on 17 May 1993), known as Rafa Silva or Rafa, is a Portuguese footballer. He plays as a winger or second striker for the Süper Lig club Beşiktaş.
Rafa Silva started his professional career at Feirense. Later, he moved to Braga in 2013. He played 127 games for Braga and scored 26 goals. He also helped them win the Taça de Portugal in 2016. In the same year, he joined Benfica and won three Primeira Liga championships. He also won another cup with Benfica. In June 2024, he joined Beşiktaş J.K.
Rafa Silva played for the Portuguese national team from 2014 to 2021. He played 25 games for his country. He was part of the teams that won the UEFA Euro 2016 and the 2019 UEFA Nations League Finals.
Contents
Club Career Highlights
Starting at Feirense
Rafa Silva was born in Vila Franca de Xira, Portugal. He grew up in Forte da Casa. He started playing football at youth clubs like Povoense and Alverca. In 2011, when he was 18, he joined Feirense.
He made his first professional appearance on 29 July 2012. He played a full game in a 2–1 win against Penafiel. During the league season, he played almost every game. He helped his team finish 13th in the Segunda Liga.
Time at Braga
In June 2013, Rafa Silva signed a five-year contract with Braga. On 10 November, he scored his first two goals for the club. This happened in a 3–1 win against Olhanense in the Taça de Portugal. He scored his first league goal 19 days later against the same team. He finished his first year with 23 games and three goals.
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In the next season, Rafa Silva played in almost every league game. He scored three goals in the 2014–15 Taça de Portugal. One of these goals was in the final, which Braga lost to Sporting CP after a penalty shootout.
He scored his first UEFA Europa League goal on 17 September 2015. This goal helped Braga win 1–0 against Slovan Liberec. He scored two more goals as Braga reached the quarter-finals of the competition. After Braga won the cup final against FC Porto in the 2015–16 season, Benfica became interested in him.
Success with Benfica
On 1 September 2016, Benfica announced that Rafa Silva had joined their club. He signed a five-year contract. He made his first appearance for Benfica eight days later in a 2–1 win against Arouca.
On 22 January 2017, he scored his first goal for Benfica. This was in a 4–0 win against Tondela. In the same season, he played in the final of the domestic cup. Benfica won the cup by defeating Vitória de Guimarães 2–1.
Rafa Silva scored his ninth league goal of the 2018–19 season on 2 March 2019. This goal helped Benfica win 2–1 against Porto away from home. This win put Benfica in first place in the league. He finished the season with a personal best of 17 league goals. After this great season, his contract was extended until 2024.
On 4 August 2019, Rafa Silva scored the first goal in a 5–0 win for Benfica. This was in the 2019 Supertaça Cândido de Oliveira against their rivals Sporting. On 23 October, he scored his first Champions League goal. This goal came in a 2–1 victory over Lyon.
On 25 October 2022, he scored two goals in a 4–3 win against Juventus. This win helped his club reach the knockout stage of the Champions League. On 27 May 2023, he scored a goal in a 3–0 win over Santa Clara. This goal helped Benfica win the Primeira Liga title.
On 12 May 2024, he scored two goals and made an assist in a 5–0 win against Arouca. This was his last game for Benfica at their home stadium, Estádio da Luz. He finished his last season as the top scorer for the club in the league with 14 goals. He scored 22 goals in all competitions that season.
Joining Beşiktaş
On 25 June 2024, the Süper Lig club Beşiktaş announced that Rafa Silva had arrived in Istanbul. He completed his transfer to the club.
International Career
Rafa Silva first played for the Portugal under-20 team on 23 April 2013. This game was against Uzbekistan.
On 28 February 2014, he was called up to the senior national team for the first time. This was for a friendly game against Cameroon on 5 March. He played the first half of the game, which Portugal won 5–1. On 19 May, he was chosen for the final squad for the 2014 FIFA World Cup. He did not play in Brazil, and his team was eliminated in the group stage.
Rafa Silva was part of the under-21 team that finished second at the 2015 UEFA European Championship. He returned to the senior team for UEFA Euro 2016. He played only one game in this tournament, coming on as a substitute in a 0–0 draw with Austria. Portugal went on to win the tournament.
He did not play for the national team for over two years, from September 2016 to October 2018. He returned against Poland in the UEFA Nations League. He was selected for the final tournament in Portugal. He played the last 15 minutes of the 1–0 win against the Netherlands. Portugal won this tournament too. At UEFA Euro 2020, which was played in 2021, he played two group games as a substitute. He helped create a penalty and assisted Cristiano Ronaldo in a 3–0 win against Hungary.
On 19 September 2022, Rafa Silva announced that he was retiring from international football. He mentioned personal reasons for his decision.
Career Statistics
Club Appearances and Goals
| Club | Season | League | National cup | League cup | Europe | Other | Total | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Feirense | 2012–13 | Segunda Liga | 41 | 10 | 2 | 1 | 4 | 0 | — | — | 47 | 11 | ||
| Braga | 2013–14 | Primeira Liga | 23 | 3 | 5 | 4 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 0 | — | 32 | 9 | |
| 2014–15 | 34 | 2 | 6 | 3 | 3 | 0 | — | — | 43 | 5 | ||||
| 2015–16 | 30 | 8 | 5 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 12 | 3 | — | 50 | 12 | |||
| 2016–17 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | ||
| Total | 88 | 13 | 16 | 7 | 10 | 3 | 12 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 127 | 26 | ||
| Benfica | 2016–17 | Primeira Liga | 20 | 2 | 4 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 31 | 2 |
| 2017–18 | 20 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 25 | 3 | ||
| 2018–19 | 26 | 17 | 4 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 12 | 0 | — | 44 | 21 | |||
| 2019–20 | 25 | 7 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 5 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 36 | 11 | ||
| 2020–21 | 29 | 5 | 5 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 9 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 46 | 9 | ||
| 2021–22 | 28 | 8 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 13 | 3 | — | 45 | 12 | |||
| 2022–23 | 28 | 8 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 14 | 6 | — | 47 | 14 | |||
| 2023–24 | 30 | 14 | 6 | 4 | 3 | 0 | 12 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 52 | 22 | ||
| Total | 206 | 64 | 29 | 9 | 19 | 2 | 69 | 18 | 3 | 1 | 326 | 94 | ||
| Beşiktaş | 2024–25 | Süper Lig | 35 | 12 | 3 | 2 | — | 10 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 49 | 18 | |
| Career total | 370 | 99 | 50 | 19 | 33 | 5 | 91 | 24 | 5 | 2 | 549 | 149 | ||
International Appearances and Goals
| National team | Year | Apps | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|
| Portugal | 2014 | 3 | 0 |
| 2015 | 2 | 0 | |
| 2016 | 5 | 0 | |
| 2018 | 3 | 0 | |
| 2019 | 4 | 0 | |
| 2020 | 1 | 0 | |
| 2021 | 7 | 0 | |
| Total | 25 | 0 | |
Honours and Awards
Braga
- Taça de Portugal: 2015–16
Benfica
- Primeira Liga: 2016–17, 2018–19, 2022–23
- Taça de Portugal: 2016–17
- Supertaça Cândido de Oliveira: 2017, 2019, 2023
Beşiktaş
- Turkish Super Cup: 2024
Portugal
Individual Awards
- Primeira Liga Goal of the Month: April 2019, March 2022
- Primeira Liga top assist provider: 2021–22, 2023–24
Orders
Commander of the Order of Merit
See also
In Spanish: Rafa Silva para niños
