João Pedro Pereira Silva

Some careers move fast; João Pedro Pereira Silva's took the long road. He came through the academy at CD Aves before making his professional debut with Deportivo Aves, where a run of 14 goals in 30 matches earned him a move to Everton. That transfer never produced a first-team appearance, and the following seasons were spent away from Merseyside on loan, first at União Leiria, then at Vitória de Setúbal.

Levski Sofia gave him his most productive spell abroad, seven goals in 27 games, before Bari brought him back to a bigger stage in Italy. He scored eight times there across 43 appearances, enough to convince Palermo to sign him on a three-year deal. That move never took hold: a single appearance was all he managed before the path turned again, back to Portugal with Paços de Ferreira, then on to Avellino and Salernitana.

Fejrense proved a longer stop, two seasons and 55 matches, and it was followed by the most unusual chapter of his career: a move to China, first with Nantong Zhiyun, then Zibo Cuju, and later a spell with Hebei. Estrela da Amadora brought him home again in 2022, where six goals in 29 games kept him among the leading scorers at the club that season. Spells in Greece with Ionikos and in Bahrain with Al-Ahli Manama followed before a return to Portuguese football, first at Felgueiras, then at Lusitânia Lourosa.

In his younger years he was called up to Portugal's under-20 and under-21 squads, though the record of those appearances is thin. What stands out instead is the sheer distance travelled: a striker who has rarely stayed anywhere long enough to be defined by one club, chasing form across leagues that most of his generation never see.