Samuel Lino

Samuel Lino came through Flamengo's academy before the club sent him out on a short loan to São Bernardo, a step that led nowhere near the first team he had hoped for. The move that changed his career came in July 2019, when he joined Portugal's Gil Vicente, a spell that put him on the radar of a bigger league altogether.

Atlético Madrid signed him in July 2022 for €6.5m, but within a month he was out on loan again, this time at Valencia for the rest of that season. He returned to Atlético afterwards and stayed with the club until 2025, a period in which he was named the side's Jugador Cinco Estrellas in 2024, a personal distinction for his performances in Madrid.

In the summer of 2025, Flamengo brought him back to Brazil for €22m plus up to €2m in add-ons, a fee that made him the most expensive signing in the club's history. His contract runs to the end of December 2029. Since returning, he has collected a run of honours with Flamengo: the Copa Libertadores and the Campeonato Brasileiro in 2025, followed by the Campeonato Carioca in 2026, as well as FIFA-organised titles including the Dérbi das Américas and the Copa Challenger. It echoed an earlier success from his youth days at the club, when he won the Copa São Paulo de Futebol Júnior in 2018.

His senior international recognition arrived late by comparison. Carlo Ancelotti gave him his Brazil debut on 30 August 2025, in a World Cup 2026 qualifier against Chile — his only appearance for the national side so far.