Vinicius Balieiro Lourenco De Carvalho

Vinicius Balieiro's story is one of steady progress interrupted by injury. He rose through the youth ranks at Paulista, captaining the club to the final of the 2017 Copa São Paulo de Futebol Júnior. He marked his arrival at senior level with a goal against Deportivo Lara in the Copa Libertadores in March 2021, part of a season in which he contributed three goals and two assists. Santos rewarded him with a contract renewal that October, extending his stay at the club into the middle of the decade.

A loan to Ituano in 2023 gave him regular football in Série B, where he made seven appearances. He returned to Santos and was part of the squad that won the Campeonato Brasileiro Série B title in 2024.

In January 2025, Balieiro moved to Chapecoense on loan. His time there was disrupted almost immediately: in a match against Santa Catarina in February 2025, he suffered a torn anterior cruciate ligament and medial collateral ligament in his right knee, an injury that required surgery and kept him out for the best part of a year. He worked through the recovery at Chapecoense, and once his loan spell ended, the club made the move permanent, signing him at the start of 2026 as he returned from the long lay-off.