Andre Silva

Full name: Andre Silva

Date of birth: 06 November 1995

Place of birth: Baguim do Monte, Portugal

Height: 1.84 m (6 ft 0 in)

Position: Striker

Number: (former #9, currently not announced)

National team: Portugal

Nationality: Portugal

Foot: Right

Agent: Gestifute

Joined: 01 July 2017

Contract until: 30.06.2022

André Miguel Valente da Silva is a Portuguese professional footballer who plays as a striker for Italian club A.C. Milan and the Portugal national team.

An academy graduate of Porto, he impressed during his time with the reserve side before making his debut with the first team in 2015. He ultimately made over 50 appearances for the club, scoring 24 goals before joining Milan in 2017.

Andre Silva represented Portugal at various youth levels, and was part of the squad which came second at the 2014 European Under-19 Championship. His senior international debut followed two years later, and he featured at the 2017 Confederations Cup where his team came third, also being selected for the 2018 World Cup.

On 12 June 2017, Andre Silva moved to A.C. Milan on a five-year contract for a fee of €38 million with the additional €2 million depending on objectives. Upon signing, he told the press: “I’m very happy to have joined such a prestigious club with such a great history.” He was given the number 9 shirt, previously worn by Gianluca Lapadula.

Silva made his debut for the Italian club on 27 July, playing 24 minutes in the 1–0 win against CS Universitatea Craiova for the third qualifying round of the UEFA Europa League. On 17 August, for the same competition but in the play-off round, he contributed with two goals and one assist to a 6–0 home routing of KF Shkëndija on 14 September, already in the group stage, he scored a hat-trick to help the visitors defeat FK Austria Wien 5–1 in the process, he became the first player to achieve the feat for Milan in Europe since Kaká in 2006, and he was included in UEFA’s Europa League Team of the Week due to his performance.

Andre Silva scored his maiden goal in the Serie A on 11 March 2018, from a last-minute header in the 1–0 away win over Genoa CFC.

Porto
Silva was born in Baguim do Monte, a local parish in Gondomar, and started playing football with Porto-based S.C. Salgueiros. He had a brief spell with neighbouring Boavista FC, but quickly returned to his previous club, now renamed Salgueiros 08.

Andre Silva finished his formation with FC Porto, having signed with the juniors in 2011 at the age of 15. On 12 August 2013, he made his professional debut, coming on as a 77th-minute substitute for Tozé as the B-team won 3–2 away against S.C. Beira-Mar in the Segunda Liga championship.

Silva finished his second season with 34 games and seven goals, helping Porto B to the 13th position in the second level. Highlights included a brace on 4 January 2015, for a 3–0 home success over Vitória de Guimarães B.

Andre Silva made his competitive debut for the first team on 29 December 2015, playing the full 90 minutes in a 1–3 home loss against C.S. Marítimo in the Taça da Liga. His maiden appearance in the Primeira Liga occurred four days later, as he replaced Vincent Aboubakar for the last 20 minutes in a 0–2 defeat at Sporting Clube de Portugal.

Silva started the 2015–16 campaign as fourth-choice striker behind Aboubakar and Dani Osvaldo, and his plight worsened in January 2016 with the acquisition of Suk Hyun-jun and Moussa Marega. However, after José Peseiro replaced Julen Lopetegui as manager, he received more opportunities, and scored his first league goal in a 4–0 home win over Boavista, in the last match. He also started in the final of the Taça de Portugal on 22 May, helping his team recover from a 0–2 deficit against S.C. Braga with a brace, which included a bicycle kick in the last-minute (eventual 2–4 loss on penalties).

Silva began 2016–17 in good form, with goals in his first two league games against Rio Ave F.C. and G.D. Estoril Praia, while also scoring in Porto’s 1–1 draw at home to A.S. Roma in the UEFA Champions League play-off round. On 21 August 2016 he signed a new five-year contract, which included a release clause of €60 million.

Sevilla
On 11 August, Silva joined Spanish club Sevilla FC on a season-long loan with the option to purchase for €35 million. He made his debut the following day, coming on for Luis Muriel at the hour mark of an eventual 1–2 loss against FC Barcelona for the Supercopa de España. He netted three times in his first La Liga match, a 4–1 victory at Rayo Vallecano, adding a brace in a 3–0 home defeat of Real Madrid on 26 September.

Andre Silva represented Portugal at every youth level. He participated with the under-20 team at the 2015 FIFA World Cup, scoring four goals in the group stage as the nation reached the quarter-finals previously, at the 2014 UEFA European Under-19 Championship, he became the first player ever to net four times in a single match (6–1 group stage defeat of Hungary), in an eventual runner-up finish for the under-19s.

On 8 September 2015, in his first appearance with the under-21 side, Silva scored a hat-trick in 19 minutes (both halves combined), contributing to a 6–1 win against Albania for the 2017 European Under-21 Championship qualifiers. He was called up for the first time to the senior team by head coach Fernando Santos the following 26 August, playing the second half of a 5–0 friendly win over Gibraltar in Porto on 1 September.

Andre Silva scored his first goal with Portugal’s main squad on 7 October 2016, featuring the entire 6–0 defeat of Andorra for the 2018 FIFA World Cup qualifiers. Three days later, for the same competition, he netted three times in the first half of an eventual 6–0 triumph in the Faroe Islands.

Silva was selected for the 2017 FIFA Confederations Cup, making his tournament debut when he replaced Ricardo Quaresma for the last eight minutes of the 2–2 group stage draw against Mexico. He scored his first goal in the competition on 24 June, playing the full 90 minutes in the 4–0 defeat of New Zealand. In the third-place play-off, in which his team eventually defeated Mexico 2–1 after extra time, he had his early penalty saved by Guillermo Ochoa.

In May 2018, Silva was named in Portugal’s final squad for the upcoming edition of the FIFA World Cup, also to be held in Russia. Late into that month, he scored the 1000th goal in the national team’s history during the first half of a friendly with Tunisia in Braga. He made his debut in the competition on 15 June, replacing Gonçalo Guedes in the 80th minute of the 3–3 group stage draw against Spain.