Bruno Alves

Bruno Alves

Personal information
Full name	Bruno Eduardo Regufe Alves
Date of birth	(1981-11-27) 27 November 1981
Place of birth	Póvoa de Varzim, Portugal
Height	1.89 m (6 ft 2+1⁄2 in)
Position(s)	Centre back
Team information
Current team	Juventus FC
Number	3
Youth career
1992–1998	Varzim
1998–1999	Porto
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps	(Gls)
1999–2001	Porto B	53	(8)
2001–2010	Porto	119	(14)
2002–2003	→ Farense (loan)	46	(3)
2003–2004	→ Vitória Guimarães (loan)	25	(1)
2005	→ AEK Athens (loan)	27	(0)
2010–	FC Zenit	32	(1)
	[Juventus FC]
International career‡
2001–2002	Portugal U21	20	(2)
2004	Portugal B	1	(0)
2007–	Portugal	39	(5)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 20:25, 14 August 2011 (UTC) ‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 21:50, 9 February 2011 (UTC)

Bruno Eduardo Regufe Alves (born 27 November 1981 in Póvoa de Varzim) is a Portuguese footballer who plays for FC Zenit in Russia and the Portuguese national team, as a central defender.

Alves is noted for his strength, tough tackling, aerial ability, and is a widely recognized free-kick specialist. He spent most of his professional career at F.C. Porto, winning a total of nine titles, seven as first-choice.

Club career

Porto

After three consecutive loans, two in Portugal and another in the Greek first division with AEK Athens FC, Alves returned to F.C. Porto in 2005–06, extending his contract until 2010, and battling for a first-team spot with Ricardo Costa and João Paulo. He played in seven league matches for the eventual champions, but was infamously sent off on 15 October 2005, in the 2–0 home loss against S.L. Benfica, after headbutting Nuno Gomes.

The arrival of Jesualdo Ferreira at the helm of Porto signalled the turning point in Alves' career. He beat off stiff competition for a starting berth in the team alongside Pepe and formed a rock solid partnership with the Brazilian-born. An impressive season saw the player, now in his mid-twenties, finally come of age. Alves was ever-present as Porto won another national championship.

On 7 April 2009, Alves' early mistake in the season's UEFA Champions League game against Manchester United at Old Trafford led to Wayne Rooney's 1–1 equaliser; the game ended 2–2 and Porto went on to lose 3–2 on aggregate. However, on 10 May, he headed in the game's only goal in a home win over C.D. Nacional, which ensured the Dragões and the player a fourth consecutive league accolade.

Zenit

On 3 August 2010, aged 28, Alves signed with Russian Premier League's FC Zenit for €22 million, joining compatriots Danny and Fernando Meira in the squad. Upon his arrival, head coach Luciano Spalletti described him as a very important player for the team, noting his experience, ability in the air and strong character. On 30 October, he scored his first goal for his new club, against former team AEK, in the UEFA Europa League group stage (4–2 home win).

International career

Luiz Felipe Scolari gave Alves his full Portugal debut in June 2007 against Kuwait in a 1–1 away draw. He was then selected as a back-up for UEFA Euro 2008, appearing in the 2–0 group stage loss against Switzerland.

A regular starter during the 2010 FIFA World Cup qualifiers, Alves headed the winner in injury time for the final 2–1 win in Albania on 6 June 2009, as Portugal eventually reached the play-offs. There, in the first leg in Lisbon, he also found the net (the game's only goal) against Bosnia and Herzegovina, in an eventual 2–0 aggregate qualification; he also played all the matches and minutes in the finals in South Africa, in an eventual round of 16 exit.

No.	Date	Venue	Opponent	Score	Result	Competition	Ref.
1	13 October 2007	Shafa Stadium, Baku, Azerbaijan	Azerbaijan	0–1	0–2	Euro 2008 qualifying
2	20 August 2008	Estádio Municipal de Aveiro, Aveiro, Portugal,	Faroe Islands	4–0	5–0	Friendly
3	31 March 2009	Stade Olympique de la Pontaise, Lausanne, Switzerland	South Africa	1–0	2–0	Friendly
4	6 June 2009	Qemal Stafa Stadium, Tirana, Albania	Albania	1–2	1–2	2010 World Cup qualification
5	14 November 2009	Estádio da Luz, Lisbon, Portugal	Bosnia and Herzegovina	1–0	1–0	2010 World Cup qualification - Playoffs Honours Team Porto: Portuguese League: 2005–06, 2006–07, 2007–08, 2008–09 Portuguese Cup: 2005–06, 2008–09, 2009–10 Portuguese SuperCup: 2006, 2009 Portuguese League Cup: Runner-up 2009–10 Zenit: Russian League: 2010 Individual Portuguese Liga Player of the Year: 2008–09 Scored a sublime freekick against Chelsea in the ECC final of 2010 for FC Porto. It beat the wall, taking a slight deflection of Terry's ear, before bouncing past Cech for a golden goal winner in the 93rd minute. Club statistics Club Season League Cup League Cup UEFA Total Games Goals Games Goals Games Goals Games Goals Games Goals Porto B 1999/00 2 0 0 0 - - 0 0 2 0 2000/01 36 6 0 0 - - 0 0 36 6 2001/02 17 2 0 0 - - 0 0 17 2 Farense 2001/02 15 0 0 0 - - 0 0 15 0 2002/03 31 3 2 0 - - 0 0 33 3 Guimarães 2003/04 25 1 1 0 - - 0 0 26 1 AEK 2004/05 27 0 0 0 - - 5 0 32 0 Porto 2005/06 7 0 1 0 - - 3 0 11 0 2006/07 28 2 0 0 - - 8 0 36 2 2007/08 27 2 2 0 0 0 8 0 37 2 2008/09 30 5 4 0 1 0 10 1 44 6 2009/10 27 5 2 0 0 0 6 1 35 5 Total 260 24 11 0 1 0 40 2 310 25 Personal Alves' older brother, Geraldo, is also a footballer, and a central defender. He has paternal Brazilian ancestry, his father Washington having played ten years of his career in Portugal – namely with Varzim Sport Club – where his children were born. The youngest sibling, Júlio, is also a footballer, in the midfielder position. References External links Stats and profile at Zerozero Stats at ForaDeJogo Template:Pt icon PortuGOAL profile