Steven Moreira (born 13 August 1994) is a professional footballer who plays as a right-back or centre-back for Columbus Crew in Major League Soccer. Born in France, he plays for the Cape Verde national team.

Steven Moreira
Moreira with the Columbus Crew in 2023
Personal information
Date of birth (1994-08-13) 13 August 1994 (age 30)
Place of birth Noisy-le-Grand, France
Height 1.76 m (5 ft 9 in)
Position(s) Right-back, centre-back[1]
Team information
Current team
Columbus Crew
Number 31
Youth career
2000–2005 AS Champs-sur-Marne[2]
2005–2009 US Torcy[3]
2009–2013 Rennes[4]
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2011–2014 Rennes B 20 (0)
2013–2016 Rennes 58 (0)
2016–2018 Lorient 63 (1)
2018–2021 Toulouse 58 (1)
2018 Toulouse B 3 (0)
2021– Columbus Crew 100 (3)
International career
2009 France U16 1 (0)
2013 France U19 7 (0)
2014 France U20 2 (0)
2015 France U21 4 (0)
2023– Cape Verde 6 (0)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 03:31, 3 October 2024 (UTC)
‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 18:27, 19 February 2024 (UTC)

Club career

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Moreira first began with AS Champs-sur-Marne in 2000, staying there for five years until he joined US Torcy in 2005.[5] He later joined the Rennes youth academy in 2009, and secured a professional contract with the Breton side in 2013, scoring his first professional goal for Rennes on 19 January 2016 in a Coupe de France match,[6] notching his team's only goal in a 3–1 loss to Bourg-en-Bresse.[7] Moreria joined FC Lorient on 30 August 2016 for a reported 1.2 million, signing a four-year deal.[8][9] He scored a goal against RC Lens in the second round of the Coupe de la Ligue.[10]

Moreira was transferred to Toulouse on 10 August 2018 and agreed to terms on a three-year deal.[11][12] He incurred a three-match suspension following a red card received during a match against Marseille on 24 November 2019.[13][14] On 15 February 2020, he was shown a red card for a foul on Adam Ounas, resulting in another three-match suspension.[15][16][17] He would score his first league goal for the club on 26 September 2020, contributing to a 3–1 victory at home for Les Violets.[18] On 20 March 2021, Moreira received a red card in a 1–0 defeat against Niort, serving a three-match suspension as a result.[19][20]

In August 2021, Moreira signed with Columbus Crew on a free transfer, with team options to extend his contract until the end of the 2023 season.[21] He would go on to appear in eight total matches in his first season, including making his team debut in the Campeones Cup.[22] On 27 August 2022, Moreira scored his first goal for the Crew, a right-footed volley in the 96th minute to tie Hell is Real rivals FC Cincinnati 2–2.[23] In December 2023, it was announced that he extended his contract until 2025, with an option for 2026.[24]

International career

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Born in France, Moreira is of Cape Verdean descent, and is a former France youth international. He played at the 2013 UEFA European Under-19 European Championship, finishing as the runner-up.[21] He was called up to the Cape Verde national team team for a set of friendlies in October 2023.[25] He debuted with Cape Verde in a 5–1 loss to Algeria on 12 October 2023.[26] Moreira was part of the Cape Verde team that made the Quarter-finals of the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations.[27]

Honours

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Columbus Crew

Individual

References

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  1. ^ "'He's a versatile player': How Columbus Crew's Steven Moreira adapted to a position change". The Columbus Dispatch. Retrieved 4 April 2023.
  2. ^ "Steven Moreira". aschampsfootball.com. Retrieved 17 September 2023.
  3. ^ "C'EST LE MOMENT DE JOUER CHEZ LES GRANDS". Torcy foot. 10 May 2013. Retrieved 31 March 2024.
  4. ^ "Première pour S. Moreira". Stade Rennais. Retrieved 31 March 2024.
  5. ^ Rédaction Meaux (17 May 2021). "Ligue 2. Passé par Champs-sur-Marne et Torcy, Steven Moreira (Toulouse FC) disputera les barrages" (in French). Actu. Retrieved 1 September 2024.
  6. ^ "Rennes. Steven Moreira signe pro". Le Télégramme (in French). 4 December 2013. Archived from the original on 31 March 2024. Retrieved 31 March 2024.
  7. ^ "Football. Coupe de France : l'exploit de Bourg-en-Bresse". www.leprogres.fr (in French). 19 January 2016. Archived from the original on 31 March 2024. Retrieved 31 March 2024.
  8. ^ "Transfert : Steven Moreira à Lorient/722690". L'Equipe (in French). 30 August 2016. Retrieved 2 September 2016.
  9. ^ Lavaud, Thomas (27 May 2017). "Barrages Ligue 1 - Ligue 2 | Le FC Lorient sans défense". ici, par France Bleu et France 3 (in French). Archived from the original on 17 September 2023. Retrieved 17 September 2023.
  10. ^ "Lorient vs. Lens Match Report – Tuesday August 22, 2017". FB Ref. 29 October 2022. Retrieved 29 October 2022.
  11. ^ "Journal du Mercato : ça s'agite dans tous les sens au Real Madrid !". Foot Mercato : Info Transferts Football - Actu Foot Transfert (in French). 10 August 2018. Retrieved 29 October 2022.
  12. ^ "Mercato : Steven Moreira signe au Toulouse Football Club, un contrat proposé à Stéphane Mbia | Actu Toulouse (in French)". 29 October 2022. Archived from the original on 29 October 2022. Retrieved 29 October 2022.
  13. ^ "Commission de discipline : les décisions du 27 novembre 2019 - LFP.fr". lfp.fr. 2 December 2019. Archived from the original on 2 December 2019. Retrieved 17 September 2023.
  14. ^ "Toulouse v Marseille | 24 novembre 2019 | Goal.com Français". www.goal.com (in French). 24 November 2019. Archived from the original on 17 September 2023. Retrieved 17 September 2023.
  15. ^ "Toulouse 0-2 Nice (Feb 15, 2020) Final Score". ESPN. 15 February 2020. Archived from the original on 17 September 2023. Retrieved 17 September 2023.
  16. ^ Berthaud, Alexandre (19 February 2020). "Le TFC privé de son latéral droit pendant trois matchs". ici, par France Bleu et France 3 (in French). Archived from the original on 17 September 2023. Retrieved 17 September 2023.
  17. ^ "Deux suspendus à Toulouse". Ligue1 (in French). 19 February 2020. Archived from the original on 17 September 2023. Retrieved 17 September 2023.
  18. ^ "Enfin!". ToulouseFC (in French). 26 September 2020. Archived from the original on 17 September 2023. Retrieved 17 September 2023.
  19. ^ "Feuille de match". Ligue2 (in French). 20 March 2021. Archived from the original on 17 September 2023. Retrieved 17 September 2023.
  20. ^ "Steven Moreira, suspension terminée". www.lesviolets.com (in French). 15 April 2021. Archived from the original on 17 September 2023. Retrieved 17 September 2023.
  21. ^ a b "Columbus Crew signs French defender Steven Moreira | Columbus Crew". ColumbusCrew.com.
  22. ^ Myers, Jacob (29 September 2021). "Columbus Crew wins Campeones Cup, shuts out Liga MX's Cruz Azul". The Columbus Dispatch. Archived from the original on 25 June 2023. Retrieved 25 June 2023.
  23. ^ "Columbus Crew tie at FC Cincinnati on late Moreira goal". 29 October 2022. Archived from the original on 29 October 2022. Retrieved 29 October 2022.
  24. ^ "Rudy Camacho et Steven Moreira prolongent au Columbus Crew en MLS" (in French). L'Equipe. 12 December 2023. Retrieved 1 September 2024.
  25. ^ "Columbus Crew defender Steven Moreira called up to represent Cape Verde Islands". The Columbus Dispatch.
  26. ^ "Futebol: Cabo Verde goleado pela Argélia no dia em que conhece adversários do CAN'2023 – INFORPRESS". INFORPRESS – Agência Cabo-Verdiana de Notícias (in Portuguese). 12 October 2023. Retrieved 13 October 2023.
  27. ^ "Profile of Cape Verde Islands team for 2023 Africa Cup of Nations". Reuters.com. 7 January 2024. Archived from the original on 19 February 2024. Retrieved 19 February 2024.
  28. ^ "Columbus Crew's Steven Moreira named 2024 MLS Defender of the Year". Major League Soccer. 13 November 2024. Retrieved 13 November 2024.
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