Renato Veiga #13

Profile

The son of Nélson Veiga, a former Cape Verde international who played in the Portuguese top flight, Renato joined Sporting back in 2019 but did not make the first team. What he did, however, was to find an alternative route to the national team. He played for Augsburg and Basel before joining Chelsea. A loan spell at Juventus followed before he joined Villarreal in 2025. "I speak seven languages and I really enjoy learning them,” he says. “It helps me integrate more quickly into each country." One day during one of his first training camps with the national team, he became very emotional when speaking about his late grandfather. "I am so grateful for everything he did for me," the 22-year-old said.

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