Ednilson


Ednilson Pedro Rocha Andrade Mendes, known simply as Ednilson, is a Bissau-Guinean former footballer who played as a defensive midfielder.

Club career

Ednilson was born in Bissau, Guinea-Bissau, moving to Portugal at an early age. Not yet 17, he was bought by Italy's A.S. Roma, but in January 2001 moved to F.C. Alverca for 618 million lire, after he refused to extend his initial contract. Without no official appearances, he was sold to S.L. Benfica.
With the Lisbon club, Ednilson was relatively used during two seasons, after which he was loaned to fellow Primeira Liga sides Vitória S.C. and Gil Vicente FC, playing with the latter precisely as Benfica won the national league after 11 years. After almost two years at OFI Crete he spent some months without a club, after which he rejoined countryman Almami Moreira at FK Partizan – both were youth graduates at Boavista FC – helping the Belgrade team to the double in his short spell.
Ednilson then played one year in Cyprus with AEK Larnaca FC. On 27 November 2009, he signed a 1½ year contract with FC Dinamo Tbilisi.
On 21 February 2012, Ednilson changed clubs and countries once again, signing for Vasas SC in Budapest for five months. He was released at the end of the campaign, with no official appearances to his credit.

Club statistics

SeasonTeamCountryDivisionAppsGoals
1999–00Roma110
2000–01Benfica1130
2001–02Benfica1220
2002–03Benfica180
2003–04Vitória Guimarães180
2004–05Gil Vicente1200
2005–06OFI Crete140
2006–07OFI Crete1130
2007–08Partizan1140
2008–09AEK Larnaca150
2009–10Dinamo Tbilisi1290

International career

After having represented Portugal at U21 level between 2000 and 2003, Ednilson accepted the calls of his country of birth, Guinea-Bissau, when their national team was resurrected in 2010, after three years of inactivity. Ednilson made 3 appearances between 2010 and 2011 for Guinea-Bissau.