Marco Soares (footballer)


Marco Paulo da Silva Soares is a Cape Verdean professional footballer who plays for Portuguese club F.C. Arouca as a defensive midfielder.

Club career

Born in Setúbal, Portugal, Soares started playing professionally with F.C. Barreirense, competing two seasons in the third division and one in the second. In 2006 he signed for U.D. Leiria, but only made a combined two Primeira Liga appearances in his first two years, also serving two loans in the process, one of them in Romania with CS Pandurii Târgu Jiu.
Soares returned to Leiria for the 2008–09 campaign, helping União return to the top flight after a one-year absence. Eventually, he would also become club captain.
On 31 October 2010, during a 1–2 home loss against Sporting CP – where he had played youth football – Soares fractured his left leg while attempting a shot, being sidelined for four months. After returning, he contributed with 14 matches in 2011–12 as his team suffered relegation.

International career

Soares opted to represent Cape Verde internationally. He was a member of the squad in the 2010 FIFA World Cup qualification campaign and, after the national team was eliminated, was called up for friendlies with Malta and Angola, in August 2009.
On 24 May 2010, Soares appeared in a friendly in Covilhã against Portugal who was preparing for the 2010 World Cup in South Africa, playing the entire match as the minnows managed a 0–0 draw.

Club statistics

Honours

Barreirense
Omonia
AEL Limassol