Rúben Micael Freitas da Ressureição (born 19 August 1986), known as Micael, is a Portuguese former professional footballer who played as a midfielder.
He totalled 206 Primeira Liga games and 19 goals over ten seasons, representing Nacional, Porto, Braga, Paços de Ferreira and Vitória de Setúbal, winning seven major honours with the second team and a further one with the third. He also had spells in Spain, China and Israel.
A full Portugal international since 2011, Micael was part of the squad at Euro 2012.
Club career Early years and Nacional Born in Câmara de Lobos, Madeira, Micael started his career with local C.F. União, making his professional debut at the age of 17. For the 2008–09 season, he moved across the island to sign with Primeira Liga club C.D. Nacional.
In that first year, in which Nacional qualified for the UEFA Europa League, Micael, almost never an undisputed starter, featured heavily, scoring notably in a 3–1 home win against S.L. Benfica on 2 May 2009. The previous month, he played for Portugal B in a 2–0 victory over Romania.
Micael started the 2009–10 campaign established in the side's starting XI, notably netting twice against FC Zenit Saint Petersburg in the Europa League's last qualifying round, first in the 4–3 home win then adding a last-minute goal in Russia for the 1–1 draw.
Porto In mid-January 2010, FC Porto purchased 60% of Micael's playing rights for a €3 million transfer fee, signing him to a four-and-a-half-year deal and setting his release clause at €30 million. His first league game for his new club came on 30 January, where he started in the place of the suspended Raul Meireles in a 4–0 away defeat of his former team, Nacional.
In 2010–11, Micael was used sparingly by new manager André Villas-Boas. Nonetheless, he still appeared in 36 official matches and totalled 871 minutes of action (four goals, three in the Europa League campaign) as the team won the treble.
Atlético Madrid
On 18 August 2011, Micael and Porto teammate Radamel Falcao were both purchased by Atlético Madrid for – the former for , although Porto later confirmed that his sale did not generate any revenue for the club. The midfielder was then immediately loaned to fellow La Liga side Real Zaragoza, for a fee of €750,000. 23 of his appearances were as a starter, as his team narrowly avoided relegation.
Micael was loaned to S.C. Braga for 2012–13, starting the year in impressive fashion: in two games separated by only three days in late August, he scored three goals, starting with a brace in a 3–1 home victory against S.C. Beira-Mar then netting the 1–1 equaliser at Udinese Calcio in the UEFA Champions League last qualifying round. In the latter match, he rounded up his performance by converting the decisive penalty in the shootout to help his team reach the group stage for the second time in their history.
Micael continued his strong displays in the Champions League group phase, scoring the first goal in an eventual 2–0 away win over Galatasaray SK in the second round. On 20 October 2012, Atlético sold 50% of his economic rights to Braga for €3 million.
Shijiazhuang In June 2015, Micael signed for Shijiazhuang Ever Bright FC. He made his Chinese Super League debut on 4 July, as a substitute in a goalless home draw against Changchun Yatai FC. He totalled 11 games over the season, and scored to open a 3–1 loss at Shandong Luneng Taishan F.C. on 31 October.
After his team was relegated in 2016, Micael was linked with a move to Rangers of the Scottish Premiership. On 2 February 2017, he was loaned to Maccabi Tel Aviv F.C. for the remainder of the campaign. He scored his first goal for the side on 18 March 2017, in a 3–0 home win against Bnei Sakhnin FC.
Return to Portugal On 16 January 2018, Micael returned to Portugal's top flight, signing for F.C. Paços de Ferreira until 2021. In June, however, he switched to a one-year deal at Vitória F.C. under his former Maccabi manager Lito Vidigal.
At the end of his contract in Setúbal, Micael returned to Nacional after nine years away; the 33-year-old was their first signing, following relegation in May 2019. Two years later, having experienced another promotion and relegation, he announced his retirement.
International career On 29 March 2011, Micael made his debut for Portugal, starting and scoring twice in a 2–0 friendly victory over Finland in Aveiro. He was chosen by coach Paulo Bento for UEFA Euro 2012 in Poland and Ukraine, but played no matches for the semi-finalists.
Career statistics Club + Appearances and goals by club, season and competitionClubSeasonLeagueNational CupLeague CupEuropeOtherTotalDivisionAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsUnião Madeira2003–04Segunda Liga6000———602004–05Segunda Divisão23000———2302005–06Segunda Divisão4000———402006–07Segunda Divisão23031——202812007–08Segunda Divisão36410———374Total92441——20985Nacional2008–09Primeira Liga2645041——3552009–10Primeira Liga162211087—2710Total426715187—6215Porto2009–10Primeira Liga100323020—1822010–11Primeira Liga190603183—3642011–12Primeira Liga100000001020Total300926110310566Zaragoza (loan)2011–12La Liga33000———330Braga (loan)2012–13Primeira Liga194311072—307Braga2013–14Primeira Liga211301020—2712014–15Primeira Liga2565100——307Total467811020—578Shijiazhuang Ever Bright2015Chinese Super League11100———1112016Chinese Super League27300———273Total38400———384Maccabi Tel Aviv (loan)2016–17Israeli Premier League151400000—191Paços Ferreira2017–18Primeira Liga1311010——151Vitória Setúbal2018–19Primeira Liga2602020——300Nacional2019–20LigaPro2300010——2402020–21Primeira Liga3010000——301Total5310010——541Career total4072838617227123049248
International PortugalYearAppsGoals201172201260201330Total162
Scores and results list Portugal's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Micael goal. + List of international goals scored by Rúben MicaelNo.DateVenueOpponentScoreResultCompetition1 29 March 2011 Estádio Municipal, Aveiro, Portugal 1–0 2–0 Friendly2 2–0
Honours Porto Primeira Liga: 2010–11, 2011–12 Taça de Portugal: 2009–10, 2010–11 Supertaça Cândido de Oliveira: 2011 UEFA Europa League: 2010–11
Braga Taça da Liga: 2012–13
References
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