Rafael Avelino Pereira Pinto Barbosa (born 29 March 1996) is a Portuguese professional footballer who plays as an attacking midfielder for Liga Portugal 2 club Leixões.
Club career Sporting CP Born in Amarante, Porto District, Barbosa joined Sporting CP's youth academy at the age of 12. On 12 September 2015, he made his professional debut with the reserve team, playing 50 minutes in a 4–0 away win against Clube Oriental de Lisboa in the Segunda Liga. He scored his first goal in the competition a month later, helping the visitors defeat C.D. Santa Clara 3–2.
After half a season on loan at fellow second-tier club C.F. União, Barbosa returned to Sporting B and netted eight times in 2017–18 from 34 appearances, in a final relegation to the third division. In the ensuing summer, he was loaned to Portimonense S.C. of the Primeira Liga.
Barbosa played his first match in the Portuguese top flight on 13 August 2018, coming on as a 73rd-minute substitute for Felipe Macedo in a 0–2 home loss to Boavista FC. On 30 September, during a game in the newly created under-23 league against S.L. Benfica, he was assaulted by the chairman of Portimonense's PLSC Rodiney Sampaio, initially pressing charges for the incident but sorting the situation out shortly after.
Tondela On 18 August 2020, Barbosa signed a three-year contract with C.D. Tondela. On 23 October, he scored in a 1–0 home victory over Portimonense for his first goal in the top tier.
Farense On 26 June 2023, the free agent Barbosa joined recently-promoted S.C. Farense on a two-year deal. He scored his first goal for them on 12 November, netting from outside the penalty area in a 3–1 league win at Boavista; the strike was later considered the Primeira Liga Goal of the Month for October/November.
Radomiak Radom On 15 January 2025, Barbosa moved abroad for the first time after agreeing to an eighteen-month contract with Polish Ekstraklasa side Radomiak Radom. He scored once and provided one assist during his tenure, leaving by mutual consent on 18 June.
AVS On 4 July 2025, Barbosa returned to Portugal on a two-year deal at top-division AVS Futebol SAD. During a brief spell, he totalled 16 appearances and two goals.
Later career Barbosa transferred to second-division club Leixões S.C. on 3 February 2026, for free.
International career Barbosa won his only cap for the Portugal under-21 team on 5 September 2017, replacing Benfica's João Carvalho early into the second half of a 2–0 home defeat of Wales in the 2019 UEFA European Championship qualifiers.
Career statistics
+Appearances and goals by club, season and competitionClubSeasonLeagueNational cupLeague cupOtherTotalDivisionAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsSporting CP B2015–16LigaPro231———2312016–17LigaPro153———1532017–18LigaPro348———348Total7212———7212União Madeira (loan)2016–17LigaPro902020—130Portimonense (loan)2018–19Primeira Liga400000—40Paços Ferreira (loan)2018–19LigaPro1610000—161Estoril (loan)2019–20LigaPro2241010—244Tondela2020–21Primeira Liga30320——3232021–22Primeira Liga2926010—3622022–23Liga Portugal 2335210010366Total9210101101010411Farense2023–24Primeira Liga2710040—3112024–25Primeira Liga7010——80Total3411040—391Radomiak Radom2024–25Ekstraklasa91———91Career total25829141801028130
Honours Paços de Ferreira Segunda Liga: 2018–19
Individual Primeira Liga Goal of the Month: October/November 2023
References
External links