Full name Oliver Thomal Minatel 2002–2007 Guarani Position Forward, Midfielder Number 11 Current team Ottawa Fury FC | Playing position Role Footballer Place of birth Campinas, Brazil Name Oliver Minatel | |
 | ||
Date of birth (1992-08-29) 29 August 1992 (age 23) | ||
Oliver Minatel - South Melbourne FC - Forward
Oliver Thomal Minatel (born 29 August 1992), known as Oliver, is a Brazilian professional footballer who currently plays for the Richmond Kickers of the United Soccer League.
Contents
Youth
After spending five years at his home club Guarani, Mintatel joined the esteemed academy of Paulínia in 2007 where he would play three seasons in the Campeonato Paulista and featured in the Copa São Paulo.
At Nacional, Minatel spent one year with their U-19 squad where he finished second on the team in scoring with 18 goals from 22 matches. Minatel made the move to Nacional after spending a year with the U-19 side of Dutch side PSV Eindhoven. PSV discovered Minatel while scouting players in the Copa São Paulo, the biggest U-19 National Tournament in the world.
Nacional
Minatel spent three seasons with Portuguese side C.D. Nacional that included two years in the Primeira Liga. Minatel became the youngest player in Nacional club history to start in an international match when he featured in their UEFA Europa League qualifier against Icelandic side Fimleikafélag Hafnarfjarðar at 18 years of age.
Velo Clube
Minatel moved back to his native Brazil to Velo Clube, where he spent the majority of 2013, before signing with NASL club Ottawa Fury on November 14, 2013.
Ottawa Fury
Oliver would go on to be the club's leading scorer in 2014, scoring 7 goals in 22 league appearances. On 19 January 2015, he was re-signed by Ottawa for an additional year.
In April 2015, Oliver made international news after being attacked by a fellow passenger while on an Air Canada flight from Toronto to Atlanta with his team for an away match against the Atlanta Silverbacks. He was uninjured and the perpetrator was taken into the custody of the FBI and local law enforcement in Atlanta. The unprovoked attacker had attempted to choke Oliver with a headphone cord from the seat behind, but was separated from him by Minatel's teammates and other passengers.
Oliver finished the 2015 season with 3 goals in 25 appearances in all competitions. In December 2015, he was officially released by the club.
Puerto Rico FC
On March 10, 2016, Oliver was signed by NASL expansion team Puerto Rico FC.