Name Jorge Fernandes Place of birth Lisbon, Portugal Role Portuguese footballer 1986–1987 Domingos Savio | Number 10 Playing position Height 1.76 m | |
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Full name Jorge Manuel Rebelo Fernandes Date of birth (1976-09-01) 1 September 1976 (age 39) Current team NorthEast United FC (#10 / Midfielder) | ||
Jorge Manuel Rebelo Fernandes (born 1 September 1976), known as Silas, is a former Portuguese footballer who played as a midfielder.
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He amassed Primeira Liga totals of 236 games and 30 goals over the course of nine seasons, representing in the competition União de Leiria, Marítimo and Belenenses. He also played professionally in four other countries, mainly Spain and Cyprus.
Football career
Silas was born in Lisbon. After making his professional debut with local Atlético Clube de Portugal, he emigrated to Spain, representing lowly AD Ceuta who also loaned him for one season to Elche CF in Segunda División.
Silas first made his name at U.D. Leiria, with whom he achieved a couple of top six Primeira Liga finishes, also making the domestic cup final in 2003. During the 2001–02 campaign he was managed by up-and-coming José Mourinho and, the following year, made his first appearance for the Portugal national team, in a 1–0 friendly win over Macedonia on 3 April 2003; he later played against Paraguay and Bolivia.
Silas signed for newly promoted Premier League club Wolverhampton Wanderers in July 2003, for an initial fee of £1 million. However, he endured a frustrating time in England, failing to settle in the country and establish himself in the squad. During their doomed season he made a mere nine league appearances, totalling 14 overall.
In the 2004 summer, Silas returned to his homeland and joined top division side C.S. Marítimo on a season-long loan. The following campaign, still not featuring in the Wolves manager's plans (now Glenn Hoddle) he was loaned out to another team in the country and category, this time C.F. Os Belenenses.
At the end of the season, having made 28 appearances with four goals, Silas decided to make his move permanent, joining on a free transfer as his contract at Wolverhampton had expired. He continued to be an undisputed starter from 2006 to 2009, after which he was released and returned to Leiria, freshly returned to the main division.
From 2011 to 2014, Silas competed played in the Cypriot First Division, representing AEL Limassol, AEP Paphos F.C. and Ethnikos Achna FC. In July 2014, after a 16-year absence, he returned to Atlético, now in the Segunda Liga; in April of the following year he, alongside teammate Dady, was involved in a match-fixing allegation whereby it was alleged that both had approached S.C. Farense players with a bribe to facilitate Atlético's win, but nothing was ever proven. The season initially ended in relegation, but the team eventually was spared at the expense of S.C. Beira-Mar who dropped down a tier due to irregularities.
On 8 July 2015, shortly before his 39th birthday, Silas signed a six-month deal with Indian Super League club NorthEast United FC. He made his debut on 6 October, playing the full 90 minutes in 1–3 loss at Kerala Blasters FC. On 11 November, a minute after coming on as a substitute for his compatriot Simão, he scored his first goal for the Guwahati-based team, the decisive one in a 2–1 victory away to Chennaiyin FC.
Silas returned to his homeland the following 12 February, joining C.D. Cova da Piedade. He helped them to the third division title and a first promotion to the professional leagues, scoring the winning penalty in the final shootout against F.C. Vizela on 5 June 2016.