* by Simão Duarte
Guimarães, the birthplace of the city, is well known for being the place where Portugal began to transform into the country it is today. Several courageous men, commanded by D. Afonso Henriques, fought for their cause tooth and nail.
Currently, the fight is different: the Vitória SC team has countless conquerors who, on the field, give everything for the club they represent. The last test was placed on the sodden grass in the 2-2 against Benfica.
qJota accelerates the game with ease, is dynamic, intense and infects Vitória’s entire game. Furthermore, he is very hungry to win
Tiago Targino, former Vitória SC
Night for people of temper, hard, even wild. Among Comanches and other warriors, one name stood above the others: João Pedro Ferreira Silva, the Jota Silva of Vitória.
From Melres to the World, the Victorian forward has seen rapid growth throughout his career. He made his senior debut in the Portuguese Championship in the 2016/17 season, playing for Sousense.
He suffered the misfortune of a broken foot, playing only four games, but this misfortune helped him shape his profile. He moved to Paços de Ferreira’s youth team, where he had a fine season, scoring six goals in 38 games.
The extinction of the Beavers’ B team forced him to take a step back. He returned to Sousense and the districts, but more than determined to write a story of ascension and overcoming.
The football country got to know him even better after the feints, changes of speed and absolute dedication against Benfica. Morato will still be wide-eyed at this point. A devil on the loose.
«The delivery and speed are impressive»
In an AF Porto division without media stages, Jota was huge. He was the most used player at Sousense in 2018/19 and the team’s top scorer, with 15 goals – and five assists. The return was happy and part of his growth strategy: «I returned to Sousense and knew that I needed to take a step back to get where I wanted», he said on the podcast. Victory Dezanove22.
Sousense finished that season in sixth place in the AF Porto Elite Division. The club, since then, has not returned to the Portuguese Championship, but Jota Silva has, moving at the end of the season to SC Espinho. For the vareiros, he was one of three players who played 30 games. Individually, he was once again the team’s top scorer (14 goals) and the second best in CP’s Series B. This new phase of high performance earned him prominence in the zerozero team of the year with the Campeonato das Oportunidades.
«His delivery and the way he imposes speed on the field are impressive», he says Tiago Targinoformer Vitória striker [141 jogos/20 golos entre 2004 e 2012].
«Jota accelerates the game with ease, is dynamic, intense and infects Vitória’s entire game. Furthermore, he is very hungry to win.”
At the age of 21, the trend of moving up a division at the end of each good season continued: from the city of Espinho he moved to Leixões in the summer of 2020 and entered the professional championships for the first time. He started the season playing regularly, but as the season progressed, Jota lost space and opted to terminate his contract.
Casa Pia opened its doors to him and moved to Pina Manique, in a decision that he himself considered, in an interview with zerozero, as «the best decision» he could have made in his career.
The beginning of ‘Pina Manique’s Grealish’
As soon as he arrived at Pina Manique in the second half of the 2020/21 season, Jota conquered his space. The one who would become affectionately known as the ‘Grealish of Pina Manique’ was about to emerge.
The geese’s epic rise to the Primeira Liga, 83 years after their previous presence (!) had a main protagonist: Jota Silva, the team’s top scorer. He put the ball into the opponent’s goal 14 times and nine of those were in the space of nine games. The beautiful performances, with goals in between, earned him five man of the match awards and, in the end, a place in the II League’s eleven of the year.
Jota Silva’s dedication and genius on the field made Casa Pia fans compare him to Jack Grealish, Manchester City’s English winger. The comparison didn’t bother Jota, quite the opposite.
«I really like him, the comparisons are fantastic, I laugh a lot. I don’t mind at all, it was bad to be compared to a bad player. He’s good, Champions League, City, it’s good to be compared. The similarities are great, some say, hair, socks down….», said the winger on Nineteen22.
Its rise continued and it returned to the North of Portugal. Vitória signed him for 190 thousand euros and Jota Silva reached the top of national competitions for the first time.
@Catarina Morais / Kapta +
Arriving at the Afonso Henriques Stadium, he could not have debuted in a better game: a resounding victory against Puskás Akadémia FC, in the Conference League, where he assisted two of the three Victorian goals.
«I used to say: I never played with more than 300 people in the stands. There were 15 thousand people here at that game. Only then is it a shock. This is what I fought for, what I worked for, to arrive and play in stadiums like this. Joining D. Afonso Henriques like this was my first game of the season, having come from the II League, starting a Conference League game, I had never played in European competitions. At Vitória, it’s really special. I played the first 15 minutes with goosebumps.”
That game was the first of 40 games in which he participated, finishing the season as the Victorian player who appeared in the most games. In between, four goals and four assists, which kept him highlighted as one of the club’s and the League’s figures.
The records, despite being interesting, were already scattered in 23/24: already counting the pass for André Silva’s goal against Benfica, Jota has ten goals and seven assists. Total affirmation.
«It is not easy to live up to the expectations of Vitória fans», continues Tiago Targino. «Jota was one of those who adapted most quickly. This is precisely due to his dedication. At Vitória, this is fundamental.”
«Ready for a higher level? The numbers are clear»
Jota Silva’s ambition has no end and is in sight. At 24 years of age, and with many sporting seasons ahead of him, the obligatory question is this: does the forward have enough level to play at a higher qualitative level?
«Jota has made a very rapid rise. The numbers are clear. He is a key player and anyone who adapts as quickly to a demanding club as Vitória SC will adapt to any other reality », considers Targino, an admitted admirer of the striker.
“I think he is ready to play at a higher level and will adapt quickly again.”
The ‘8’ rating and the tremendous performance against Benfica put the spotlight back on the boy from Melres. The contract in Guimarães expires in 2025 and the values surrounding it no longer have anything to do with those that took him from Casa Pia to Berço.
What is João Pedro Ferreira Silva’s limit?
2024-02-12 11:25:00
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