Introduction
Hélio José Ribeiro Pinto (born 29 February 1984) is a Portuguese professional footballer who plays for Greek club Trikala as a central midfielder.
A youth product of Benfica, he spent most of his career with APOEL in Cyprus, appearing in more than 275 official games and winning eight major titles.
Club career
Pinto was born in Portimão, Algarve. A product of S.L. Benfica's youth system, he could never break into the first team, only managing a couple of preseason appearances under José Antonio Camacho; his next stop was in Spain with Sevilla FC, where he incidentally also only played with the reserves.
Still owned by Sevilla, Pinto played the 2005–06 season in Cyprus with Apollon Limassol. Being released in the following summer his career settled with another club in the country, APOEL FC.
During his spell with APOEL, Pinto was an important member as it won the Cypriot First Division on four occasions, adding amongst other trophies the domestic cup in 2007–08. He also appeared in all six group stage games of the side, in its first UEFA Champions League participation.
Pinto played in eight matches in the 2011–12 Champions League, as the Nicosia-based team surprisingly reached the quarter-finals of the competition. On 5 June 2013 he signed a three-year contract extension with APOEL but, late into the month, announced he was leaving the club after seven successful years.
On 21 June 2013, Pinto signed a two-year contract (with an option for another season) with Legia Warsaw from Poland. He was released two years later, moving to the Qatar Stars League with Al-Mesaimeer Sports Club shortly after.
On 2 February 2016, Pinto returned to Cyprus and joined Anorthosis Famagusta FC.
International career
On 27 July 2012, Pinto gained Cypriot nationality, and the Cyprus Football Association subsequently waited for FIFA approval on whether could play for the national team. The governing body eventually ruled he could not represent his adopted nation after having appeared for Portugal at under-19 and under-20 levels.
Statistics
- As of 2 February 2016
| Club | Season | League | Cup | Continental | Other | Total | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Benfica | 2002–03 | Primeira Liga | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 | 0 | |
| 2003–04 | Primeira Liga | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | 5 | 0 | ||
| Total | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | 5 | 0 | |||
| Sevilla B | 2004–05 | Segunda División B | 18 | 0 | — | — | — | 18 | 0 | |||
| Apollon (loan) | 2005–06 | Cypriot First Division | 25 | 2 | — | — | 25 | 2 | ||||
| APOEL | 2006–07 | Cypriot First Division | 23 | 4 | 8 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 34 | 5 |
| 2007–08 | Cypriot First Division | 28 | 2 | 8 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 39 | 3 | |
| 2008–09 | Cypriot First Division | 27 | 2 | 5 | 1 | 5 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 38 | 5 | |
| 2009–10 | Cypriot First Division | 25 | 1 | 7 | 2 | 12 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 45 | 3 | |
| 2010–11 | Cypriot First Division | 26 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 6 | 1 | — | 34 | 2 | ||
| 2011–12 | Cypriot First Division | 32 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 14 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 50 | 1 | |
| 2012–13 | Cypriot First Division | 29 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 6 | 1 | — | 36 | 6 | ||
| Total | 190 | 16 | 34 | 4 | 48 | 4 | 4 | 1 | 276 | 25 | ||
| Legia Warsaw | 2013–14 | Ekstraklasa | 25 | 6 | 2 | 1 | 7 | 0 | — | 34 | 7 | |
| 2014–15 | Ekstraklasa | 18 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 22 | 1 | |
| Total | 43 | 7 | 4 | 1 | 9 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 56 | 8 | ||
| Al-Mesaimeer | 2015–16 | Qatar Stars League | 15 | 0 | — | — | 15 | 0 | ||||
| Career total | 293 | 25 | 40 | 5 | 58 | 4 | 4 | 1 | 395 | 35 | ||
Honours
- Apollon
- Cypriot First Division: 2005–06
- APOEL
- Cypriot First Division: 2006–07, 2008–09, 2010–11, 2012–13
- Cypriot Cup: 2007–08
- Cypriot Super Cup: 2008, 2009, 2011
- Legia Warsaw
- Ekstraklasa: 2013–14
- Polish Cup: 2014–15