Matheus Bonifácio Saldanha Marinho (born 19 August 1999), commonly known as Matheus Saldanha, is a Brazilian professional footballer who plays as a forward for a Serbian SuperLiga team Partizan.
Club career
Born in Uberaba, Minas Gerais, Saldanha joined Bahia's youth setup in 2018, initially on loan from Audax. On 1 July 2019, after impressing with the under-20 side, he was bought outright and signed a permanent three-year contract.
Saldanha was promoted to the first team for the 2020 season, and made his senior debut on 22 January of that year by starting in a 1–1 Campeonato Baiano away draw against Juazeirense. He scored his first senior goal on 9 February, netting his team's second in a 3–1 away win against Jacobina.
Saldanha made his Série A on 12 August 2020, coming on as a second-half substitute for Rossi in a 1–0 home win against Coritiba. His first goal in the category occurred on 16 September, as he scored his team's second in a 2–3 away loss against Corinthians.
In 2021, Saldanha joined to J2 club, JEF United Chiba on loan transfer. One year later, he was announcement officially permanently transfer to JEF United Chiba has been confirmed after a season as loan player from EC Bahia.
In 2022, Saldanha loaned again to Chinese Super League club, Chengdu Rongcheng for during mid 2022 season. He leave from the club after a half season at Chengdu expiration contract.
He returned to JEF United Chiba for the 2023 season.
On July 28, 2023, it was announced that Saldanha signed a four-year contract with Serbian giants Partizan. As reported, the Serbian club paid JEF United compensation in the amount of €1.30m. Just one day later, Saldanha scored a goal on his debut in a 3–3 draw away to TSC in Bačka Topola. A week later, Saldanha scored his second goal with an assist from Bibras Natcho in a 2–0 win over Vojvodina. In the third qualifying round for the UEFA Europa Conference League, Saldanha was the scorer in the two-legged tie against Sabah.
Career statistics
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