10 Players You Didn’t Know Were Playing in Brazil Right Now

10 Players You Didn't Know Were Playing in Brazil

Brazil's impact on the modern game, and it's heritage woven throughout it, is more than well-stated.

Known for their love of flair and entertaining football, some of the greatest talents to have ever graced the sport have hailed from South America's most populous nation including the likes of Ronaldinho and Ronaldo Nazario.

However, the nation of Brazil is what is more widely regarded on the talent spectrum rather than it's domestic club league, the Brazilian Serie A. Top-tier talents hailing from the nation and plying their trade within are often whisked away into Europe before you can blink, and it wasn't often the case that you would see any top-level players head in the opposite direction.

These days, however, that has changed somewhat with the Brazilian Serie A attracting more esteemed players from overseas, more fans in attendance and over the media and more financial muscle, echoing a sharp rise in attention. As such, there are a fair few players working their magic in the Brazilian Serie A, so we've jotted down 10 that you may not have known were out there at all.

10 - Bernard (33, Atletico Mineiro)

A fan favourite amongst the FIFA players amongst us, tricky winger Bernard is enjoying his retirement tour back in his native Brazil with boyhood club Atletico Mineiro, boasting a certain Hulk as a team-mate these days.

"Roberto bamboozled, Bernard brilliant!"#EVEWHU 🔵 @davanti_tyres pic.twitter.com/2f5uhJ8HLY

— Everton (@Everton) March 14, 2025

Known for his small stature and eclectic brand of skills and tricks in his toolbox, Bernard enjoyed a three-year stint in the Premier League with Everton after having starred for Ukrainian giants Shakhtar Donetsk between 2013 and 2018. After scoring just five top-flight goals in his time in England, he departed for a spell apiece in the United Arab Emirates and Greece with Sharjah and Panathinaikos before returning to Atletico Mineiro in 2024, 11 years after he first departed for Europe.

9 - Luis Sinisterra (26, Cruzeiro)

It's fair to say that injuries robbed fans in England of being able to see Luis Sinisterra at the consistent peak of his powers.

The Colombian left-winger was a hot talent coming out of the Dutch Eredivisie, joining Premier League side Leeds in 2022 then aged 22 following a 12-goal league haul in the Netherlands the year prior. He was limited to just 19 league appearances for the Whites as they succumbed to relegation that term, upon which he went to Bournemouth on loan.

Injuries once again harmed his form and chances of consistent minutes over the season, and the season after wherein his South Coast loan turned permanent, before he headed out to Brazil with Cruzeiro on loan with an obligation to make the move permanent in the summer.

8 - Matheus Pereira (29, Cruzeiro)

Wow. To put it bluntly and rudely, what a f*cking player this man was for West Bromwich Albion a few years back.

Signed on loan from Portuguese giants Sporting back in 2019, the tricky Brazilian lit the Championship up as he helped guide the Baggies to a return to the Premier League amidst a COVID-struck season. He may have bagged 11 Premier League goals the following season, as his loan turned permanent, but he was unable to keep the West Midlands side up, after which he became one of the first players to make the money-spinning jump to Saudi Arabian football.

He didn't pull up many trees in his time in the Middle East, including a loan spell to UAE side Al Wahda, before making his way back to his native Brazil in 2023, where he has remained with Cruzeiro ever since. What could have been...

7 - Reinier (24, Atletico Mineiro)

After pricking European ears following his early breakout with Flamengo at the tender age of 17, Reinier's move to Real Madrid in 2020 sadly didn't amount to the early promise shown for his career.

Reinier, via iG. pic.twitter.com/lx8J7IJxjd

— Informa Fogo (@informafogo) March 2, 2026

Despite commanding a fee of £30m on his move to Madrid, the young Brazilian was consigned to the reserves during his time at the Bernabeu before spending two underwhelming years at Borussia Dortmund, netting just one Bundesliga goal in his time in Germany.

Further loans in Europe would follow with loans to Spanish sides Girona and Granada (in the second tier) sandwiching a spell with Italian side Frosinone (who he was relegated with), all of which failed to see him make the breakthrough expected of him in his early years. After returning from Granada, he was quietly released by Los Blancos and picked up by Atletico Mineiro in 2025, with whom he is still awaiting his first league goal.

6 - Emerson Royal (27, Flamengo)

Tottenham fans amongst us will remember this guy well. Not for the right reasons, of course. But they'll remember him.

Picked up by the North London outfit from Barcelona back in 2021, the Brazilian right-back turned out 79 times in the Premier League between the years of 2021 and 2024, playing all over the defence in light of Spurs' seemingly perennial injury crisis in their backline.

After making far more appearances than anyone expected of him, the defender was flogged to Serie A side AC Milan in the summer of 2024, where he made just 17 appearances before being shipped back to his native Brazil in the form of Flamengo.

5 - Willian (37, Gremio)

A true favourite for many in London, Willian saw and did it all across an eight-year stay in West London with Chelsea.

The Brazilian lifted five major honours with the Blues between the years of 2013 and 2020, including two Premier League titles and the Europa League following a move from Ukrainian side Shakhtar Donetsk and rejecting the advances of rival club Tottenham to his signature.

What a player. 🤩

Happy birthday, Willian! 🇧🇷 pic.twitter.com/mudNrHxOpA

— Chelsea FC (@ChelseaFC) August 9, 2025

234 Premier League appearances and 37 goals later, the Brazilian made his way to Arsenal for an underwhelming one-year stay before jetting back to Brazil by way of boyhood club Corinthians. After a one-year stay, Willian would rescind his contract with the club after being on the receiving end of online threats and abuse, and went back to the Premier League with another London club in the form of Fulham.

He was a hugely popular figure at Craven Cottage in his two-year spell, so much so that he was welcomed back until the end of the 24/25 campaign after an early end to a move to Greek side Olympiacos. After this second contract wound down, he made his way back to Brazil for the third time in his career, though this time in the striking blue of Gremio.

4 - Saul Niguez (31, Flamengo)

Another ex-Chelsea player here, but one likely not as well-remembered as Willian one space back in this list.

🔴⚪️ Saúl Ñíguez magic #OTD in 2016...#UCL | @atletienglish pic.twitter.com/HfmI5w5npM

— UEFA Champions League (@ChampionsLeague) April 27, 2020

He may have only made 10 Premier League appearances during his time in West London on loan from Atletico Madrid, but his achievements with his parent club were there for all to see. In a staggering 13-year career with the La Liga giant, he picked up six major trophies including two Europa League titles whilst also winning 19 caps and scoring thrice for the Spanish national team.

After his release from Atleti in the summer of 2025, the Spanish midfielder joined up with Flamengo on a contract running to the end of 2028, and picked up the Copa Libertadores over Palmeiras just a few months after his arrival.

3 - Andreas Pereira (30, Palmeiras)

Quietly known as 'Andy Perry' amongst some Manchester United fans, Andreas Pereira may not have been built for the 'Big Six' but was a strong star in the Premier League's mid-table.

Born in Belgium whilst his Brazilian ex-pro father Marcos was plying his trade out there, Pereira was picked up by Manchester United as a 16-year-old back in 2011 and made his debut against MK Dons just three years later.

Andreas Pereira on leaving Manchester United 👀 pic.twitter.com/7CJcBp9YzW

— ESPN UK (@ESPNUK) August 2, 2024

Pereira was given a chance as a first-teamer in 2018 after loans with Lazio and Valencia, but failed to cut himself out as a star for the Red Devils. A loan to Brazil followed, before his sale to Fulham in 2022. With the Cottagers, however, Pereira found his lease of life in England's top flight whilst making over 100 Premier League appearances for the West London side, netting nine goals in the process.

He waved a tearful goodbye to Fulham in the summer of 2025 as he joined Palmeiras, marking his first stint as a permanent player in Brazil's Serie A.

2 - Martin Braithwaite (34, Gremio)

The man who earned one of the most surprising transfers in recent history, re-introducing Martin Braithwaite to your lives.

After a fruitful time in Ligue 1 with Toulouse, the Danish striker made his way to England with promotion hopefuls Middlesbrough. He played the first halves of both the 17/18 and 18/19 campaigns on Teesside, underwhelming each time and joining Bordeaux and Leganes on loan in France and Spain respectively. After a decent-enough start to his first permanent season with the latter, Barcelona for some reason opted to bring the forward over to the Camp Nou.

🔵🔴 That's now 4 goals in 3 games for new Barcelona hero Martin Braithwaite! ⚽️#UCL pic.twitter.com/JmW9XYnmWJ

— UEFA Champions League (@ChampionsLeague) December 2, 2020

This went about as well as you would have expected - Braithwaite netted no more than two league goals in either of his three terms in Catalonia, though he was decent enough in the Champions League, weirdly. He left for Espanyol in 2022. He was relegated with them at the end of his first season, where he had netted 10 goals, and lit up the second tier with a 22-goal haul to help them straight back into the top-flight.

He made his way to Brazil at the end of that campaign, joining Gremio in the summer of 2024. He has netted a solid 23 goals from 55 appearances in all competitions out there, at the age of 34.

1 - Yannick Bolasie (36, Chapecoense)

The true 'streets won't forget' player of our hearts and minds. Yannick Bolasie is still marching on through his career, one that has now taken him out to Brazil with Chapecoense.

Born in France, raised in England and built in the non-league structure of the English game, Bolasie rose through the levels of the game all the way to the Premier League, winning promotion there with Crystal Palace in 2013. After numerous years displaying his jaw-dropping array of skills and tricks, the 50-times-capped DR Congo international would take on spells with Everton, then-Championship side Aston Villa, Middlesbrough, Sporting Lisbon and Anderlecht.

Throwback to that iconic Yannick Bolasie Valentine’s Day tweet 😂 pic.twitter.com/7heXAHVGyA

— Football Talk (@FootballTalkHQ) February 14, 2026

After a whopping 17-goal season in the Turkish second tier with Caykur Rizespor, he would then embark on a short stint back in the EFL with Swansea City, before making his way to Brazil in 2024. Not with Chape, mind you - Bolasie has only been out there over the span of three years now, and has already joined his third club, having played for Criciuma and Cruzeiro before joining Chapecoense at the age of 36.

A true Barclaysman, still making waves out in South America.