Rui Silva is lucky

Portuguese goalkeeper Rui Silva, 30 years old, reached the number of 300 official matches this past Sunday in the clash between Real Betis and RC Celta played at Benito Villamarín. “300 official matches is an important number that I am proud of. They are the result of a lot of effort and dedication over the years, and I reached this mark in what I consider to be the best phase of my career so far. The best is yet to come,” declared the Betis goalkeeper after reaching the aforementioned number of games and before joining the training camp of the Portuguese national team.

Rui Silva has four clean sheets this season in La Liga – only Remiro and Oblak surpass him, with seven and six, respectively – and is one of the goalkeepers in the five major European leagues to rule of chances to avoid scoring a goal. In his 300 appearances, Rui Silva has kept a clean sheet 97 times (32%).

Rui Silva’s career has reached several key stages: after making his debut at the age of 19 with Nacional, where he accumulated 57 appearances between the Primeira Liga and Taça da Liga, Rui moved to Spain in 2017 to wear a Granada shirt. Initially a substitute, he managed to get the starting position thanks to his excellent performance, becoming a pillar of the team.

In the 2018/19 season he was decisive in Granada’s promotion to La Liga, with 18 clean sheets in 40 games (45%) and the title of best goalkeeper in Liga2. The following season, in his debut in the Spanish top flight, Rui contributed to the club’s historic first Europa League qualification.

In 2021, he was called up by the Portuguese team for the Euro Cup and made his debut with the Portuguese team in a friendly against Israel, winning 4-0. That same summer he joined Real Betis, where he established himself in one of the strongest teams in LaLiga, becoming an international goalkeeper thanks to his constant participation in European competitions and his constant calling the national team.