Eric Botteghin

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Eric Botteghin
Eric Botteghin FC Red Bull Salzburg gegen Feyenoord Rotterdam (Testspiel 12. Juli 2019) 35 (cropped).jpg
Botteghin with Feyenoord in 2019.
Personal information
Full name Eric Fernando Botteghin
Date of birth (1987-08-31) 31 August 1987 (age 38)
Place of birth São Paulo, Brazil
Height 1.93 m (6 ft 4 in) [1]
Position Centre-back
Team information
Current team
Portuguesa
Youth career
2002–2006 Grêmio Barueri
2005–2006Internacional (loan)
Senior career*
YearsTeamApps(Gls)
2007–2011 PEC Zwolle 140 (12)
2011–2013 NAC Breda 64 (5)
2013–2015 Groningen 73 (5)
2015–2021 Feyenoord 135 (9)
2021–2024 Ascoli 94 (9)
2024–2025 Modena 5 (0)
* Club domestic league appearances and goals as of 17 May 2025

Eric Fernando Botteghin (born 31 August 1987) is a Brazilian professional footballer who plays as a centre-back for Portuguesa.

Contents

Career

Early career

Botteghin played in the youth academy of Grêmio Barueri, but was also loaned out to Internacional for one season. [2] In January 2007, after impressing in a youth tournament in Groningen, he moved to Dutch side FC Zwolle. [3]

Botteghin made his professional debut on 26 January 2007, starting in a 4–1 Eerste Divisie home routing of FC Eindhoven. He scored his first goal on 23 February, in a 2–1 home win over Stormvogels Telstar, and established himself as a regular starter afterwards.

NAC Breda

On 31 March 2011, Botteghin agreed to join Eredivisie side NAC Breda, effective as of 1 July. [4] He made his debut in the category on 14 August, coming on as a half-time substitute for Kees Luijckx in a 2–1 away loss to Heracles Almelo.

Botteghin scored his first goal in the top tier of Dutch football on 28 October 2011, netting the opener in a 3–1 home win over VVV-Venlo. He then became an undisputed starter for the side, contributing with 32 league matches in both seasons.

Groningen

On 28 June 2013, Botteghin moved to fellow top tier side FC Groningen, after the club paid 650,000 for his transfer. [5] He helped the Green-White Army win the KNVB Cup in 2014–15 against defending champions PEC Zwolle; it was their first major trophy and they qualified for the UEFA Europa League. [6] [7]

Feyenoord

Botteghin training with Feyenoord in 2019 FC Red Bull Salzburg gegen Feyenoord Rotterdam (Testspiel 12. Juli 2019) Botteghin.jpg
Botteghin training with Feyenoord in 2019

On 13 August 2015, Botteghin signed a four-year contract with Feyenoord, for a rumoured fee of € 2.5 million. [8] A backup option, he became a first-choice in January 2016, but suffered a knee injury in September 2017; [9] he still signed a new deal until 2020 in November of that year. [10]

Back to action in January 2018, Botteghin played with the under-23s to regain match fitness, before returning to first team duties in February. On 22 April 2018, he played as Feyenoord won the 2017–18 KNVB Cup final 3–0 against AZ Alkmaar. [11]

In 2019, Botteghin became the captain of Feyenoord, and signed a one-year contract extension with the club on 22 July 2020, keeping him at the club until 2021. [2] He left them after the 2020–21 season, after his contract was not extended. [12]

Ascoli

On 3 August 2021, Botteghin moved to Italy after nearly 14 years, and signed a two-year contract with Serie B side Ascoli. [13] He immediately became a starter, and was a team captain during the 2023–24 season.

Modena

On 17 July 2024, Botteghin moved to fellow second division side Modena on a one-year deal. [14] After only five matches, he left after his contract expired. [15]

Portuguesa

On 21 November 2025, after nearly two decades in Europe, Botteghin returned to his home country and joined Portuguesa. [16]

Personal life

Botteghin is a Brazilian with Italian ancestry; his paternal great-grandfather was originally from Treviso and moved to Brazil during the World War II. [17] Due to that, he is also an Italian citizen through jus sanguinis. [18]

Career statistics

As of match played 2 November 2024 [19]
Appearances and goals by club, season and competition
ClubSeasonLeagueState league [a] National cup [b] EuropeOtherTotal
DivisionAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoals
PEC Zwolle 2006–07 Eerste Divisie 14300143
2007–08 27200272
2008–09 365002 [c] 0385
2009–10 351101 [c] 0371
2010–11 271204 [c] 0331
Total13912307014912
NAC Breda 2011–12 Eredivisie 32210332
2012–13 32321344
Total64531676
Groningen 2013–14 Eredivisie38231413
2014–15 343502 [d] 0413
2015–16 1000001 [e] 020
Total735812010846
Feyenoord 2015–16 Eredivisie220310000251
2016–17 344315 [d] 01 [e] 0435
2017–18 120301 [f] 01 [e] 0170
2018–19 222101 [d] 11 [e] 0253
2019–20 202309 [d] 2324
2020–21 251104 [d] 0301
Total13591422033017214
Ascoli 2021–22 Serie B 32210332
2022–23 37320393
2023–24 25410264
Total94950999
Modena 2024–25 Serie B400040
Portuguesa 2026 Série D 000000
Career total509400033422311057547
  1. Includes Campeonato Paulista
  2. Includes KNVB Cup, Coppa Italia
  3. 1 2 3 Appearance(s) in Eerste Divisie promotion play-offs
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 Appearance(s) in UEFA Europa League
  5. 1 2 3 4 Appearance in Johan Cruyff Shield
  6. Appearance in UEFA Champions League

Honours

Groningen

Feyenoord [19]

References

  1. Eric Botteghin at WorldFootball.net
  2. 1 2 "Botteghin blijft bij Feyenoord". feyenoord.nl. Feyenoord. 22 July 2020. Retrieved 22 July 2020.
  3. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 15 October 2009. Retrieved 12 December 2010.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  4. "NAC strikt talenten Buijs en Botteghin" [NAC sign talents Buijs and Botteghin] (in Dutch). Algemeen Dagblad. 31 March 2011. Retrieved 23 November 2025.
  5. "Botteghin in navolging van Wijnaldum naar FC Groningen" [Botteghin follows Wijnaldum to FC Groningen] (in Dutch). Voetbal International. 28 June 2013. Retrieved 23 November 2025.
  6. "Groningen claim first trophy with KNVB Cup triumph". Goal.com. 4 May 2015. Retrieved 18 May 2015.
  7. "PEC Zwolle vs. Groningen - 3 May 2015 - Soccerway". za.soccerway.com.
  8. Update: FC Groningen heeft 'op enkele details na' akkoord met Feyenoord (Update: FC Groningen has reached an agreement with Feyenoord 'except for a few details') (in Dutch). Voetbalprimeur. 13 August 2015
  9. "Feyenoorder Botteghin maanden uit roulatie door knieblessure" [Feyenoord player Botteghin out of action for months due to knee injury] (in Dutch). NU.nl. 25 September 2017. Retrieved 23 November 2025.
  10. Groenstege, Minne (15 November 2017). "Botteghin verlengt contract bij Feyenoord tot 2020" [Botteghin extends contract with Feyenoord until 2020]. ad.nl (in Dutch). Algemeen Dagblad . Retrieved 22 July 2020.
  11. "AZ vs. Feyenoord - 22 April 2018 - Soccerway". int.soccerway.com.
  12. "Feyenoord staat stil bij afscheid Van Beek, Nieuwkoop en Botteghin" [Feyenoord pays tribute to Van Beek, Nieuwkoop and Botteghin]. feyenoord.nl (in Dutch). 4 June 2021.
  13. "Verdediger Botteghin verruilt Feyenoord voor Ascoli" [Defender Botteghin leaves Feyenoord for Ascoli]. RTL Nieuws (in Dutch). 3 August 2021.
  14. "Calciomercato: Botteghin è gialloblù" [Transfer Market: Botteghin is yellow and blue] (in Italian). Modena. 17 July 2024. Retrieved 10 August 2024.
  15. "Modena, Caldara saluta. Addio anche a Botteghin, Tremolada e Duca. Rinnovano in tre" [Modena, Caldara bids farewell. Botteghin, Tremolada, and Duca also bid farewell. Three of them renew their contracts] (in Italian). Tutto Mercato Web. 1 July 2025. Retrieved 23 November 2025.
  16. "Portuguesa contrata Eric Botteghin, ex-capitão do Feyenoord" [Portuguesa sign Eric Botteghin, former Feyenoord captain] (in Brazilian Portuguese). ge. 21 November 2025. Retrieved 23 November 2025.
  17. "Le giovanili con Pato, il successo in Olanda e la B: "L'Ascoli ha esaudito il mio desiderio di giocare in Italia"" [The youth team with Pato, success in the Netherlands, and Serie B: "Ascoli fulfilled my dream of playing in Italy"] (in Italian). Gianluca Di Marzio.com. 10 March 2022. Retrieved 19 September 2023.
  18. "Ascoli Calcio, Botteghin ha lasciato il Brasile per diventare un nuovo calciatore bianconero" [Ascoli Calcio, Botteghin has left Brazil to become a new black and white player] (in Italian). Piceno Time. 24 July 2021. Retrieved 19 September 2023.
  19. 1 2 Eric Botteghin at Soccerway . Retrieved 17 August 2018.
  20. "Profile". www.vi.nl. Voetbal International.