João Pedro (footballer, born 1998)
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| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | João Pedro da Silva Freitas | ||
| Date of birth | 24 June 1998 | ||
| Place of birth | Baucau, Indonesia | ||
| Height | 1.72 m (5 ft 8 in) | ||
| Positions | |||
| Team information | |||
Current team | Kuching City | ||
| Number | 22 | ||
| Youth career | |||
| Centro Treinamento Futebol Juvenil Timor-Leste | |||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2015–2019 | SLB Laulara | (7+) | |
| 2019 | Ubon United | ||
| 2020 | SLB Laulara | ||
| 2020–2022 | UiTM | 2 | (0) |
| 2022–2023 | Lalenok United | ||
| 2023–2024 | Benfica de Macau | 43 | (37) |
| 2024 | PSM Makassar | 10 | (0) |
| 2024–2025 | Angkor Tiger | 26 | (7) |
| 2025– | Kuching City | 18 | (3) |
| International career‡ | |||
| 2018– | Timor-Leste | 27 | (8) |
|
* Club domestic league appearances and goals as of 14 March 2026 ‡ National team caps and goals as of 18 November 2025 | |||
João Pedro da Silva Freitas (born 24 June 1998) is an East Timorese professional footballer who plays as a winger or a forward for Malaysia Super League club Kuching City and the Timor-Leste national team.
João Pedro is currently the all-time top scorer of the Timor-Leste national team with 8 goals. He also holds the record for the highest goal scoring Timorese to score in the ASEAN Championship.
Club career
[edit]João Pedro was signed on a free transfer from Cambodian club Angkor Tiger FC by Malaysia Super League club Kuching City on June 28, 2025. This was amid strong interest from another Malaysian club Kuala Lumpur City, whose chairman had publicly declared their intent to sign the Timorese striker for the upcoming season.[1]
In his first season with the Malaysian outfit, João Pedro made seven appearances for Kuching City in the Piala Malaysia, helping them reach the final against reigning champions Johor.
João Pedro's performance in the Piala Malaysia final was lauded by many fans and critics, highlighted by his dribbles past Johor defenders Feroz Baharudin and Antonio Glauder.[2] He was also praised by Kuching City manager Aidil Sharin Sahak, who commended his speed and crossing ability.[3]
International career
[edit]João Pedro made his national team debut for Timor-Leste at the 2018 AFF Championship tournament. On 17 November 2018, he made his first international goal against Philippines.[4]
On 7 June 2019, João Pedro scored Timor-Leste's only goal in a 7–1 defeat to Malaysia in 2022 FIFA World Cup qualification.[5]
On 5 September 2024, João Pedro scored a hat-trick in a 4–1 victory over Mongolia in the first leg of the 2027 AFC Asian Cup qualification – play-off round.[6]
During the 2024 ASEAN Championship against Cambodia on 17 November 2024. João Pedro become the joint top scorer for Timor-Leste with 7 goals.
On 10 June 2025, Pedro scored the lone goal in a 1–0 win against Maldives in the third round of 2027 AFC Asian Cup qualification, making him become the all-time top scorer for the Timor-Leste national team.
Career statistics
[edit]International
[edit]- As of match played 18 November 2025[7]
| National team | Year | Apps | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|
| Timor-Leste | 2018 | 6 | 1 |
| 2019 | 2 | 1 | |
| 2021 | 2 | 0 | |
| 2022 | 3 | 0 | |
| 2023 | 2 | 0 | |
| 2024 | 7 | 5 | |
| 2025 | 5 | 1 | |
| Total | 27 | 8 | |
- Scores and results list Timor-Leste's goal tally first.[7]
| No. | Date | Venue | Opponent | Score | Result | Competition |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | 17 November 2018 | Kuala Lumpur Stadium, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia |  Philippines | 2–3 | 2–3 | 2018 AFF Championship |
| 2. | 7 June 2019 | Bukit Jalil National Stadium, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia |  Malaysia | 1–4 | 1–7 | 2022 FIFA World Cup qualification |
| 3. | 5 September 2024 | Kapten I Wayan Dipta Stadium, Gianyar, Indonesia |  Mongolia | 1–0 | 4–1 | 2027 AFC Asian Cup qualification |
| 4. | 2–0 | |||||
| 5. | 3–1 | |||||
| 6. | 11 December 2024 | Bukit Jalil National Stadium, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia | Malaysia | 2–1 | 2–3 | 2024 ASEAN Championship |
| 7. | 17 December 2024 | Phnom Penh Olympic Stadium, Phnom Penh, Cambodia |  Cambodia | 1–0 | 1–2 | |
| 8. | 10 June 2025 | Territory Rugby League Stadium, Darwin, Australia |  Maldives | 1–0 | 1–0 | 2027 AFC Asian Cup qualification |
Honours
[edit]ASEAN All-Stars
Individual
References
[edit]- ↑ "Timor Leste's Joao aims to go far with Kuching City". thestar.com.my. Retrieved 30 June 2025.
- ↑ "Joao Pedro 'Pukau' Penonton Di Bukit Jalil Sekali Lagi". makanbola.com (in Malay). Retrieved 24 May 2026.
- ↑ "Brave Kuching limited against JDT's bench strength". nst.com.my. Retrieved 24 May 2026.
- ↑ "Hasil Piala AFF 2018: Filipina Kalahkan Timor Leste 3-2". sport.detik.com (in Indonesian). Retrieved 6 September 2024.
- ↑ "Malaysia Belasah Timor Leste 7-1" (in Malay). Sinar Harian. Retrieved 6 September 2024.
- ↑ https://us.soccerway.com/matches/2024/09/05/asia/asian-cup-qualification/timor-leste/mongolia/4357025/
- 1 2 João Pedro at National-Football-Teams.com
- 1998 births
- Living people
- People from Ainaro Municipality
- East Timorese men's footballers
- Timor-Leste men's international footballers
- Men's association football midfielders
- EUMT F.C. players
- UiTM United players
- Lalenok United F.C. players
- S.L. Benfica de Macau players
- PSM Makassar players
- Angkor Tiger FC players
- Kuching City F.C. players
- Thai League 2 players
- Malaysia Super League players
- Liga de Elite players
- Super League (Indonesia) players
- Cambodian Premier League players
- East Timorese expatriate men's footballers
- East Timorese expatriate sportspeople in Thailand
- East Timorese expatriate sportspeople in Malaysia
- East Timorese expatriate sportspeople in Indonesia
- East Timorese expatriate sportspeople in Cambodia
- Expatriate men's footballers in Thailand
- Expatriate men's footballers in Malaysia
- Expatriate men's footballers in Macau
- Expatriate men's footballers in Indonesia
- Expatriate men's footballers in Cambodia
- 21st-century East Timorese people