No, this isn’t a case of déjà vu. Recently promoted Académico de Viseu have been honoured with back-to-back Figure of the Week features. After André Clóvis last time round, it is time for João Guilherme to take a bow.
‘Os Viriatos’ (A reference to Viriathus, the leader of the Lusitanians, assumed to have lived for a significant period in the vicinity) commenced their long-awaited return with a visit to Benfica’s Estádio da Luz and a surprise 2-2 draw are showing no signs of slowing down.
Viseu clearly enjoy facing Lisbon-based sides, as they have since beaten Estoril Praia (H) and Estrela da Amadora (A) before heading to Sporting CP’s Estádio José Alvalade, where Brazilian forward João Guilherme stole the show to make it five wins in a row for the viseenses.
From representing the worst team in the world to becoming the talk of the town for Portugal’s surprise package, this is the story of João Guilherme, PortuGOAL’s latest Figure of the Week. Kevin Fernandes reports.
Slow steps to the top
João Guilherme de Souza Crispim commenced his professional career at the curiously named club ‘Três Passos’ in his native Brazil (that’s ‘three steps’, if literally translated into the English language).
The winger from Teresina, Piauí, bounced around various clubs in the third and fourth divisions of Brazil, forging a respectable career in those tiers as a journeyman, loosely following in the footsteps of his father, Batistinha.
Guilherme would even pass through the self-named, self-deprecating ‘pior time do mundo’ (worst team in the world), Íbis, the club who gained global fame after going 3 years and 11 months without winning.
You wouldn’t expect Guilherme to jump from Brazil’s Série D to Liga Portugal after representing 13 clubs by the age of 24, but that is exactly what he has done, taking it all in his stride.
42 games and 13 goal contributions later, the 25-year-old is entering his prime in an unprecedented career turn.
The man that Viseu depend on
Starting in all of Viseu’s league matches (nine, thus far), coach Bruno Pinheiro admitted that Guilherme was fundamental to their approach in the season opener against Benfica: “João was our reference point to hit long balls forward, because we felt that we would have an advantage in his duel with (Samuel) Dahl.”
Guilherme also scored Viseu’s sole goal against Gil Vicente, one that would offer his side their first Liga Portugal victory of their return campaign.
The attacking midfielder can play in any zone in support of a defined centre forward (the prolific André Clóvis in Viseu’s case), excelling in the lesser appreciated arts of off-the-ball work (intelligent movement and defensive contributions), progressive play (particularly carries into the final third to find the correct pass) and shooting (smooth technique).
Viseu currently sit in sixth and while it may be too early to point them towards a top-five finish, the latest PortuGOAL Figure of the Week will be one to watch in one of Portugal’s most cohesive, functional and plucky sides.
Kevin Fernandes’ Team of the Week (Gameweek 9):
My @ligaportugal Team Of The Week - GW9 (One player per team, one will become my latest @PortuGoal1 'Figure of the Week' - weekly article out soon) https://t.co/hneZowjsTp
— Kevin Fernandes (@kevinaraujof) October 27, 2026
