João Pedro Cavaco Cancelo (born 27 May 1994) is a Portuguese professional footballer who plays primarily as a full-back for Saudi Pro League club Al Hilal and the Portugal national team.

[citation needed] On 28 July 2012, Cancelo made his debut with Benfica's first team in a friendly against Gil Vicente where he played the full 90 minutes as a right back.

[9] Cancelo played his first competitive game with Benfica's main squad on 25 January 2014, coming on as a late substitute in the 1–0 home success against Gil Vicente for the Taça da Liga,[10] which was later won.

Cancelo's performances helped Valencia reach the 2015–16 UEFA Champions League, leading him, on 25 May, to agree to a permanent contract with the club until 30 June 2021, for a transfer fee of €15 million.

[17][18][19][20] In the following season, Cancelo became a starter earning his debut in the Champions League on 16 September, where he scored his first goal for Los Che in a 2–3 home loss to Zenit Saint Petersburg.

[37] On 27 June 2018, Cancelo was signed by Juventus on a five-year contract for €40.4 million,[38] making his domestic league debut on 18 August in a 3–2 away win against Chievo Verona.

[40][41][42] He scored his first league goal the same month, as his team came from behind to defeat Lazio 2–1 at the Stadio Olimpico in Rome; he also helped win the decisive match-winning penalty later during the same game, which was subsequently converted by compatriot Cristiano Ronaldo.

[45] On 7 December, Cancelo provided an assist for Mario Mandžukić in a 1–0 home win against his former club Inter Milan in the Derby d'Italia.

[48] Four days later, Cancelo played in the Scudetto-clinching match against rivals Fiorentina, as Juventus won their eighth successive league title after a 2–1 home triumph.

[55] On 24 February, he was named man of the match, after providing an assist to Bernardo Silva in Manchester City's 2–0 away win over Borussia Mönchengladbach in the first leg of the round of 16 tie.

[56] During the season, Cancelo's ability to come inside from full back to maintain control of the ball in central midfield position, while ensuring his team was in a more stable defensive shape when possession was lost, was praised as being one of the key factors in Manchester City regaining the Premier League title that season, while also being named in the PFA Premier League Team of the Year.

[57][58] On 17 October 2021, Cancelo scored his first goal of the season for City in a 6–3 home Champions League group stage win against RB Leipzig.

[59] On 3 November, Cancelo provided a hat-trick of assists for Phil Foden, Riyad Mahrez and Gabriel Jesus in a 4–1 Champions League group stage home victory against Club Brugge, leading him to be named man of the match.

[65] Cancelo made his debut for Bayern in a 4–0 DFB-Pokal win over Mainz 05, registering an assist for Eric Maxim Choupo-Moting's goal.

[67] On 12 April 2023, having been drawn against each other in the quarter-finals of the Champions League, Cancelo came on as an 80th minute substitute against parent club Manchester City as Bayern were defeated 3–0 in the first leg at the Etihad Stadium.

[70] On 27 May 2023, Cancelo played the full 90 minutes of a 2–1 victory over FC Köln, to clinch the 11th consecutive league title for his club ahead of rivals Borussia Dortmund on goal difference.

[71] Cancelo became the third player, after Daniel Amartey and David Beckham, to win two league titles in different countries in a single season.

[72] At the end of the season, Bayern opted to not activate Cancelo's buy-out clause, in order to prioritize funds for other signings, with his departure being confirmed by the club on 1 July.

[79][80] On 16 September, Cancelo scored his first goal for the club, netting a strike from inside the box in his first start, as Barcelona's home league game against Real Betis ended in a dominant 5–0 win, which earned him the La Liga Goal of the Month award,[81] followed by an assist and a last-minute winner, helping Barcelona overturn a two-goal deficit in a 3–2 home victory against Celta Vigo on 23 September.

[83][84] On 27 August 2024, Cancelo signed for Saudi Pro League club Al-Hilal on a three-year contract in a deal reportedly worth £21.2m.

He replaced left-back Raphaël Guerreiro midway through the second half of the 5–0 semi-final win against Germany for his only appearance of the tournament,[91] in a final runner-up finish to Sweden.

[92] Cancelo was called up for the first time to the senior team by head coach Fernando Santos on 26 August 2016,[93] playing the full 90 minutes of a 5–0 friendly win over Gibraltar in Porto on 1 September and scoring the third goal.

[108][109] During UEFA Euro 2024 qualifying, Cancelo appeared nine times and scored three goals as Portugal won all ten matches in Group J.

[130] In his second season in Manchester City, under manager Pep Guardiola, Cancelo was developed into one of his hybrid players, who plays both at full back and in central midfield in the same game.

During City's 4–3–3 formation, when out of possession, Cancelo moved into central midfield alongside Rodri, leaving five players to form their attacking line.