Paíto

Paíto

Personal information
Full name	Martinho Martins Mukana
Date of birth	(1982-07-05) 5 July 1982
Place of birth	Maputo, Mozambique
Height
Position(s)	Left back
Youth career
	Sporting CP
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps	(Gls)
2001–2003	Sporting B	52	(2)
2003–2006	Sporting CP	24	(0)
2006	→ Vitória Guimarães (loan)	16	(1)
2006–2007	Mallorca	0	(0)
2006–2007	→ Braga (loan)	4	(0)
2007–2010	Sion	77	(3)
2010–2012	Neuchâtel Xamax	41	(1)
2012	Vaslui	13	(1)
2013–2014	Skoda Xanthi	32	(0)
International career‡
2002–	Mozambique	38	(0)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 10 October 2014 ‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 13 October 2012

Martinho Martins Mukana (born 5 July 1982), known as Paíto, is a Mozambican professional footballer who plays as a left back.

Club career

Born in Maputo, Paíto began his professional career at Sporting Clube de Portugal, in the 2002–03 season. He became a regular in his third year and, on 26 January 2005, scored his only goal for the Lions, in a 3–3 Portuguese Cup draw against S.L. Benfica (penalty shootout loss), in a solo effort.

After the arrival in January 2006, on loan from Valencia CF, of Portuguese international Marco Caneira, Paíto was deemed surplus to requirements and left, also loaned, to Vitória de Guimarães where he was an undisputed starter as the Minho club eventually dropped down a level.

Purchased by La Liga side RCD Mallorca, Paíto immediately returned to Portugal, being loaned to Sporting de Braga for the duration of the campaign. Released by the Balearic Islands side without making any official appearances, he joined FC Sion.

After three solid seasons in the Swiss Super League Paíto stayed in Switzerland, signing with fellow league team Neuchâtel Xamax. After the latter went bankrupt in January 2012 he joined FC Vaslui in Romania, reuniting with former Sporting coach Augusto Inácio.

Paíto spent the first half of the following campaign without a club, signing in early January 2013 with Skoda Xanthi F.C. in Greece. He made his Superleague debut on the 27th, playing the full 90 minutes in a 1–0 away win against PAOK FC.

International career

Paíto started representing Mozambique at age 20. He was recalled in April for the 2002 COSAFA Cup, nearly two years after his last international. Additionally, he took part in the 2003 COSAFA Cup, the 2006 FIFA World Cup 2006 World Cup qualification, the 2004 COSAFA Cup, 2008 Africa Cup of Nations qualification and the 2010 World Cup qualifiers.

External links

• Paíto at footballzz.co.uk
• Paíto profile at ForaDeJogo
• Paíto at National-Football-Teams.com
• Paíto – FIFA competition record
• Paíto at Soccerway