Ruben Dias

The Portuguese centre back has been described as a Rolls Royce of a defender, and Premier League club Manchester City have paid over the odds to make him a part of their already galactic squad.

Born in Lisbon, Portugal, on May 14th, 1997, young Ruby began his footballing journey at nine with the academy of hometown club Estrela da Amadora; but his talents were apparent from the get go and within a couple of years Portuguese giants S.L. Benfica took him aboard their youth system. After progressing through the ranks and impressing with Benfica B he was promoted to the first team before the start of the 2017/18 season. He made significant contributions in his debut season which saw him win Primeira Liga’s “Young Player of the Year award.” By the following season he had already cemented his berth in the starting line up and was As Águias’ first choice central defender, making 33 appearances in the league which saw S.L Benfica concede the second fewest number of goals in the division on route to capturing their 37th Primeira Liga title. During the same footballing year he was part of the Portuguese national team which won the inaugural UEFA Nations League beating the Netherlands in the finals. Ruby’s third and final year with O Glorioso saw him deliver a similar level of defensive masterclass, in fact Benfica conceded 5 fewer goals than their title winning year, but would ultimately miss out on the title, losing out to bitter rivals FC Porto. By the summer of 2020 Ruby’s stock had risen to massive proportions, and S.L. Benfica cashed in when Premier League club Manchester City paid a massive €72 million fee to sign the defender to their ranks. The centre back made his debut for The Citizens shortly thereafter in 1-1 draw against Leeds United.