Estrela (footballer)

Estrela (footballer)
Valdomiro Tualungo Paulo Lameira (born 22 September 1995), known as Estrela, is an Angolan professional footballer who plays as a defensive midfielder for Erzurumspor F.K. and the Angola national team.
Club career
Estrela began his career in S.L. Benfica's youth squad in 2006, joining the under-19 squad in 2011. He was part of the squad that competed in the 2013–14 UEFA Youth League, including a match against Manchester City under-19 in which he scored a goal. Benfica went on to be runners-up in the tournament, losing to the under-19 squad of Barcelona 0–3 in the final. He had signed a contract to stay with Benfica until 2020.
On 8 July 2014, it was announced that he and teammate Rafael Ramos were transferred to Orlando City SC of the USL Pro, the third level of the United States soccer league system, on 3.5-year professional contracts as part of an affiliation between the two clubs. The players' contracts would see the two new signings finish out the 2014 USL Pro season with the club before transitioning into Major League Soccer in 2015.
He, along with Ramos, made his professional debut on 23 August 2014 in a league match against the Richmond Kickers. In the 8th minute of the match, he volleyed a strike from outside of the box to also score his first goal for the club. The 3–2 victory was notable for Ramos also scoring his first goal for the club in his debut in addition to Kevin Molino breaking the single-season league goal scoring record. After the match, head coach Adrian Heath stated in regards to the two new players, "I thought that the two new players (Estrela and Ramos) were outstanding, considering that they haven't played for two or three weeks. Their contribution was massive..."
He went on to make five league appearances for the club, scoring one goal, during the 2014 USL Pro season, Orlando City's last in the league before making the jump to Major League Soccer. The defender also started and played 90 minutes of Orlando's defeat to the Harrisburg City Islanders in the first round of the playoffs which saw Orlando eliminated. Estrela was released by Orlando on 30 January 2016.
On 1 February 2016, he joined Cypriot champions APOEL FC on a two-and-a-half-year contract. Estrela made his first and only appearance for APOEL on 27 February 2016, coming on as a 71st-minute substitute in his team's 3–0 home victory against Ayia Napa for the Cypriot First Division. A few months after joining APOEL, he crowned champion for the first time in his career, as his team managed to win the Cypriot First Division title for a fourth time in the row. On 10 August 2016, Estrela's contract with APOEL was mutually terminated. On 29 October 2016, he signed a contract until 2018 with Portuguese side Varzim S.C. from LigaPro.
On 4 July 2019 he signed a 3-year contract with Primeira Liga club Aves.
International career
He, along with Orlando teammate Ramos, was called to camp with the Portugal national under-20 team in October 2014, despite being born in Angola. The camp, which was his first international experience, was part of Portugal's preparation for the 2015 FIFA U-20 World Cup.
On 22 September 2020, Estrela was called-up by the senior Angola national football team. He made his debut on 13 October 2020.
Honours
Benfica
UEFA Youth League runner-up: 2013–14
APOEL
Cypriot First Division: 2015–16
References
External links
APOEL official profile
S.L. Benfica official profile
National team data
Official Facebook Fanpage
1995 births
Living people
Footballers from Luanda
Angolan men's footballers
Angola men's international footballers
Portuguese men's footballers
Portugal men's youth international footballers
Angolan emigrants to Portugal
Portuguese sportspeople of Angolan descent
Men's association football midfielders
Orlando City SC (2010–2014) players
Orlando City SC players
APOEL FC players
USL Championship players
Cypriot First Division players
Angolan expatriate men's footballers
Angolan expatriate sportspeople in the United States
Expatriate men's soccer players in the United States
Angolan expatriate sportspeople in Cyprus
Expatriate men's footballers in Cyprus
Naturalised citizens of Portugal
S.L. Benfica footballers
Varzim S.C. players
C.D. Aves players
Liga Portugal 2 players
Primeira Liga players
Black Portuguese sportspeople
Portuguese expatriate men's footballers
Portuguese expatriate sportspeople in the United States
Portuguese expatriate sportspeople in Cyprus
Erzurumspor F.K. footballers
Expatriate men's footballers in Turkey
TFF First League players