22
Joel Dinis
Castro Pereira

Goalkeeper

Portugal

Season Overview

12

Appearances

12

Starts

1,080

Mins Played

4

Clean Sheets

41

Saves

Protecting

Punches

6

Catches

14

Shot-stopping

Saves outside box

15

Saves inside box

25

Passing

Succcessful Long Passes

55

Succcessful Short Passes

185

Bio

Born in Switzerland to Portuguese parents, it was Pereira's performances at youth level with Neuchâtel Xamax that convinced the Red Devils to bring him to England at the age of 16 in 2012.

After a few years playing youth football with United, he made his first appearances in senior football during a two-month loan spell up the road at Rochdale in 2015 – keeping a clean-sheet on his League One debut in a win in Doncaster.

The following summer, he was named Best Goalkeeper at the Toulon Tournament – representing Portugal, after switching his allegiance from Switzerland – and his penalty shoot-out saves helped his nation win the third-place play-off at the Czech Republic’s expense.

He spent the first half of 2016-17 on loan with Belenenses in Portugal, before returning to make his senior debut for the Old Trafford side as a sub in an FA Cup win against Wigan. His Premier League debut came on the final day of the campaign, keeping a clean-sheet against a Crystal Palace side that boasted Christian Benteke and Wilfried Zaha in its attack.

Over the next three seasons, he would go on to garner more competitive experience during loan spells with Vitória de Setúbal in Portugal, KV Kortrijk in Belgium, Hearts in Scotland, before finally spending a season-long stint at Huddersfield Town in 2020-21.

Since being released by United in the summer of 2021, Pereira has spent the past two seasons in the Netherlands in the colours of RKC Waalwijk. He signed for the Royals after training with the team throughout the 2023 summer.