Nathan (footballer, born 1996)

Nathan

Nathan in 2016
Personal information
Full name	Nathan Allan de Souza
Date of birth	13 March 1996
Place of birth	Blumenau, Brazil
Height	1.77 m (5 ft 10 in)
Playing position	Midfielder
Club information
Current team	Vitesse (on loan from Chelsea)
Number	11
Youth career
2009–2013	Atlético Paranaense
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps	(Gls)
2013–2015	Atlético Paranaense	11	(0)
2015–	Chelsea	0	(0)
2015–	→ Vitesse (loan)	30	(5)
National team
2013–2014	Brazil U17	5	(5)
2014–	Brazil U20	14	(3)
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 3 December 2016.

Nathan Allan de Souza (born 13 March 1996), simply known as Nathan, is a Brazilian footballer who plays for Vitesse on loan from Chelsea. Mainly an attacking midfielder, he can also play as a left winger or as a second striker.

Club career

Atlético Paranaense

Born in Blumenau, Santa Catarina, Nathan joined Atlético Paranaense's prolific youth setup in 2009, at the age of 13.^[1] He was promoted to the main squad in 2014, initially appearing with the under-23 team in Campeonato Paranaense. His debut came on 29 January in the first stage of the Copa Libertadores away at Sporting Cristal, playing ten minutes in place of Marcelo Cirino in a 1–2 loss.^[2] A week later in the second leg, he came on as a substitute and had his attempt saved in the penalty shootout, although his team advanced nonetheless.^[3]

Nathan made his Série A debut on 22 May, coming on as a second-half substitute for Paulinho Dias in a 1–1 away draw against Corinthians.^[4] In October, after rejecting a contract renewal,^[5] the club and the player went to court, with him being demoted back to the under-23s.^[6]

Chelsea

On 1 July 2015, Nathan joined Chelsea for an undisclosed fee rumoured to be in the region of £4.5 million, having initially confirming he had signed in May 2015.^[7][8][9]

Loan to Vitesse

Nine days after signing for Chelsea, it was announced that Nathan was join to Dutch side Vitesse Arnhem on loan, along with Isaiah Brown and Lewis Baker.^[10] He made his debut on 6 August in a UEFA Europa League third qualifying round second leg against Southampton at the GelreDome, replacing Baker for the final 21 minutes of a 0–2 home defeat for a 0–5 aggregate elimination.^[11] He made his Eredivisie debut three days later in a 1–1 draw against Willem II, replacing Brown with 25 minutes to spare. On 14 August he scored his first goal, again as a substitute, concluding a 3–0 home win over Roda JC.^[12] On 4 October, Nathan scored his second goal for the club in a 5–0 victory over FC Groningen.^[13]

On 9 June 2016, Nathan's loan at Vitesse was extended for the 2016/17 campaign.^[14] On the opening day of 2016/17 season, Nathan scored a brace against Willem II in a 4–1 win.^[15]

International career

Nathan has represented Brazil in both under-17 and under-20 levels. He made his debut with the under-17s during the 2013 FIFA U-17 World Cup, scoring five goals, including braces in the 6–1 group stage wins against Slovakia and hosts United Arab Emirates. He scored their equaliser in the 1–1 draw against holders Mexico in the quarter-finals and netted in the subsequent penalty shootout, but Mexico won 11–10.^[16] Nathan was voted as the second best player of the tournament, winning the Silver Ball.^[17]

He was also included in Alexandre Gallo's 23-man squad for the 2015 South American Youth Championship held in Uruguay.^[18] Nathan appeared in all matches during the competition, scoring his first goal on 4 February, netting the first in a 5–0 routing over Peru.

Style of play

Tim Vickery, a reporter on South American football, called Nathan "a playmaker who can thread a little pass". He said that although he performed well as an under-17 international, his performances at under-20 were below standard, concluding that "it’s difficult to see what he has done in the last season to justify" interest from Chelsea.^[19]

Career statistics

As of 3 December 2016.^[20]

Club	Season	League			Cup		Continental		Other		Total
		Division	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals
Atlético Paranaense	2013	Série A	11	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	11	0
	2014	Série A	0	0	2	0	2[lower-alpha 1]	0	7[lower-alpha 2]	1	11	1
	2015	Série A	0	0	0	0	0	0	2[lower-alpha 2]	0	2	0
Total			11	0	2	0	2	0	9	1	24	1
Vitesse (loan)	2015–16	Eredivisie	18	2	0	0	1[lower-alpha 3]	0	0	0	19	2
	2016–17	Eredivisie	12	3	1	1	0	0	0	0	13	4
Totals			30	5	1	1	1	0	0	0	32	6
Career totals			41	5	3	1	3	0	9	1	56	7

1. Appearances in Copa Libertadores
2. Appearances in Campeonato Paranaense
3. Appearances in UEFA Europa League

References

1. "Sub-17: Reserva protagonista, Nathan foi decisivo para o título da Copa Brasil" [Under-17s: Protagonist substitute, Nathan was decisive to Copa Brasil's title] (in Portuguese). Atlético Paranaense's official website. 22 July 2012. Retrieved 15 April 2015.
2. "Sporting Cristal ganó 2 a 1 al Atlético Paranaense por la Copa Libertadores" [Sporting Cristal won 2–1 won against Atlético Paranaense in the Copa Libertadores] (in Spanish). Deportes Perú. Retrieved 17 May 2015.
3. "Atl. Paranaense, 2 (5) - Sporting Cristal, 1 (4). El Paranaense al grupo 1" [Atl. Paranaense 2–1 Sporting Cristal (5–4). Paranaense to group one]. Terra (in Spanish). 5 February 2014. Retrieved 17 May 2015.
4. "Atlético-PR arranca empate com o Timão e frustra a Fiel mais uma vez" [Atlético-PR gets a draw against Timão and frustrates Fiel once more] (in Portuguese). Globo Esporte. 22 May 2014. Retrieved 15 April 2015.
5. "Atlético-PR tenta renovar contrato de Nathan, mas jogador rejeita proposta" [Atlético-PR tries to renew Nathan's contract, but player rejects bid] (in Portuguese). Globo Esporte. 6 October 2014. Retrieved 15 April 2015.
6. "Jovem do Atlético-PR sofre com extra-campo, mas garante: "Sei o que quero"" [Atlético-PR's youngster suffers with outside, but assures: "I know what I want"] (in Portuguese). Globo Esporte. 10 December 2014. Retrieved 15 April 2015.
7. "Chelsea have agreed to sign Nathan". Chelsea F.C. 14 May 2015. Retrieved 14 May 2015.
8. "Nathan signs Chelsea contract, Brazil under-20 midfielder announces". ESPNFC. 11 May 2015. Retrieved 23 July 2015.
9. "Nathan: Chelsea sign Brazilian midfielder for undisclosed fee". BBC Sport. 14 May 2015. Retrieved 14 May 2015.
10. "Brown and Nathan in Dutch loan". Chelsea F.C. Retrieved 10 July 2015.
11. "Vitesse 0-2 Southampton". BBC Sport. 6 August 2015. Retrieved 7 August 2015.
12. "Chelsea loanees among the goals as Vitesse win". Eurosport. Reuters. 14 August 2015. Retrieved 14 August 2015.
13. "Vitesse 5-0 Groningen". Soccerway. 4 October 2015.
14. "Vitesse loan for Nathan". Chelsea F.C. 9 June 2016.
15. "Willem II 1-4 Vitesse". Vitesse. 6 August 2016.
16. "Mexico edge Brazil in penalty marathon". FIFA. 1 November 2013. Retrieved 2 June 2015.
17. "2013 FIFA U17 World Cup — FIFA". FIFA. Retrieved 2014-05-31.
18. "Gallo convoca seleção brasileira que disputará o Sul-Americano sub-20" [Gallo calls up Brazil national team which will play in South American under-20] (in Portuguese). Esporte Interativo. 27 November 2014. Retrieved 24 January 2015.
19. Akerman, Nick (16 April 2015). "Chelsea Transfer News: Nathan Deal Doubted, Latest Oscar and Danny Rose Rumours". Bleacher Report. Retrieved 16 April 2015.
20. Nathan profile at Soccerway

External links

• Ogol profile (Portuguese)
• Nathan profile at Soccerway