| Intro | Footballer |
| Is |
Athlete Football player Association football player |
| From | Germany |
| Type | Sports |
| Gender | male |
| Birth | 10 January 1984, Luanda |
| Age: | 36 years |
Nando Rafael (born 10 January 1984 in Luanda) is an Angolan football striker.
Early life
He fled from the Angolan Civil War at the age of eight after both of his parents had been killed, and resided at first illegally in the Netherlands. There he did not receive a work permit and was therefore unable to play football professionally, forcing him to move elsewhere.
Career
In 2002 he signed for Hertha BSC in Germany. In 2006 he was signed by Borussia Mönchengladbach. His first season at AGF was partly spoiled by injuries, making his impact on the team less significant than expected. His physically strong appearance makes him a solid target player, but he also has good technical skills and is a competent goal scorer. He joined from AGF on 10 January 2010 on loan to FC Augsburg for one season. On 19 July 2010, Rafael signed a two-year contract with FC Augsburg.
On 27 June 2013, Rafael joined China League One club Henan Jianye, replacing Joël Tshibamba who was released by the club.
Statistics
As of 30 June 2016
| Club performance | League | Cup | League Cup | Continental | Total | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | Club | League | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals |
| Netherlands | League | KNVB Cup | League Cup | Europe | Total | |||||||
| 2001–02 | Ajax II | Beloften Eredivisie | 18 | 2 | — | — | ||||||
| 2001–02 | Ajax | Eredivisie | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| Germany | League | DFB-Pokal | DFB-Ligapokal | Europe | Total | |||||||
| 2002–03 | Hertha BSC II | NOFV-Oberliga Nord | 16 | 13 | — | — | — | 16 | 13 | |||
| 2003–04 | 10 | 5 | — | — | — | 10 | 5 | |||||
| 2002–03 | Hertha BSC | Bundesliga | 6 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 7 | 2 |
| 2003–04 | 24 | 5 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 27 | 6 | ||
| 2004–05 | 28 | 6 | 2 | 0 | — | — | 30 | 6 | ||||
| 2005–06 | 12 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 5 | 1 | 19 | 4 | ||
| 2005–06 | Borussia Mönchengladbach | 14 | 3 | 0 | 0 | — | — | 14 | 3 | |||
| 2006–07 | 19 | 3 | 2 | 0 | — | — | 21 | 3 | ||||
| 2007–08 | 2. Bundesliga | 12 | 3 | 1 | 0 | — | — | 13 | 3 | |||
| 2006–07 | Borussia Mönchengladbach II | Regionalliga Nord | 2 | 0 | — | — | — | 2 | 0 | |||
| 2007–08 | Oberliga Nordrhein | 1 | 0 | — | — | — | 1 | 0 | ||||
| Denmark | League | Danish Cup | Danish League Cup | Europe | Total | |||||||
| 2008–09 | AGF | Superliga | 17 | 5 | 2 | 1 | — | — | 19 | 6 | ||
| 2009–10 | 16 | 5 | 0 | 0 | — | — | 16 | 5 | ||||
| Germany | League | DFB-Pokal | DFB-Ligapokal | Europe | Total | |||||||
| 2009–10 | FC Augsburg | 2. Bundesliga | 10 | 4 | 2 | 1 | — | — | 12 | 5 | ||
| 2010–11 | 27 | 14 | 3 | 4 | — | — | 30 | 18 | ||||
| 2011–12 | Bundesliga | 6 | 2 | 1 | 0 | — | — | 7 | 2 | |||
| 2012–13 | Fortuna Düsseldorf | 11 | 2 | 3 | 1 | — | — | 14 | 3 | |||
| China | League | Chinese Cup | League Cup | Asia | Total | |||||||
| 2013 | Henan Jianye | League One | 14 | 7 | — | — | ||||||
| 2014 | Super League | 21 | 3 | — | — | |||||||
| Germany | League | DFB-Pokal | DFB-Ligapokal | Europe | Total | |||||||
| 2015–16 | VfL Bochum | 2. Bundesliga | 8 | 1 | 0 | 0 | — | — | 8 | 1 | ||
| Total | Netherlands | 18 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |||||
| Germany | 206 | 66 | 18 | 7 | 1 | 0 | 6 | 1 | 231 | 74 | ||
| Denmark | 33 | 10 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 35 | 1 | ||
| China | 35 | 10 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||||||
| Career total | 292 | 88 | 1 | 0 | 6 | 1 | ||||||
International career
Rafael was born in Angola, raised in the Netherlands, and moved to Germany as a teenager to further his footballing career. Rafael eventually received a German passport and was a German international at U21 level. He switched to the Angola in the 2012 Africa Cup of Nations. He already played for Palancas Negras in a rated-B friendly match against Portuguese side Sporting CP on 10 November 2011.