Canadian footy fan adds Eustáquio match-worn shirt to his collection

Story by Richard Scott

It’s a day and a trip that Canadian soccer supporter André Laranjeiro will likely remember for the rest of his life. The Canadian superfan flew more than 5,500 kilometres to see his favourite team FC Porto and he came home with the shirt off Stephen Eustáquio’s back.

Armed with a homemade sign and a Canadian flag, Laranjeiro found himself in the right place at the right moment when Eustáquio spotted Laranjeiro’s message during the post-match celebrations at the Estádio do Dragão.

“Stephen, I flew 5,500 km for your jersey.”

Laranjeiro was born and raised in Hamilton, Ontario where he played his youth soccer with Mount Hamilton SC. His parents were born just south of Porto before they immigrated to Canada, so it should come as no surprise that one of Europe’s biggest clubs easily became Laranjeiro’s favourite club. Growing up, he even wore the number 99 on the local Hamilton soccer fields in honour of his favourite player, goalkeeper Vítor Baía.

Fast forward to 2023 and his favourite Portuguese club now features a Canadian at midfield for the first time in club history. Eustáquio joined the club in 2022 and he helped them win the 2021-22 Primeira Liga. They finished second in the league in 2022-23 and reached the last 16 in UEFA Champions League while Eustáquio also had the honour of representing Canada at the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar.

Laranjeiro had seen FC Porto in action before, but on this September trip it was the first time he got the chance to watch his favourite club while sitting next to his grandfather. They went together to both an away match against CF Estrela Amadora SAD and then a home match against Gil Vicente. It was in that home match that Eustáquio scored the 91^st minute match winner and gave Laranjeiro the memento of a lifetime.

“I watched that first match with my grandfather and I brought my Canada flag to that match,” said Laranjeiro. “It’s a smaller stadium and I waved my flag, but I couldn’t get his attention. I thought I would try again the following week at their home match, but I figured my chances were going to be less likely.”

After the home win, Laranjeiro took his chances and moved down to the first row, but he may never have got the chance to draw Eustáquio’s attention had the Canadian not scored his first goal of the 2023-24 season. By winning Player of the Match honours, Eustáquio was positioned close to Laranjeiro to conduct the post-match interviews. When Eustáquio noticed the Canada flag and special poster, he made sure to toss Laranjeiro the jersey of his dreams.

It turned out to be quite the day for Laranjeiro, who also got to meet his hero Vítor Baía (who now works for the club). FC Porto scored first inside 10 minutes, Gil Vicente equalised less than half an hour later, and then Eustáquio came out the hero when he headed the match winner from a corner kick.

Laranjeiro has been collecting football jerseys for quite some time. He started with an FC Porto 2004-05 home kit and has since amassed more than 100 different jerseys in his collection. He has 31 different FC Porto jerseys, one of which he was wearing when he was amongst the 37,616 fans at the Estádio do Dragão in September.

As his collecting interests have evolved, he started getting some of his jerseys autographed and now has 14 signed jerseys. Then in 2018 he got his first match-worn shirt from Toronto FC fullback Gregory van der Wiel and his collecting interests evolved once again. Already some of the notable match-worn shirts in his collection include Milan Borjan (who also played at Mount Hamilton SC), Triston Henry (from the inaugural CPL Final with Forge FC Hamilton), Luis Nani, Michael Bradley, and Jhonder Cádiz.

Laranjeiro now has 19 match-worn shirts including the Eustáquio number 6.

“I try to get something that hits home,” said Laranjeiro. “I’m happy to get a shirt when I can, especially if there is a connection.”

On that memorable day in September, everything just fell into place for Laranjeiro. It was the right place, the right moment, and the perfect result, but ultimately it was that connection to Canada that got Laranjeiro his prized shirt off the back of FC Porto’s international star Eustáquio.