Cristiano (footballer, born 1983)
# Cristiano (footballer, born 1983)

Cristiano Moraes de Oliveira (born 28 September 1983), known simply as Cristiano, is a Brazilian retired footballer who played as an attacking midfielder.

He spent most of his professional career in Portugal, amassing Primeira Liga totals of 135 games and 17 goals over the course of eight seasons, almost exclusively with Paços de Ferreira.

## Club career

Born in Manaus, Amazonas, Cristiano started playing football with two local clubs, Nacional Futebol Clube and São Raimundo Esporte Clube (AM), representing the latter on loan. In August 2005 he moved to Portugal and joined F.C. Paços de Ferreira, being rarely used in his debut season in the Primeira Liga (eight appearances, all as a substitute).

In the 2006–07 campaign, Cristiano contributed with 26 matches – two goals, one of them in a 1–1 home draw against Sporting CP on 17 February 2007– as Paços finished in sixth position, qualifying to the UEFA Cup for the first time in the club's history. He continued to feature regularly for the northerners in the following years, scoring a career-best seven goals in 2008–09.

On 6 November 2009, Cristiano netted twice as Paços won 3–0 at C.F. Belenenses. Shortly after, in the following January transfer window, he moved to PAOK FC in Greece, signing a two-and-a-half-year contract; after only a few games he suffered an anterior cruciate ligament injury, being sidelined for about six months.

Cristiano returned to Portugal in late January 2011, joining Sporting as a free agent and reuniting with former Paços de Ferreira manager Paulo Sérgio. In June, after just five competitive appearances, he was released and signed a two-year deal with S.C. Beira-Mar the following month.

