Ruben’s passion for football was deeply rooted in his upbringing in Mozelos, where his parents owned a sports store selling sporting goods. Growing up near FC Porto further fueled his love for the club. Known as the “Rolls Royce” of midfield for his smooth and commanding style on the field, Ruben has had a remarkable journey in both his career and personal life.
Surrounded by relatives who played football, Ruben easily integrated himself into the game from a young age. This article explores Ruben’s journey, delving into the factors that shaped his mature personality and the steely determination that has made him a natural leader. Let’s delve into the story of this midfield maestro known as the “Rolls Royce”.
Nicknamed “Midfield Rolls Royce”: Ruben Neves’ Early Years & Rise
Ruben Neves Childhood Story and Untold Biography Facts provides a comprehensive account from his early years to the present day. The analysis involves his family background, life story before fame, rise to fame story, relationship and personal life.
Yes, everyone knows about his small stature and softly-spoken ability. However, only a few consider Ruben Neves’ Biography, which is quite interesting. Now, without further ado, let’s Begin.
Ruben Neves Childhood Story – Early Life & Family Background:
For Biography starters, his full name is Rúben Diogo da Silva Neves. Ruben Nevez was born on the 13th day of March 1997 to his parents, Mr and Mrs José Neves, in the Portuguese town of Mozelos.
Ruben Neves grew up with his little sister, Vanessa Neves, in a small middle-class family household. He and Fabio Vieira have similar Santa Maria da Feira family origins.
Young Ruben and his sister, Vanessa Neves.
Right from his childhood days, Ruben has been known to be a fan of FC Porto. Aside from always wearing his favourite clothes, the FC Porto jersey, Ruben was also known to have the ball at his feet all times. Now, why is there a ball at his feet?
A rare childhood photo of Ruben Neves.
It’s because his parents had a retail sporting goods business. Back then, as a little boy, Ruben Neves’ mum and dad owned a sports store in the town of Mozelos. Thanks to that, it was easy for Ruben to wear any new FC Porto jersey and keep a soccer ball close to him.
Aside from having parents who sold sporting items, Ruben also grew up with relatives who played football.
How he got his Matured Personality:
One thing was obvious about Ruben Neves early on. It is his “matured personality” that developed in him since his childhood time and has now transcended into the modern-day.
Speaking about this aged long maturity with the Telegraph, Ruben once said;
“I was always like that [mature], probably because of my parents. They always gave me this responsibility to grow and learn fast,”
He continued…
“When I was nine, my father [Jose] went to Spain to work for three years, and I was in Portugal. Seeing him only once a month was difficult.
I was alone with my mother and my sister, who is younger than me.
This was a time I developed the mindset that I was to take care of them. So that probably helped me to be as mature as I am.”
Ruben Neves Biography – Early Career Life:
Without a doubt, Loving the soccer ball, having his parents sell football kits and seeing his relatives playing football surely helped in defining his career path for Ruben.
Just like his relatives, Ruben got enrolled on the roster of his Mozelos local team, Lusitania de Lourosa. While playing with the youth club, he had his dreams set up high for Porto, the club he has supported since childhood.
Ruben never gave up in his zeal to actualize his FC Porto dreams, which he did after a successful trial with the club’s youth rank. Below is a happy Ruben just after he joined Porto’s youth system at the age of 8.
Young Ruben Neves, in his early career years.
During his time with the academy, Ruben was sent to spend a season on loan at Padroense FC, which acted as a sister branch of FC Porto. Also, during his time in FC Porto’s youth structure, he was recognized for his extraordinary mental qualities in addition to his technical and tactical skills.
Ruben Neves Biography – Breaking Records:
Ruben “jumped” directly to the Porto senior team at the very young age of 17. Because he was so talented and fearless, Ruben made an immediate impact on the FC Porto senior team.
Just immediately, in his young professional career, Ruben began breaking records. Ruben Neves broke both nationwide and European records, which took the football world by storm. Here are his early records;
First National Record: Rúben Neves became the youngest player in FC Porto’s history to score in the Primeira Liga.
National Record: At the age of 17 years, five months and seven days, Rúben Neves broke Cristiano Ronaldo‘s record (17 years, six months and nine days). He became the youngest Portuguese player to play in the Champions League.
European Record: In the 2015/16 season, Ruben set a record as the youngest player to captain a football team in the Champions League, achieving this milestone at just 18 years and 221 days old against Maccabi Tel Aviv.
That record still holds at the time of writing, thanks to his maturity for such a young age.
At the age of 18 years and 221 days, Ruben Neves made history by becoming the youngest player to captain a team in the Champions League during the 2015/16 season.
National Record: Lastly, Ruben broke the record to be the youngest player to reach 50 games for Porto. This he accomplished at the age of 18 years and 267 days.
The Jorge Mendes Impact:
Ruben’s amazing records as a youngster made titan of pro soccer representation, and super-agent Jorge Mendes took an interest in him in the year 2014.
Did you know?… Jorge Mendes owns Gestifute International, the world’s most popular football agency. He is a super-agent to top clients such as Jose Mourinho, Cristiano Ronaldo, James Rodriguez, Argentine Angel Di Maria, Man City’s Bernardo Silva, PSG’s Vitinha, Diego Costa, etc.
Ruben Neves once spoke softly about Jorge Mendes, saying,
“Jorge Mendes is a very humble and nice person to deal with. The contacts that he has is mighty. he can place a player in almost any club nowadays, he’s so famous!.
Among all the top clubs in Europe, Jorge Mendes advised Ruben to agree to a move to Wolverhampton Wanders, his then custom-built second English division club.
Against fans’ expectations, Ruben Neves agreed to join Matt Doherty‘s Wolves thanks to two factors that motivated the move.
First was because of Jorge Mendes’s closeness with former boss Nunu Espirito Santo, who, without him, his Gestifute would never have been formed. Ruben trusted both men.
The second reason was that Ruben Neves felt a strong desire to unite with his former Porto boss, Nunu Espirito Santo, who he believed could make him grow into the player he desires.
Ruben Neves Biography – The Wolverhampton Rise:
Upon joining Wolves, Rube wasn’t only reunited with his former boss Nuno Espirito Santo. He saw himself being united with a long list of his Portuguese brothers, who are also clients of Jorge Mendes.
The long list of Portuguese stars continued as he stayed in the club. As of the time of writing, this list includes Diogo Jota, Helder Costa, Joao Moutinho, Rui Patricio and others like Pedro Goncalves, as pictured below.
Breaking Another National Record:
Ruben’s appearance in one of Wolverhampton’s games alongside his compatriots pictured above saw him breaking a Wolves club and league record for the most Portuguese players named in a starting line-up.
Proving Doubters Wrong:
Initially, many fans were of the opinion that Neves made the wrong transfer decision, with rumours circling that “how would a big player like him join the English second division!“.
It took no time before doubting fans realized that Wolverhampton was the perfect club for him to grow.
The Award:
In April 2018, Ruben was nominated for both the EFL Young Player of the Season and Player of the Season awards. His exceptional midfield performances played a crucial role in leading his Wolves team to secure the EFL title that season.
Better than Zidane Chant: A highly controversial chant was what summed Ruben’s dominance in England. To Wolves fans, Neves is better than Zidane.
BUT is that Possible?… Is Neves better than Zidane?? The rest, as they say, is now history.
About Ruben Neves’ Wife, Debora Lourenco:
Behind every successful Portuguese player, there is indeed a glamorous girlfriend or wife. That glamorous wife is seen in the person of Debora Lourenco, who is the beautiful partner to Ruben Neves.
Meet Debora Lourenco. She is Ruben Neves’ wife.
During his time at FC Porto, Ruben met his partner, and anticipating his move to England with Wolves, he planned to start a family at the same time, marking a new chapter in his life.
Did you know?… Ruben was welcomed to the Wolves family at the same time his lovely baby daughter Margarida is born in Portugal. On that day, a restless Ruben had to demand his baby’s photo via his Instagram.
In his first interview with an English newspaper just after his first game, which was also the day of his child’s birth, Ruben Neves told SunSport:
“Not seeing them is the hardest part of all. But thank God for social networks because it is so easy to get in touch nowadays — it’s almost like they’re here.”
The midfielder, who was aged 20, had to fly home to Portugal just after his first game in order to see his partner Debora and baby daughter Margarida.
Even though Ruben settled well in England, it is difficult being away from his newborn child and partner for weeks.
For Ruben Neves, there is no explanation for the incredible feeling of becoming a father. Ruben is indeed a great father who enjoys fatherhood.
Ruben, as at the time of writing, is already reunited with his wife and daughter in the small village of Tettenhall, two miles from the Molineux Stadium of Wolverhampton.
Personal Life:
Despite being small in stature and softly spoken, you can sense that the steeliness in Ruben Neves makes him a natural leader. Ruben is friendly and often finds himself in the company of family, relatives and close friends.
He is a selfless person who is always willing to help others without hoping to get anything back.
Food:
Ruben loves to have a feel of Portugal even while in England. His favourite local haunt still remains Aromas De Portugal, a Portuguese coffee and food shop.
Did you know?… Almost all Portuguese players in Wolverhampton love to have supplies of Aroma’s pastel de natas, the custard tarts that are so beloved in their country.
Fact Check:
Thanks for reading our article on the Untold Biography Facts of Ruben Neves. We aim for accuracy and fairness in our coverage of Portuguese football stories. We’re sure you’ll find the life histories of Matheus Nunes (CM), Alejo Veliz (CF), and the fast-rising Portuguese defensive midfielder Joao Neves equally exciting. If you notice anything about Ruben that seems off, please let us know by commenting below. We value and respect your feedback.
