OTD: REINILDO BORN

Happy birthday to Sunderland left back Reinildo Mandava who turns 32 today!

Before signing for Sunderland in July 2025, Reinildo was a decorated defender who had played at the top level of both French and Spanish football. Born in the city of Beira in Mozambique, his career started with local team Ferroviário da Beira where he stayed for two years before transferring to GD Maputo in his country’s capital. A year later he moved to Europe, joining Benfica’s B team but he’d only manage to make one appearance for them, instead spending the bulk of his time there out on loan with clubs in Portugal’s second tier.

He eventually went to Belenenses in the top flight of Portugal but found himself on loan with Lille soon after. Despite barely featuring during this loan spell, Reinildo signed for the French outfit permanently in 2019.

This is where the left back began to become more of a known name in European football - during his first season with Lille he played in the Champions League and then in 2020/21 he helped the club to their first Ligue 1 title since 2010/11, surprising the favourites PSG. Reinildo’s performances led to his inclusion in the Ligue 1 Team of the Year. He would spend another half-season in France, winning one more trophy with Lille (the Trophée des Champions) before moving to Spain with Atlético Madrid in 2022.

Reinildo played Champions League football in every single season he spent on the red side of Madrid, making over 100 appearances for the club in all competitions total. He was always more of a naturally defensive fullback rather than a modern-day attacking wingback, and would also find himself as the left-sided centre back in a back 3/5 at times. However, a big ACL injury in 2023 saw him struggle for minutes and he could never truly win back his spot in that team. In summer 2025 his contract expired, Atleti wanted younger options at left back and, now in his 30s, Reinildo was hungry for more regular minutes.

That is why when newly-promoted Sunderland came calling, the opportunity for a fresh challenge in the Premier League was just too tempting for Reinildo. Given his quality and experience, he probably had more enticing offers elsewhere but it was said that the chance to play in the English top flight was a massive deciding factor in the move. His last words as an Atleti player were sincere and emotional: ““I love you all for allowing a Mozambican boy to live this incredible dream.” He forged a great connection with their fans due to his full-blooded and committed style of play, fighting for the badge in every game (something you need if you’re going to play for Diego Simeone).

In our first game back in the Premier League, West Ham at home on August 16th, Reinildo made history by becoming the first player to represent Mozambique to play in the Premier League. A very proud day for the player and his family, he had already seen so much success during his career but this really put him in the history books.

The fullback helped the Lads to a clean sheet that day in our 3-0 win, and quickly became a key part of Regis Le Bris’ system. A proper defender who isn’t scared to put his body on the line, he has shut down the wing time and time again. There was the occasional blip (giving away a penalty v Brentford, red card for lashing out v Villa) but since then, he seems to have learned quickly and hasn’t put a foot wrong since. Mo Salah came on at half time when we played Liverpool, got clattered by Reinildo after five minutes and never tried to take him on for the rest of the game!

In an interview with SAFC, ‘Rei’ spoke at length about his early life and dealing with the loss of his father. He’s been on one hell of a journey and he is, quite rightly, proud of where he finds himself today: “I lost my father when I was a kid. Before he died, he watched me play once and afterwards he sat with me and said ‘if you keep going like this, you will be a big player’. In that moment, I started to believe. To be here today, a lot of things have happened.”

Until his recent international retirement, Reinildo was one of Mozambique’s best players and captained his country on several occasions. He has spoken many times of the pride he takes when representing his country. After the latest AFCON tournament, where The Mambas went on an underdog run to the Round of Sixteen, Reinildo announced his retirement from international football citing injuries, travel and the general wear-and-tear of top flight football as the key reasons behind his decision. He released an emotional statement on social media which reflects his honest and passionate personality.

Happy birthday, Rei!