Daniel Kenedy Pimentel Mateus dos Santos (born 18 February 1974), known as Kenedy, is a Portuguese retired footballer. A midfielder or defender, he played on the left side of the pitch. He appeared in 198 Primeira Liga matches over 11 seasons (13 goals), mainly in representation of Benfica and Estrela da Amadora. He also competed professionally in France, Spain, Cyprus and Greece. In 2015, Kenedy began working as a manager.

Club career

Kenedy was born in Bissau, Portuguese Guinea. During his extensive career, he represented in his country S.L. Benfica – making his Primeira Liga debut at only 19 – FC Porto, C.F. Estrela da Amadora, C.S. Marítimo, S.C. Braga (January to December 2004) and Académica de Coimbra. In 1996, Kenedy had his first abroad stint, with Paris Saint-Germain F.C. in France, starting regularly for the capital club as it finished second in Ligue 1. Subsequently, he represented Albacete Balompié – only three matches for the Spanish Segunda División side – APOEL FC, Ergotelis FC, Kallithea FC, Aias Salamina F.C. and Peramaikos FC. In Greece, Kenedy managed to appear in all three major levels of football. Overall, he played professional football in five countries. On 17 March 2015, Kenedy was handed his first managerial post at C.D. Pinhalnovense, eventually helping avoid relegation from the third division. He was hired by LigaPro strugglers Leixões S.C. on 2 November 2016, taking the team to the quarter-finals of the Taça de Portugal where they were eliminated by his former club Benfica after a 6–2 away loss. He resigned in August 2017, after only three games of the new season.

International career

Kenedy represented Portugal at the 1996 Summer Olympics, helping the nation to finish fourth in Atlanta, Georgia. He was surprisingly called up to the 2002 FIFA World Cup squad while still uncapped on the senior level, after injuries ruled Simão Sabrosa and Luís Boa Morte out of António Oliveira's selection. However, he was dismissed from the team prior to the start of the tournament after testing positive for the banned diuretic furosemide that was in his slimming pills, and was replaced by Hugo Viana.

Personal life

Kenedy was named after American president John F. Kennedy (note the difference in spelling).

Career statistics

Honours

Benfica Porto APOEL