Maxi Pereira

Victorio Maximiliano "Maxi" Pereira Páez (Spanish pronunciation: [ˈmaksi peˈrejra]; born 8 June 1984) is a Uruguayan former professional footballer who played as a right-back.

He played with Defensor in Uruguay, joining Benfica in 2007 and going on to remain with the club for eight seasons, appearing in 333 official matches and winning 11 major titles. In 2015, he signed with Porto also in Portugal.

A Uruguay international on 125 occasions, Pereira represented the nation in three World Cups and four Copa América, winning the 2011 edition of the latter tournament.

Born in Montevideo, Pereira was known by the nickname "Mono" (Monkey) in his homeland. He began playing football as a forward at C.A. Bella Vista before moving to Defensor Sporting where he re-adapted as a midfielder; he dealt in his early years with homesickness and the death of his father.

Pereira made his professional debut as an 18-year-old, early in the 2002–03 season. He took no time to adjust to the first team, being a crucial part alongside Álvaro González and scoring a career-best 12 goals in the Primera División of 2005–06. After the 2006–07 campaign, Defensor lost both gems as González was transferred to Boca Juniors and Pereira went to S.L. Benfica, accompanied by countryman Cristian Rodríguez; the Primeira Liga club signed the player for €3 million and 70% of his rights.

In his first year in Portugal, Pereira was initially played as a right midfielder, failing to adjust to that position. He did score in two consecutive home games in November 2007, in a 6–1 league thrashing of Boavista F.C. and in the group stage of the UEFA Champions League 1–1 draw against AC Milan, with his left foot from outside the box.

Pereira switched to right-back the following campaign after Nélson Marcos moved to Real Betis, and became ever-present. In 2009–10, as Benfica won the league after five years – adding the Taça da Liga – he appeared in 37 competitive matches, scoring four goals in 2,932 minutes of action.

On 17 December 2011, Pereira renewed his contract until 2015 and the club paid €2.7 million for the remaining 30% of his rights, still in possession of Defensor. He netted two goals in the 2011–12 Champions League, both coming against FC Zenit Saint Petersburg in the round-of-16 (3–2 away loss, 2–0 home win, both through tap-ins) as his team eventually reached the quarter-finals of the competition, where he was sent off in the first half of the second leg against Chelsea after two bookable offences (1–1 away draw, 2–1 aggregate defeat).