Tomás Podstawski


Tomás Martins Podstawski is a Portuguese professional footballer who plays for Polish club Pogoń Szczecin as a central midfielder.
He began his professional career at Porto, where he made 107 appearances for their reserves and won the 2015–16 Segunda Liga, but never represented the first team. After a season at Vitória de Setúbal in which he was a Taça da Liga runner-up, he joined Pogoń Szczecin in 2018.
Podstawski earned 85 caps for Portugal from under-16 to under-23 level. He represented the nation at the 2016 Olympic tournament.

Club career

Porto

Born in Porto to a Polish father and a Portuguese mother, Podstawski joined FC Porto's youth system at the age of 13. On 20 February 2012, having not yet featured for the reserves, he was called up by first-team manager Vítor Pereira for the UEFA Europa League round of 16 second leg match at Manchester City, remaining unused in a 0–4 loss for the reigning champions.
Podstawski finished his first season with 24 appearances – 11 starts – helping Porto B to the runner-up position, although the team was not eligible for promotion. On 2 April 2016 he scored his first goal for the B team in a 4–0 home win over Académico de Viseu FC, as they became the first reserves to win the second division.

Vitória Setúbal

On 12 June 2017, Podstawski signed a three-year contract for Vitória de Setúbal. He made his Primeira Liga debut on 6 August in a 1–1 home draw against Moreirense FC, and scored his first goal in the division on 30 October, consolation as a substitute in a 2–5 away loss to Portimonense SC.
On 27 January 2018, Podstwaski was the only player to miss his penalty shootout attempt in the final of the Taça da Liga, lost to Sporting CP after a 1–1 draw in regulation time. He was also booked for handling the ball in his own box late into the game, which led to Bas Dost's equaliser.

Pogoń Szczecin

On 27 August 2018, Podstawski joined Polish club Pogoń Szczecin on a three-year deal. His maiden appearance in the Ekstraklasa occurred four days later, when he played the entire 1–1 draw away to Górnik Zabrze, and his first goal came on 27 October in a 3–0 home win over Lech Poznań.

International career

At the 2014 UEFA European Under-19 Championship in Hungary, Podstawski captained Portugal to runners-up position behind Germany. He scored his only goal of 37 appearances for the team in the group stage, in a 2–1 win against Austria at Pancho Aréna.
Podstawski also acted as captain to the under-20 side at the 2015 FIFA World Cup, playing four games out of five in an eventual quarter-final exit in New Zealand. He had previously turned down an approach from the Polish Football Association.
Manager Rui Jorge included Podstawski in the under-23 team for the 2016 Summer Olympics in Brazil. He started every match, as the nation reached the quarter-finals.

Personal life

In parallel to his early professional career, Podstawski studied International Relations at the University of Porto. He speaks English and French, in addition to his native Portuguese and Polish. His parents were both involved in sport; his father as a Physical Education teacher and his mother as a professional gymnast.

Honours

Club

Porto B
Vitória Setúbal
Portugal