Draft:Tiago Quintal

Tiago Quintal (born 16 June 2006) is an Australian professional footballer who plays as a midfielder for A-League Men club Sydney FC.

Early life
Born in Baulkham Hills, New South Wales, Quintal is of Portuguese and Italian descent. He was enrolled at King Park Public School during primary school before attending Westfields Sports High School. Quintal is a supporter of Premier League club Chelsea and idolised Eden Hazard and Adrian Mierzejewski.

Sydney FC
Quintal began playing football for Baulkham Hills FC in their junior age group before signing for Sydney FC at the age of 11. In 2023, Quintal initially played for the under-20s – already two age groups above – before being promoted to Sydney FC Youth, who played in the National Premier Leagues NSW. He also spent time on a two-week trial in France at Lyon Academy.

In April 2024, Quintal signed his first professional contract for three years with Sydney FC, having made one bench appearance prior in the 2023–24 A-League season.

International career
Quintal received his first international call-up with the Australian under-17 squad ahead of the 2022 AFF U-16 Youth Championship. He featured in all three matches, starting in two of them. Quintal was recalled for the under-17 side ahead of the 2023 AFC U-17 Asian Cup campaign. He made two appearances as Australia reached the quarter-finals before being knocked out by Japan. Prior to this, he scored four goals during the qualification stage with two goals each in the matches against Northern Mariana Islands, and Cambodia.

Style of play
Mainly positioned as an attacking midfielder, Quintal is described as having quick feet and awareness, allowing him to navigate himself out of any situation. He is described by coach Ufuk Talay as a creative player that "can play between the lines" and a good dribbler in one-v-one situations, with a natural goal-scoring ability.