Tiago Cardoso Mendes (; born 2 May 1981), known simply as Tiago, is a Portuguese football manager and former player who played as a midfielder. He played professionally in five of Europe's major leagues, Portugal, England, France, Italy and Spain. He notably spent eight seasons with Atlético Madrid, winning five major titles including the 2013–14 La Liga and the 2012 Europa League. A Portugal international on 66 occasions, Tiago represented the nation in two World Cups and Euro 2004. Club career Portugal Born in Viana do Castelo, Tiago first came to prominence at S.C. Braga (having started out at SC Vianense, he also played handball for one year as a youth), being cast into the Minho side's starting XI at the age of just 18 and helping with 27 games as they finished in fourth place in 2001, thus qualifying for the UEFA Cup. In late December 2001, solid displays earned Tiago – and Braga teammates Armando Sá and Ricardo Rocha – a move to giants S.L. Benfica. In his first full season he scored a career-best 13 goals to help to a runner-up position in the Primeira Liga and, the following year, won the Taça de Portugal against FC Porto. Chelsea Tiago signed for Chelsea on 20 July 2004 for a €15 million fee, becoming José Mourinho's sixth signing that season (this included three other Portuguese players). Having missed the first Premier League game, he soon became an important member of his new team, scoring on his away debut against Crystal Palace on 24 August; he also scored a long-range goal in a 3–1 win over Manchester United on 10 May 2005, after already having won the title. Tiago was a regular for Chelsea, having only missed four games in the league. He ended the season successfully as a firm fixture in the Blues' midfield three, making 51 appearances in all competitions and scoring four goals as the club also added the Football League Cup. However, despite his initial success, the following campaign saw the arrival of Michael Essien from Olympique Lyonnais, which limited his first-team chances; during his time at Stamford Bridge his loss percentage in the league was 2.94%, just once in 34 appearances – 1–0 at Manchester City on 16 October 2004 – which was the lowest in history for any player having appeared at least 20 times. Lyon In late August 2005, Tiago signed for