Transfer Profile: Eder Lima

Jeju United added another piece to their new-look club with the acquisition of Brazilian forward Eder Lima, who last played for Seongnam FC, but had become a free agent at the beginning of the year.  He first appeared in K League in 2015 with Daegu FC, so the 33 year old brings a wealth of experience with him to the island.  Having familiarity with Nam Ki-il, as he played for him each of the past two seasons, will help with his transition, but it is likely that his previous affiliation with the manager was a big reason for the move.  KLU's Branko Belan has a closer look at the new signing.
(Image courtesy of Jeju United)


While primarily a center forward, he is capable of playing on either wing, but prefers and is more effective on the left in that regard.  He is highly regarded as a player whose speed can be a factor in attack and whose individual skill has the ability to engineer the second line moving forward.  As a veteran player, he will be counted on to lead the young crop of Jeju talent as they push for a return to the first division next season.

The K League Chapter

After shuttling between his native Brazil and Greece in the early stages of his career, highlighted by a loan spell with AEK Athens in the 2010-11 season, the attacker first appeared in K League 2 in 2015 when he joined Daegu FC.  In the two seasons he spent there, he featured prominently for the Sky Blues, with 78 appearances scoring sixteen goals with six assists.

That initial success paved the way for a step up to the first division and a move to Jeonbuk Hyundai for the 2017 season.  He played on a fairly regular basis, but the returns were modest at best as he totaled three goals and three assists across all competitions that year.

The next season would see him go back down to the second division as he joined Seongnam, and became a critical piece to their eventual automatic promotion at the end of the year.  Again he played on a regular basis, and considering the fact that he was used mostly as a left winger, his return of seven goals and two assists showed proof of his quality as an attacking player.  He also closed out the season with five consecutive matches where he played the entire ninety minutes.

Last season saw another tailing off, as he had some form concerns and was not included in the squad for portions of the year.  In fact, from early August until the end of the year, he played in only two matches, once against Daegu FC, where he played twenty-four minutes as a second half substitute in the final match before the split, and against Incheon United in the first match of K League Final Round B.

Coming to Jeju

There is a lot of optimism surrounding the islanders this off-season as a multitude of moves have been made to improve the squad and the club overall, which began with Nam's appointment last December.  That was followed by a key move at the top of the organization when a new CEO was named shortly thereafter.

The arrival of the former Magpies manager on the island has led several of his then-former players to follow him here, and Eder just may be the final piece of the puzzle.  It has been a stated within the organization and among both the players and coaches that there is only one goal in sight at the moment, and that is automatic promotion back to the top flight for 2021.  Nam obviously believes that Eder can be a critical piece of that puzzle, which is why he brought him in.

"[Eder] is a player who is capable of playing several different positions in the second line of attack.  We have been together already in both K League 2 and K League 1.  He is a very good player and his veteran presence will allow for Jeju to rebuild as a team since there are many young players in the team, and that will be key to building chemistry within the squad," the manager concluded.

Eder is pleased to be re-united with his manager once more.

"I am happy to be with Nam Ki-il once again.  I am in good shape.  It is important for me to bring my strengths to the team as much as possible.  Above all, Jeju is a young team; Jeju is one.  As an experienced player, I have to take initiative in becoming a leader for the younger players," he said.