Early career Starting his career with
Ponte Preta in 2013, he joined
Marseille B on a year-long loan with an option to buy.
Braga In July 2015, Alef signed a contract with
Braga, valid for the next five seasons.
Umm Salal SC (loan) On 2 September 2016, QSL club
Umm Salal has announced the signing of midfielder Alef from Portuguese club Braga. The player put pen to paper on a one-year loan deal. The signing of the 21 year old Brazilian, completes the Orange Fortresses quartet of professionals ahead of the new QSL season. Alef joins up with compatriot
Anderson Martins.
Apollon Limassol (loan) On 5 July 2017 he joined
Apollon Limassol of the
Cypriot First Division on a season-long loan. In
Cyprus, the Brazilian midfielder reminds the player who stood out in the
FIFA U-20 World Cup in New Zealand. By keeping the ball properly, hindering the attacks of the opponents, changing the game well and circling the ball from either the left or the right side. At the same time he demonstrates that he has a very good technical training, having overall a leading role in the middle line of
Apollon Limassol throughout the year.
AEK Athens (loan) On 14 July 2018,
AEK Athens and
Braga agreed terms for the loan move of Alef to the Greek champions, until the summer of 2019. Under contract at Braga, the 23-year old defensive midfielder spent the last season as a loanee in
Cyprus, impressing with runners-up
Apollon Limassol. Despite his strong performances with
Apollon Limassol, Alef is surplus to requirements at Braga and
AEK decided to pounce. According to reports, the reigning Greek champions have struck a deal with Braga, agreeing to sign Alef on loan for the upcoming season with the player holding a release clause of €2 million which can be activated next year. On 20 January 2019, Alef netted with a tap in following
Dmytro Chyhrynskyi's headed pass in a comfortable 3–0 home win game against
Asteras Tripolis. It was his first goal in the league.
APOEL (loan) On 26 June 2019, Brazilian defensive midfielder Alef, who spent the 2018-19 season on loan at
AEK from SC Braga, has joined Cypriot champions
APOEL. Reigning Cypriot champions APOEL released this announcement:
“APOEL Football Club announces the agreement with Sporting Clube de Braga for the one-year loan of Alef dos Santos Saldanha with a purchase option. The footballer chose the number 95.” In
AEK, Alef played in 36 games for AEK, registering the two goals. This summer, AEK had the opportunity to sign him on a permanent basis from Braga, but the club decided to let the 24-year-old go and APOEL subsequently pounced. This will be the second time when Alef has played in Cyprus. Back in the
2017-18 season, Alef played on loan at Apollon Limassol, competing in 36 matches for the club. ==International career==