Zico

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Not to be confused with Xico (footballer).
Zico
Zico as a head coach of PFC CSKA Moscow
Personal information
Full name Arthur Antunes Coimbra
Date of birth 3 March 1953 (1953-03-03) (age 56)
Place of birth Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
Playing position Playmaker / Second striker
Attacking midfielder
Club information
Current club CSKA Moscow (manager)
Youth career
1967–1971 Flamengo
Senior career1
Years Club Apps (Gls)2
1971–1983 Flamengo 212 (123)
1983–1985 Udinese 039 0(22)
1985–1989 Flamengo 037 0(12)
1991–1992 Sumitomo Metals 022 0(21)
1992–1994 Kashima Antlers 024 0(15)
Total 334 (193)
National team
1976–1988 Brazil 072 0(52)[1]
Teams managed
1999 Kashima Antlers
2002–2006 Japan
2006–2008 Fenerbahçe
2008 Bunyodkor
2009– CSKA Moscow
1 Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only.
2 Appearances (Goals).

Arthur Antunes Coimbra (Portuguese pronunciation: [axˈtux ɐ̃ˈtũnis koˈĩbrɐ]; born 3 March 1953 in Rio de Janeiro), better known as Zico ([ˈziku]), is a former Brazilian footballer and coach. Often called the White Pelé, he is commonly considered one of the most skilled dribblers and finishers ever and possibly the world's best player of the early 80's[2]. He was also known as one of history's greatest free kick specialists, able to bend the ball with pace and accuracy as well as having an extremely powerful shot. The gifted midfielder was named by Pelé as one of the top 125 greatest living footballers in March 2004. Also according to Pelé, generally considered the best footballer ever, "throughout the years, the one player that came closest to me was Zico"[3].

Zico scored 52 goals in 72 international matches for Brazil, and represented them in the 1978, 1982 and 1986 World Cups. They didn’t win any of those tournaments, even though the 1982 squad is considered one of the greatest Brazilian national squads ever [4] - along with the one that won the 1970 World Cup. Zico is often considered one of the best players in football history not to have been on a World Cup winning squad. He was chosen 1983 Player of the Year.

Zico has coached the Japanese national team, appearing in the 2006 FIFA World Cup and winning the Asian Cup 2004, and Fenerbahce, who were a quarter-finalist in 2007-08 in the Champions League under his command. He was announced as the head coach of CSKA Moscow in January 2009.

Contents

[edit] Playing career

Zico came from a lower-middle-class family, in the neighborhood of Quintino, Rio de Janeiro. In common with many Brazilians, he spent much of his youth dreaming of playing professional football. In 1967, while still a teenager, he had a scheduled trial at América, where his brothers Antunes and Edu were playing at the time. But he caught the attention of the radio reporter and friend, Celso Garcia, who asked Zico's father to take him to a trial at Flamengo instead. Being a fan of Flamengo, Zico had his father approval, beginning his path towards being one of the most admired players in history of the sport.

Physically Zico was not strong, and his history of determination and discipline began with a hard muscle and body development program conducted by the Physical Education teacher José Roberto Francalacci. A combination of hard work and also a special diet sponsored by his team enabled him to develop a strong body and become an athlete. This later proved to be essential for his success.[5]

In 1971, he had some appearances in the professional team but only one year later, after 116 matches and 81 goals in the youth team, Zico was promoted to Flamengo's professional squad.

While at Flamengo, Zico was a key player during the most glorious period of the team's history. Along with many other titles, in his first period at Flamengo he led the team to victory in the 1981 Copa Libertadores, the 1981 Intercontinental Cup, and four national titles (1980/82/83/87). On the field, Zico made goals in all imaginable ways, was also a great assister and team organizer, and was known for his excellent vision of the field. He was a two-footed player and an expert at free kicks.[disambiguation needed][4]

In the 1978 World Cup against Sweden, Zico headed a corner kick into the goal in the final minute of the match, apparently breaking a 1-1 tie. However, in a call that became infamous, the Welsh referee Clive Thomas disallowed the goal, saying that he had blown the whistle to end the match while the ball was still in the air.[6]

In a multi-million dollar transaction, he was hired to play for Udinese, in Italy, from 1983 to 1985. Though leaving some Brazilian fans in sadness, he led Udinese to be among the best Italian teams. In Italy, Zico had personal disputes against Juventus's Michel Platini and Napoli's Diego Maradona. In the 1983-84 Italian League season, Zico scored 19 goals - one less than the championship top scorer Platini, having played 6 matches less than the French footballer.

Ultimately Udinese failed to win any relevant competition and Zico eventually went back to Brazil and Flamengo, sponsored by a group of companies.

On his return, he suffered a knee injury after a violent tackle from Bangu's defender Marcio Nunes, which interrupted his career for several months. He played in the 1986 FIFA World Cup while still injured, and missed a penalty during regular time in the quarter-final match against France. The match ended in a tie which led to a shootout. Zico then scored his goal but after penalties missed by Sócrates and Júlio César, Brazil was knocked out. Recovered from injuries, things improved for Zico in 1987 when he led Flamengo to their fourth national title.[7]

In December 1989 Zico made his last official appearance for Flamengo in a Brazilian National Championship match against rivals Fluminense. Zico made the first goal and Flamengo won the match by 5-0[8].

Two months later, he would play his last match as a Flamengo player facing a World Cup Masters team composed of names like Gerets, Gentile, Causio, Tarantini, Valdano, Kempes, Breitner, Rummenigge and Falcão. [9]

With 731 matches for Flamengo, Zico is the player with the 2nd most appearances for the club. His 508 goals make him the club's top scorer ever.

The achievements of the greatest idol in Flamengo's history[10][11] inspired the Brazilian singer Jorge Benjor to write a song in his honour - Camisa 10 da Gávea - helping create the mystique of the club's number 10.

Zico also represented Brazil in the World Cup of Masters, scoring in the final of the 1990 and 1991 editions.

[edit] Brief retirement

After Brazil's first presidential election in many years, the new president Fernando Collor de Mello appointed Zico as his Minister of Sports. Zico stayed at this political assignment for about a year and his most important contribution was a piece of legislation dealing with the business side of sport teams.

[edit] Japan

Zico interrupted his political assignment when he accepted the offer to join the Sumitomo Metal Industries Soccer Club in Kashima, Ibaraki Prefecture to help the club secure a place in Japan's first professional soccer league that was set to launch in 1993. Zico played for Sumitomo in 1992, the last season before the old Japan Soccer League was disbanded and reformed as the fully professional J. League. When the new league launched, the small town club, renamed Kashima Antlers, was not expected to compete with richer, more glamorous clubs like Yokohama Marinos and Verdy Kawasaki. However, Zico helped the Antlers to a runners-up finish in its inaugural season and the club cemented its place among the league's elite.

His discipline, talent and professionalism meshed very well with Japanese culture, and his influence earned him the nickname, "God of Soccer" (サッカーの神様 sakkā no kamisama?) from Japanese soccer fans.[12]

[edit] Retirement, Beach Soccer and CFZ

Zico retired from professional football during the 1994 season but received an invitation to play Beach Soccer. He returned to Kashima to become the Antlers' technical adviser in 1995, splitting his time between Japan and Brazil - where he still managed to find time to play Beach Soccer. One year later, in 1996, he founded CFZ (Zico Football Centre) in Rio de Janeiro. By this time, he was a local legend in Japan for having built a contender from almost nothing and putting the city of Kashima on the map. A statue in his honor stands outside Kashima Stadium.[13]

[edit] Statistics

  • This information includes Zico's official, friendly, and exhibition games.
Team Matches Goals Goal average
Flamengo 731 508 0.69
Udinese 79 56 0.69
Sumitomo Metals 31 27 0.87
Kashima Antlers 57 27 0.47
Brazil National Team 88 66 0.75
Brazil Olympic Team 8 1 0.12
Youth Teams 116 81 0.69
Various Select Teams 70 60 0.85
Total 1,180 826 0.70
  • This information is based on Zico's senior career totals. [14]
Club Season Domestic
League		 Domestic
Regional League		 Domestic
Cups1		 Continental
Competitions2		 Total
Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals
Flamengo 1971 15 2 - - - - - - 15 2
1972 4 0 2 0 - - - - 6 0
1973 26 8 9 0 - - - - 35 8
1974 19 12 31 20 - - - - 50 32
1975 27 10 28 30 - - - - 55 40
1976 20 14 27 18 - - - - 47 32
1977 18 10 29 27 - - - - 47 37
1978 0 0 22 19 - - - - 22 19
1979 8 5 17 + 26 (50) 26 + 34 (60) - - - - 51 65
1980 19 21 26 19 - - - - 45 40
1981 8 3 33 25 - - 13 11 54 + 13 39
1982 23 21 21 21 - - 4 2 48 44
1983 25 17 - - - - 3 3 28 20
Total 212 123 271 239 - - 20 16 503 + 13 378
Udinese 1983-84 24 19 - - 9 5 - - 33 24
1984-85 15 3 - - 5 3 - - 20 6
Total 39 22 - - 14 8 - - 53 30
Flamengo
1985 3 1 3 2 - - - - 6 3
1986 0 0 4 3 - - - - 4 3
1987 12 5 5 1 - - - - 17 6
1988 14 4 6 0 - - - - 20 4
1989 8 2 11 2 7 2 1 0 27 6
Total 37 12 29 8 7 2 1 0 74 22
Sumitomo Metals
1991-92 22 21 - - - - - - 22 21
Kashima Antlers
1992 - - - - 12 7 - - 12 7
1993 17 10 - - 7 3 - - 24 13
1994 7 5 - - - - - - 7 5
Total 46 36 - - 19 10 - - 65 46
Career Totals 334 193 300 247 40 20 21 16 695 + 13 476

1Domestic Cups include Copa do Brasil, Coppa Italia, J. League Cup and Emperor's Cup
2Continental competitions include Copa Libertadores and Supercopa Sudamericana
3Include Intercontinental Cup

[edit] Major achievements

[edit] Club honours

[edit] International honours

[edit] Individual honours

[edit] Beach Soccer

[edit] Coaching career

[edit] Japan

After the 2002 FIFA World Cup, Japan Football Association looked for a replacement for the outgoing Philippe Troussier, and chose Zico as his successor. Despite his lack of coaching experience besides his stint as Brazil's technical coordinator during the 1998 World Cup, Zico had great understanding of Japanese soccer from his playing days and his role as Kashima's technical director. In addition, JFA had grown tired of Troussier's clashes with the media while the players were frustrated with his micromanagement. In contrast, Zico commanded respect from reporters and urged players to express themselves on the pitch.[15]

Although Zico attempted to instill a free-flowing, attacking mentality to the team, his regime got off to an uneven start, which included a 4-1 loss to Argentina in 2003. Japan had a respectable showing at that year's Confederations Cup but struggled again in the beginning of 2004, only narrowly beating Oman in the first stage of qualifying for the 2006 FIFA World Cup and several players were suspended after a drinking incident.[16] Although Japan had not lost in its nine previous matches, he was rumored to be on the verge of resigning and a small group of fans marched in the streets of Tokyo demanding his firing.[17]

He stayed on, however, and won the 2004 Asian Cup despite intimidation from Chinese fans and a team that featured just one European-based player, Shunsuke Nakamura.[18] He then helped Japan qualify for the 2006 FIFA World Cup with just one loss.

Despite the rocky start, injuries to key players and even a bizarre offer from Garforth Town,[19] Zico has led Japan to its third World Cup finals appearance and the third Asian Cup title in four tries. His Japanese team is heavily influenced by Brazil's short passing style, but he has been flexible enough to switch between 4-4-2 and 3-5-2 formations. In addition, he has had a respectable record on European soil, beating Czech Republic and Greece and drawing with England, Brazil and most recently Germany.

However, Japan failed to win a single match at the Finals, losing twice (to Australia and Brazil) and drawing once (to Croatia), and scoring just two goals while conceding seven. He resigned from Japan at the end of the World Cup campaign.

[edit] Fenerbahçe

In July 2006, signed a two-year deal with Fenerbahçe.[20] He won the league title in 2007 and won Turkish Super Cup on the first year of his job. Under his command Fenerbahce has qualified from UEFA Champions League 2007-08 groups stage for the first time of club's history and beat Sevilla FC to become a quarter-finalist in 2007-08 season. So far, he also is the team's most successful manager in the history of the European arena.

Zico was given a new nickname by Fenerbahçe fans: Kral Arthur (meaning "King Arthur" in Turkish). For the team's nickname King Arthur and his Knights. In a chat hosted by uefa.com he pointed out that it is unlikely he will sign a contract extension with Fenerbahçe. This was confirmed on 10 June 2008 when he resigned as Fenerbahce manager.

On 8 September 2008, Zico revealed that he would be interested taking over the vacant managers position at Newcastle United following the resignation of Kevin Keegan. He is quoted saying "The Newcastle job is one that I would be very interested in taking. It would be a privilege and an honour, I've always wanted to experience the Premier League as I believe I could enjoy much success coaching in England." He also commented that he isn't bothered about the structure of the board at Newcastle United, "I am used to working alongside technical directors so this isn't an issue for me. It's normal for me to work in those conditions."

[edit] Bunyodkor

In 2008, he coached FC Bunyodkor in Uzbekistan, where he won the Uzbekistani Cup and the Uzbek League.

[edit] CSKA Moscow

He is currently coaching CSKA Moscow.

[edit] Honours as a manager

[edit] Trivia

 Lists of miscellaneous information should be avoided. Please relocate any relevant information into appropriate sections or articles. (November 2007)

[edit] References

  1. ^ Brazil - Record International Players
  2. ^ John Brewin (2002-04-23). "World Cup 1982 (Spain)". Soccernet. http://worldcup.espnsoccernet.com/story?id=203639. Retrieved on 2006-07-03. 
  3. ^ Oswaldo Tinhorão
  4. ^ a b Daniel Pearl (2006-04-03). "No flair please, he's Brazilian". BBC. http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/programmes/newsnight/4866312.stm. Retrieved on 2006-07-03. 
  5. ^ "From Quintino's Juventude to Flamengo". http://www.ziconarede.com.br/znrpub/historia/ig_hist_idolo.htm#Do%20Juventude%20ao%20Flamengo.. 
  6. ^ "Zico - Legends of the Football World Cup". http://www.world-cup-betting-2006.com/legend-zico.htm. Retrieved on June 23 2006. 
  7. ^ "Zico conquers The World". http://www.ziconarede.com.br/znrpub/historia/ig_hist_idolo.htm#Zico%20conquista%20o%20Mundo. 
  8. ^ http://www.flaestatistica.com/t1989.htm (See match 62: C.R. Flamengo 5 x 0 Fluminense (RJ)
  9. ^ "Maracanã 90: Almost a goodbye". http://www.ziconarede.com.br/znrpub/historia/ig_hist_evehist.htm#maracana%2090.. 
  10. ^ (Portuguese) "Zico: Profile". http://esporte.uol.com.br/copa/2006/selecaobrasileira/jogadores/idolos/zico.jhtm.. 
  11. ^ (Portuguese) "Zico - 50 years". http://jbonline.terra.com.br/jb/esporte/zico/. 
  12. ^ (German) Matthias Greulich (June 22 2006). "The savior ventures more democracy". Der Spiegel. http://www.spiegel.de/sport/fussball/0,1518,422830,00.html. 
  13. ^ Dominic Raynor (2006-05-24). "Rising sons with higher hopes". Soccernet. http://soccernet.espn.go.com/columns/story?id=368863&root=worldcup&cc=5901. 
  14. ^ According to data from rsssf.com, ziconarede.com and flaestatistica.com
  15. ^ "Japan look to Zico". 2002 FIFA World Cup. 2002-08-01. http://2002.fifaworldcup.yahoo.com/02/en/020731/2/1caf.html. 
  16. ^ "Japanese players dropped over alleged drinking incident". Associated Press. 2004-03-19. http://www.ussoccerplayers.com/latest_soccer_news/416326.html. 
  17. ^ "Under-fire Zico gets boost from supporters". Agence France-Presse. 2004-03-06. http://fifaworldcup.yahoo.com/06/en/040306/6/sk3.html. 
  18. ^ "Hand of Nakata gives Japan Asian Cup victory". Agence France-Presse. 2004-08-07. http://fifaworldcup.yahoo.com/06/en/040807/6/1yfk.html. 
  19. ^ "Samba stars to join Garforth Town". BBC. 2004-10-27. http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/funny_old_game/3957519.stm. Retrieved on 2005-10-29. 
  20. ^ "Fenerbahçe sign Zico as coach". Reuters. 2006-07-04. http://today.reuters.co.uk/news/newsArticle.aspx?type=worldFootballNews&storyID=2006-07-04T144440Z_01_L04655526_RTRIDST_0_SPORT-SOCCER-FENERBAHCE.XML. Retrieved on 2006-07-04. 
  21. ^ "Zico: I'm living out my passion". Fifa.com World Football. August 13, 2007. http://www.fifa.com/worldfootball/clubfootball/news/newsid=568540.html#zico+im+living+passion. Retrieved on 2007-08-27. 
  22. ^ "Biografia". Jornal do Brasil Online. http://jbonline.terra.com.br/jb/esporte/zico/biografia.html. Retrieved on 2007-09-28. 

[edit] External links

Preceded by
Waldemar Victorino		 World Club Championship Best Player
1981		 Succeeded by
Jair
v • d • e
PFC CSKA Moscow – current squad

2 Šemberas · 4 Ignashevich · 5 Ramón · 6 A. Berezutski · 7 D. Carvalho · 8 Ryzhov · 9 V. Love · 10 Dzagoev · 11 Mamaev · 12 Maazou · 14 Jesus · 15 Odiah · 17 Krasić · 22 Aldonin · 24 V. Berezutski · 25 Rahimić · 33 Pomazan · 35 Akinfeev · 36 Vlasov · 42 Shchennikov · 50 Grigoryev · 88 Caner · 89 Necid · Manager: Zico
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