Zizinho
![]() | |||
Personal information | |||
---|---|---|---|
Full name | Thomaz Soares da Silva | ||
Date of birth | September 14, 1921 | ||
Place of birth | Niterói, Brazil | ||
Date of death | February 8, 2002 80) | (aged||
Height | 1.72 m (5 ft 7 1⁄2 in) | ||
Playing position | Attacking midfielder | ||
Senior career* | |||
Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
1939–1950 | Flamengo | 329 | (146) |
1951–1957 | Bangu | 274 | (122) |
1957–1959 | São Paulo | 60 | (24) |
1959–1960 | Uberaba | 1 | (0) |
1961–1962 | Audax Italiano | ? | (16) |
National team | |||
1942–1957[1] | Brazil | 53 | (30) |
Teams managed | |||
1960 | Bangu | ||
1965-1966 | Bangu | ||
1967 | Vasco da Gama | ||
1972 | Vasco da Gama | ||
1980 | Bangu | ||
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only. |
Thomaz Soares da Silva, also known as Zizinho (Portuguese pronunciation: [ziˈzĩɲu]; born October 14, 1921 – died February 8, 2002), was a Brazilian football player, who played as an attacking midfielder for Brazil's national team.[2][3] He came to international prominence at the 1950 World Cup, where he scored two goals. He was lauded as a complete player, renowned for his incredible array of offensive skills such as dribbling, passing, shooting with both feet as well as dead ball ability and extraordinary vision.
Career
Born at Niterói, Rio de Janeiro, he played for Flamengo, Bangu, São Paulo FC, Audax Italiano of Chile among others teams. In Flamengo, he won state championships in 1942, 1943 and 1944.
In the 1950 World Cup he helped Brazil to progress to the final, but their surprise 2-1 defeat to Uruguay tarnished his reputation. Zizinho played a total of 53 times for his national team, scoring 30 goals. He turned down last minute invitations by the CBF to join first the 1954 world cup squad and then the 1958 squad, citing on both occasions that it would be unfair on the player being dropped at the last minute to make way for him.
Pelé always said that Zizinho was the best player he ever saw. "He was a complete player. He played in midfield, in attack, he scored goals, he could mark, head and cross."[4]
Playing honours
Club
- Campeonato Carioca: 1939, 1942, 1943, 1944
International
- Taça do Atlântico: 1956
- South American Championship Runner-up: 1945, 1946, 1953, 1957
- FIFA World Cup Runner-up: 1950
Individual
- FIFA World Cup Golden Ball: 1950[5]
- FIFA World Cup All-Star Team: 1950
- IFFHS Brazilian Player of the 20th Century (4th place)[6]
- IFFHS South American Player of the 20th Century (10th place)[6]
- Brazilian Football Museum Hall of Fame
References
- ↑ "Thomaz Soares da Silva "Zizinho" - Goals in International Matches". Rec.Sport.Soccer Statistics Foundation.
- ↑ "World Football Legends - Zizinho (1921-2002)". World-football-legends.co.uk. Retrieved May 27, 2016.
- ↑ "Obituary: Jair da Rosa Pinto". The Guardian. Retrieved May 27, 2016.
- ↑ Bellos, Alex (12 February 2002), "Obituary: Zizinho", The Guardian
- ↑ 100 World Cup heroes (40-21): Sportsmail's countdown continues with Gazza, Kempes, Hagi and Jairzinho
- 1 2 IFFHS' Century Elections Archived October 7, 2013, at the Wayback Machine.
External links
- Zizinho – FIFA competition record
- Profile at cbf.com.br