Zico

Zico was born on March 3, 1953 in Rio de Janiero, Brazil. In a family that loves football, he is notably the brother of Edu, a famous Brazilian player. His father was also a goalkeeper, and in total 3 of his brothers will have been professional footballers. However, it is Zico who is the most talented in the family. A true football prodigy.

Capable of making his teammates score, he was also a formidable finisher. Playing as a playmaker, he will begin his professional career in 1971, when he is only 17 years old. With a first year of 17 games for 2 goals and 2 assists, it would finally be necessary to wait until 1973 to see the player establish himself in the Flamengo squad.

The playmaker will score 36 goals for 8 goals and 4 assists in 1973. Not yet the scoring machine that we will know later, the player progresses slowly but surely. He already impresses for his ability to accelerate the game. But also for his great vision of the game, his technique, his speed of decision-making. Later, he will also become an incredible free-kick taker, one of the best in history.

The year 1974 will reveal to the eyes of the country the undeniable talent of the playmaker. He becomes a scoring machine and a scoring machine, in 46 games in all competitions, the 21-year-old player scores 31 goals and delivers 21 assists. Elected Bola de Ouro, he is already the best player playing in the championship. He will chain the crazy seasons in all competitions:

- 1975: 56 matches, 40 goals, 15 assists

- 1976: 55 matches, 38 goals, 17 assists

- 1977: 49 matches, 42 goals, 19 assists

- 1978: 38 matches, 23 goals, 13 assists

The craziest season statistically will be the year 1979. Already becoming Top scorer of the Rio Championship for the 4th time in his career with 34 goals, a historic record in the competition. He also reached 3rd place in the Copa America with Brazil. He won the Rio Championship twice, with an exceptional additional tournament. He also won the Guanabara Cup. In total, he played 56 games for 70 goals and 13 assists, statistics that no player in his position will ever have reached at the highest level.

The year 1980 rhymes with the first Brazilian championship title and a golden period for the Flamengo club, the club also won the championship in 1982 and 1983 with one of the most beautiful teams that Brazil has seen play. But it is the year 1981 that will definitively register this team and Zico in the legend of this sport.

In 1981, Zico certainly has the best season of his career on a collective level, he wins the Copa Libertadores after an incredible performance throughout the competition (11 goals and 3 assists in 13 games) including 4 goals in the 3 games of the final against Cobreloa. Then he won the Intercontinental Cup in which he provided 2 assists in this final against Liverpool for a 3-0 victory for his team. He also won the Rio Championship and the Guanabara Cup. On an individual level, he will have played 67 matches, scored 49 goals and provided 26 assists.

He continued his crazy statistics in 1982 and 1983, with 61 matches, 52 goals and 22 assists then 30 matches, 20 goals and 12 assists over half of 1983. Because yes, the player will join Europe in 1983, his talent having gradually attracted the biggest clubs in the world.

And it is in the image of a transfer like that of Diego Armando Maradona to Napoli that Zico will join Udinese. And the player is just phenomenal, for his first season in Italy, the player splashes the Italian championship with his talent. He plays a total of 2 seasons in Europe, for 53 matches, 30 goals and 12 assists. Statistics worthy of the greatest of all time.

After his 2 seasons away from Brazil, he decided to return to his home country, to the club of his life, Flamengo. Far from the statistics he had previously displayed, the player continued to win many trophies. And in 1991, he finally decided to play in an exotic championship, that of Japan. He signed for the Kashima Antlers club with whom he had fun, in 3 years, he played 45 matches for 35 goals. He finally retired in 1994, at the age of 41.

But Zico is also something else, he is the symbol of the great Brazil of the early 80s, a Brazil that will never be crowned with success but that will have marked its era by the beauty of its game, its soul, a silky, fair football, a pure visual spectacle, an art.

Zico began his international career in 1976, then aged 22. His best collective performance will remain the 1978 World Cup, in which he was still too young to be an undisputed starter. It was finally Dirceu who was chosen to play in the attacking midfield position for Brazil, a judicious choice although surprising. A starter against Sweden, he will have nevertheless shown his talent during the competition, scoring 1 goal.

In 1982, he was the headliner of Brazil with a certain Sócrates. A true technical leader of a team with a Football IQ higher than any team of its time. He is the maestro of one of the best teams of all time. A team that made children of his time dream. A team that was already legendary. For the opening match against the USSR, the playmaker slightly missed his match despite his team's victory, he still delivered 5 key passes. Against Scotland he scored a goal. Then against New Zealand, he would achieve one of the greatest individual performances of a player in the World Cup, 2 goals, 2 assists, 93% of successful passes, 71 balls touched, 100% of successful long passes and 9 shots attempted including 5 on target. Then against Argentina, he did it again and delivered an XXL performance, 1 goal and 1 assist. It was finally Italy who would eliminate Brazil despite 1 new assist from Zico. Zico became "The White Pelé".

In 1986, for the World Cup, the 33-year-old player played his last matches with Brazil. On the bench during the first 2 matches, he played a few minutes against Northern Ireland in the 3rd match, the time to deliver another assist. Against Poland, the same thing, a luxury substitute, he delivered another assist. During the quarter-finals, Brazil faced France in a crazy match. He finally missed his penalty during the penalty shootout, thus eliminating Brazil... a sad end for an absolute legend of this sport.

- Bola de Ouro in 1974 and 1982

- Bola de Prata in 1974, 1975, 1977, 1982 and 1987

- Voted best South American player of the year in 1977, 1981 and 1982

- Voted best player in the Brazilian championship in 1980, 1982, 1983

- Voted revelation of the Brazilian championship in 1974

- Voted best player in the Intercontinental Cup in 1981

- 3rd best scorer in the World Cup in 1982 (4 goals)

- Top scorer in the Brazilian championship in 1980 (21 goals) and 1982 (21 goals)

- Top scorer in the Rio Championship in 1975 (30 goals), 1977 (27 goals), 1978 (19 goals), 1979 (34 goals) and 1982 (21 goals)

- Top scorer of the Copa Libertadores in 1981 (11 goals)

- Top scorer of the Japanese championship in 1992 (21 goals)

- Named to the 1982 World Cup Team of the Year

- Named to the FIFA 100

- FIFA Order of Merit in 1996

- Voted among the "legends" of football by Golden Foot in 2006

- Inducted into the Brazilian Football Hall of Fame

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