Futsal Made In Brazil
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Made In Brazil Men
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Futsal Made In Brazil History
If you saw Alessandro Rosa Vieira, aka Falcao, walking down the street you probably wouldn’t recognise him.But this is a man with 393 goals in 201 international appearances for Brazil, 48 of which came at World Cups.Okay, so we’re leaving out quite an important fact. Falcao is a futsal player. In fact he’s probably the best futsal player ever.If Lionel Messi is the goat, Falcao is the ibex.We know what you’re thinking. Obviously he couldn’t play real football. He probably wouldn’t even get in your 5-a-side team, would he?Don’t speak too soon. Back in 2005 Falcao signed for Brazilian giants Sao Paulo amidst a hail of publicity and controversy.
He looks delighted to be thereThis wasn’t Falcao’s first attempt at crossing over.In 2001 Falcao was 23 and established as one of Brazil’s best futsal players after prolific spells with Corinthians, Atletico Mineiro, Banespa and Jaragua.But the call of the football pitch was too loud to ignore.He went on trial with Palmeiras, playing 59 minutes of a training game against minnows Flamengo de Guarulhos in which he found the back of the net before cramp set in.After the game “I’ll ask for some advice, listen to what the coach says. I may have gone wrong, but I think I showed qualities.”Despite the promise Palmeiras were hesitant to offer him a contract and so Falcao went back to futsal. Falcao, but not like you’ve ever seen himFast forward four years and Falcao found himself being presented to the media at Sao Paulo alongside midfielders Mineiro and Josue.Mineiro would go on to play for Chelsea (once) and represent Brazil at a World Cup, while fellow Selecao international Josue would go on to win the Bundesliga with Wolfsburg.However there was no doubt who all the fuss was about that day.For a start, Falcao’s arrival pointed to a power struggle going on within the club’s hierarchy as president Marcelo Portugal Gouvea had signed him over the head of coach Emerson Leao. Someone tidy up that GrafiteThat game against Mogi Mirim turned out to be Falcao’s last appearance for the club.He returned to futsal side Jaragua after playing 13 times in all competitions for Sao Paulo.Technically he bowed out of football as a Campeonato Paulista and Copa Libertadores winner, with Sao Paulo going on to win South America’s premier competition that year.Although Falcao had left by the time Sao Paulo lifted the title he’d appeared in the tournament’s early stages, starting a 2-2 draw with Quilmes and coming off the bench during a 4-2 win against Universidad de Chile.
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