Bebeto

Bebeto, who was born in Salvador, Bahia, started his career in 1983 with Vitória.

He played for Flamengo, Vasco da Gama, Cruzeiro and Botafogo in Brazil, Deportivo La Coruña and Sevilla in Spain, Toros Neza in Mexico, Kashima Antlers in Japan, and Al Ittihad in Saudi Arabia, finally retiring in 2002.

Deportivo La Coruña

Bebeto spent four years in Spain at Deportivo La Coruña, scoring an impressive 86 goals in 131 games. Bebeto became the top scorer in La Liga in his first season at Deportivo, scoring 29 goals in the 1992–93 season. In the next season, 1993–94 season, Deportivo had the chance to win their first ever La Liga title by beating Valencia in the last match of the season. In a very evenly matched contest Deportivo had a golden opportunity to seal the victory and thus the league title. They were given a penalty kick just minutes from the end. The official penalty taker all season had been Bebeto (after Donato, who wasn't in the field), who this time, refused to take the penalty. Eventually, Miroslav Đukić took the penalty and failed to score; hence, the match ended with a 0–0 draw, effectively handing Barcelona the title.

Later career

In 1996 Bebeto returned to play for native club Flamengo, but after just 15 games, Bebeto returned to Spain to play for Sevilla, for whom he never scored. In 1997, Bebeto joined Cruzeiro for just one match, the 1997 Intercontinental Cup final against Borussia Dortmund. Despite his presence, the Belo Horizonte side lost the match 2–0. Bebeto returned to goalscoring form at native clubs Vitória in…

For Brazil, Bebeto scored 39 goals in 75 caps after making his debut in 1985. He played in three World Cups: 1990, 1994, and 1998. In 1994, he was one of the best players of the tournament, scoring three goals and providing two assists for the eventual champions, and then repeated the feat four years later as Brazil finished second to hosts France. During the 1994 World Cup, Bebeto formed a formidable partnership with Romário, after they succeeded in putting their personal differences aside. Bebeto and Romário were fierce rivals in the Spanish League. Bebeto led the Spanish first division with 29 goals in 1992–93 and Romário led it with 30 goals in 1993–94. It was Romário who gave Bebeto the nickname Chorao, or Crybaby, for his habit of pouting to referees. It was also Romário who called a news conference before the World Cup to announce that he would not sit next to Bebeto on the team's flight to the United States. Today, however, Bebeto and Romario are friends, with Bebeto claiming that they talk often. In an interview in 2018, Bebeto praised his partnership with Romario: "I played with Romario only in the national team. We played only one game together at Flamengo before he left for Europe. Do you know that Brazil have never lost a game when Bebeto and Romario played together? Not a single game! Besides, every time we played together at least one of us scored." Bebeto became a household name for his goal celebration in the 1994 World Cup in the United States. His wife had…

Regarded one of Brazil's greatest strikers, Bebeto was a prolific goalscorer and an excellent finisher, who was known for his consistency and determination throughout his career, although he was also injury-prone and was criticised for his character. Despite not being imposing physically due to his lack of height and slender physique, he was a fast and opportunistic player, who used his agility, offensive movement, and intelligence to lose his markers in tight spaces. Due to his vision, outstanding technical skills, close control on the ball, and his ability to play off other strikers and provide them with assists, he was often employed as a playmaking attacking midfielder or as a supporting striker early on in his career, drawing influence from Zico's playing style. He was later deployed as a striker or as a centre-forward, however, where he excelled, due to his eye for goal, and remained in this position for the rest of his career.