Heleno de Freitas

De Freitas spent most of his club career with Botafogo, scoring 209 goals in 235 matches for the club, most with his head. In 1948 he transferred to Boca Juniors in Argentina, but returned to Brazil the following year, winning the 1949 Campeonato Carioca with Vasco. He also had a spell in Colombia with Atlético Junior, before ending his career with América in Rio, after a very short stint at Santos; he played only one match for America, on 4 November 1951, during which he was sent off after only 25 minutes of play for insulting his teammates, and it was his first and last game in the Maracanã.

De Freitas scored 19 goals in 18 appearances for Brazil between 1944 and 1948 (a rare average of more than one goal per game) as the team finished runners-up in both the 1945 and 1946 Copa América championships. He was joint top goalscorer in the 1945 edition of the tournament, alongside Argentine Norberto Doroteo Méndez, with six goals. He was left off of the Brazilian team that took part at the 1950 FIFA World Cup on home soil, however, as he was considered to be past his prime.

Described as a "tall and elegant striker" by Christopher Atkins of Bleacher Report, and as "Brazil's Pelé in the 40s" and "the prince of Rio" by Jonathan Wilson of The Guardian, De Freitas is regarded as one of the most talented footballers of all time, and was known for his entertaining playing style, although he was also a perfectionist and a highly competitive player, who often served as a captain. Despite his temperament, he struggled to cope with pressure at times, and had difficulties with controlling his nerves and temper, which occasionally led him to commit rash challenges; moreover, he was notorious for his lack of discipline, poor work-rate, inconsistency, and rebellious character, which caused him problems with his managers, teammates, opponents, and officials, and as a result, he was frequently sent off and suspended throughout his career due to his involvement in several controversial incidents and altercations. His problems in his personal life and bohemian lifestyle off the pitch also had a negative impact on his performances in his later career. He started out playing on the beach as a hard–tackling central defender or as a central defensive midfielder in his youth; however, during his time with the Fluminense youth side, his manager Carlo Carlomagno decided to deploy him as a centre-forward, in order to limit his possibility of committing fouls and being booked. He excelled in this new attacking role, due to his speed, technique, vision, passing,…

De Freitas was born into a rich Brazilian family in São João de Nepomuceno, in the state of Minas Gerais, on 12 February 1920. Prior to becoming a footballer, he was looking to pursue a career as a lawyer, and even obtained a law degree. He began playing beach football in amateur tournaments. He was signed by Botafogo at the age of 15.