Cicinho

Early career

Born in Pradópolis, São Paulo, Cicinho began his career at Botafogo-SP before joining Atlético Mineiro, who loaned him to the Rio de Janeiro-based Botafogo. He won the Club World Cup in 2005 while playing for São Paulo.

Real Madrid

After an interview with Sir Alex Ferguson at Manchester United, Cicinho signed for Real Madrid on 23 August 2005, effective from the new year. He joined for an undisclosed fee and accompanied compatriots Ronaldo, Robinho, Júlio Baptista and Roberto Carlos, under Brazilian manager Vanderlei Luxemburgo. He made his debut in La Liga on 8 January 2006, replacing the injured Ronaldo after 33 minutes in a goalless draw at Villarreal, and three weeks later, he scored his first goal to open a 2–1 win at Celta de Vigo. On 14 February, he scored after 57 seconds in a 4–0 win over Real Zaragoza in the semi-finals of the Copa del Rey, to no avail due to a 6–1 loss in the first round. In September 2006, Cicinho suffered an extensive injury to his ACL and missed over six months. His comeback, to not only the pitch, but also the starting lineup, was on 29 April 2007, against Athletic Bilbao. He assisted Ruud van Nistelrooy's first goal with a cross, and played a part in the Dutchman's second goal in a 4–1 win. In preparation for the 2007–08 season, Cicinho received less playing time under new coach Bernd Schuster. Michel Salgado and Sergio Ramos were used on the right during most of pre-season, and he therefore requested a transfer…

Cicinho made his debut for Brazil national team on 27 April 2005 in a 3–0 win over Guatemala at the Estádio do Pacaembu for Romário's testimonial match, assisting the opening goal by Ânderson. He was called up for the 2005 FIFA Confederations Cup in Germany, with he and Léo replacing veteran full-backs Cafu and Roberto Carlos respectively. He played every match as Brazil won. On 12 November 2005, Cicinho came on as a substitute for Cafú in a friendly against the United Arab Emirates in Abu Dhabi and scored his only international goal to cap an 8–0 victory. He was one of the 23 players called up by Carlos Alberto Parreira to defend Brazil's crown in the 2006 FIFA World Cup in Germany. He made his tournament debut in the 4–1 group stage win over Japan, assisting one of Ronaldo's goals that made him the tournament's all-time top goalscorer. His one other appearance was in the 1–0 loss to France in the quarter-finals, as a late substitute for Cafú.

Born in Jundiaí, Cicinho made his senior debuts with local Ituano in 2007. He then moved to neighbouring Oeste in January of the following year, but was subsequently loaned to Santo André in May, appearing in 20 matches and scoring twice during his first year, helping the Ramalhão return to Série A after a 25-year absence. Cicinho made his Série A debut on 10 May 2009, starting in a 1–1 home draw against Botafogo. He appeared regularly in the campaign, which ended in relegation. On 13 January 2011 Cicinho joined Palmeiras on loan until the end of the year. In July, Verdão bought one half of the player's rights, who signed a contract until 2015. On 30 July 2012 Cicinho signed a four-year deal with La Liga's Sevilla FC, for a €2 million fee. He made his debut in the competition on 18 August, starting in a 2–1 home win against Getafe CF. Cicinho scored his first goal for the Andalusians on 22 October, netting the winner of a 3–2 home success against RCD Mallorca. He finished his first season abroad with 27 appearances, with his side finishing seventh. On 27 June 2013 Cicinho suffered a severe knee injury, which took him out of action for six months. On 28 January 2015, after failing to appear with the Rojiblancos after his injury, he was loaned to Segunda División's CD Numancia until June. He made 15 appearances for the team from Soria, heading an equaliser in a 2–1 loss at Girona FC on 1 March. Cicinho returned to his homeland on 27 July 2015, signing a deal for Série B team…

In addition to being Brazilian, he is also an Italian citizen, having a grandfather from Tione degli Abruzzi in Abruzzo whose last name was "De Cesare", then poorly transcribed as De Cézare by the registry office. In 2012, Cicinho revealed that he was an alcoholic and smoker, and would have taken drugs were it not for doping tests in football. He told ESPN Brasil in 2016 that he smoked two packs of cigarettes a day. The following year, he confessed in a Fox interview that his addictions became a problem following his move to Real Madrid, and that he got more than 30 tattoos in a struggle to fight his depression.

São Paulo Campeonato Paulista: 2005 Copa Libertadores: 2005 FIFA Club World Cup: 2005 Real Madrid La Liga: 2006–07 Roma Coppa Italia: 2007–08 Brazil FIFA Confederations Cup: 2005

Palmeiras Copa do Brasil: 2012 Sevilla UEFA Europa League: 2013–14