Deco
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50%Born
1977 (46 years old)
Birth Place
São Bernardo do Campo, BrazilPosition
Attacking Midfield
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Height
176 cm
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SoccerTeam
_Retired Soccer
2nd Team
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_No League Soccer
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Anderson Luís de Souza (born 27 August 1977), known as Deco (Portuguese pronunciation: ), is a retired professional footballer who primarily played as an attacking or central midfielder. Born and raised in Brazil, he acquired Portuguese citizenship and played for Portugal.
Deco is one of the few players to have won the UEFA Champions League with two clubs, with Porto in 2004 and Barcelona in 2006. He was named UEFA Club Footballer of the Year and UEFA Best Midfielder in Porto's Champions League-winning season and was named Man of the Match in the 2004 UEFA Champions League Final. Deco was the first player to win the UEFA Best Midfielder Award with two clubs, Porto and Barcelona. He was awarded the 2006 FIFA Club World Cup Golden Ball and the Man of the Match award in the final despite losing to Internacional.
Born and raised in Brazil, Deco received Portuguese citizenship in 2002 having completed five years of Portuguese residence, and subsequently opted to play internationally for the Portugal national team. He earned 75 caps for them, playing at two UEFA European Championships and two FIFA World Cups, reaching the final of Euro 2004, and achieving a fourth-place finish at the 2006 World Cup.
Deco was never called up to the Brazil national team, as the Brazil squad for the 2002 FIFA World Cup included other attacking midfielders such as Ronaldinho, Rivaldo and Juninho. After completing six years of residence in Portugal, he was able to gain Portuguese citizenship and play for their national team. As none of his great-grandparents, grandparents or parents were Portuguese, under FIFA's player eligibility rules his citizenship was the only factor to allow him to play for Portugal. He was subsequently mentioned several times in the media as an option for the Portugal national team.
After many months of public discussion which split Portuguese public opinion, and despite the opposition of a large number of Porto rivals' supporters, he was called up for his first international, coincidentally against Brazil. He came on as a substitute for Sérgio Conceição and scored the free-kick which won the match 2–1. This was Portugal's first win over Brazil since the 1966 FIFA World Cup. Since that match, he became a regular in the national team. Before UEFA Euro 2004, Luís Figo criticised Deco's inclusion and said, "Se você nasceu chinês, bem, você tem que jogar pela China." (English: "If you're born Chinese, well, you have to play for China.") Deco responded, "Eu nasci no Brasil e seria uma mentira dizer que sou português agora e não brasileiro. Mas amo Portugal e adoro jogar pela seleção." (English:"I was born in Brazil and it would be a lie to say that I'm Portuguese now and not Brazilian. But I love Portugal and I love playing for the national team.")
Despite the early criticism, Deco was one of the highlights of the Portugal national team. He scored 5 goals in 75 caps for Portugal by June 2010, when his international career ended after the second-round defeat to Spain at the 2010 World Cup.
Deco is the brother-in-law of fellow footballer Alecsandro, who plays for Coritiba Foot Ball Club, and Richarlyson. Deco is an ambassador for the Laureus Sport for Good Foundation. He also has a charitable organisation, the Deco Institute, based in the Brazilian city of Indaiatuba, near São Paulo, where he grew up.
After retiring, Deco set up D20 Sports Management, a sports agency registered in Dublin, Ireland. The agency, whose clients include Brazil international Fabinho, recorded €300,000 profit in 2017.
Career Honours
Career Milestones
 UEFA Champions League Hat-Trick 2001-07-25 |
Former Youth Teams
1996-1997 |
Former Senior Teams
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1996-1997 |
1997-1999 |
1999-2004 |
2003-2010 |
2004-2008 |
2008-2010 |
2010-2013 |
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