Falcão
Falcão with Roma during the 1983–84 Serie A season
Personal information
Full name Paulo Roberto Falcão
Date of birth (1953-10-16) 16 October 1953
Place of birth Abelardo Luz, Brazil
Height 1.83 m (6 ft 0 in)[1]
Position(s) Midfielder
Youth career
1965–1972 Internacional
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
1972–1980 Internacional 342 (58)
1980–1985 Roma 107 (22)
1985–1986 São Paulo 12 (0)
Total 461 (80)
International career
1972 Brazil U23 12 (2)
1976–1986 Brazil 34 (6)
Managerial career
1990–1991 Brazil
1991–1992 Club América
1993 Internacional
1994 Japan
2011 Internacional
2012 Bahia
2015–2016 Sport Recife
2016 Internacional
*Club domestic league appearances and goals

Paulo Roberto Falcão, or simply Falcão (Portuguese pronunciation: [ˈpawlu ʁoˈbɛʁtu fawˈkɐ̃w]; born 16 October 1953), is a Brazilian former footballer and football manager. He is universally considered one of the greatest Brazilian players of all time and one of the greatest defensive midfielders in football history,[2][3] and one of the best players in the world in his position at his peak in the 1980s.[4]

Falcão is widely considered one of the best players in Internacional and Roma history, playing also for São Paulo. At one stage, he was the world's highest paid footballer.

Due to his success and performances with Roma, Falcão earned the nickname "the eighth King of Rome" from the fans,[5] like Amedeo Amadei before him, and was inducted into the club's Hall of Fame in 2013.[6]

For the Brazil national team, Falcão was capped 34 times between February 1976 and June 1986. He appeared at the 1982 FIFA World Cup, playing in midfield alongside Zico, Sócrates and Éder, considered one of the greatest Brazilian national teams ever.[7] He was named by Pelé one of the 125 Greatest Living Footballers at a FIFA Awards ceremony in 2004.[8] Colombian forward Radamel Falcao's father was a footballer and football fan and named him after Falcão.[9]

Club career

Internacional

Falcão began his professional career at Internacional of Porto Alegre, in Rio Grande do Sul, where he played from 1972 to 1980, winning three Brazilian National Championships (1975, 1976, 1979) and reaching the finals of the 1980 Copa Libertadores, eventually losing to Nacional. During his time at Internacional, he was surprisingly left out of the Brazil squad for the 1978 World Cup in Argentina, though he made the shortlisted pre-tournament 40.

Roma

In 1980, Falcão transferred to Serie A club Roma for £650,000. In his first season in Italy (1980–81), he was able to master the language and had his mother and sister living with him to help settle him in. He played well, scoring three goals in his 25 games as Roma finished second in Serie A to Juventus. This was a controversial championship, as Roma had a goal ruled out for an unclear offside against Juventus during a defining draw in Turin. Consolation came with a Coppa Italia win for Roma, beating Torino in the final on penalties – Falcão himself scored the decisive spot kick.

Although Roma slipped to third in his second season (1981–82), personally for Falcão it was better than the first, with six goals in 24 games, becoming one of the foreign stars in Serie A. At the end of this season, he was called up for the 1982 World Cup finals in Spain.

After the World Cup, Falcão inspired Roma to win their second league title ever during the 1982–83 season, scoring seven times in 27 games, and creating numerous others. Although Juventus's Michel Platini finished as top scorer in the league, and despite Juventus beating Roma in both league games, he was acknowledged as the star man in Serie A that season, also performing well as Roma reached the quarter-finals of the UEFA Cup. At the end of this season, Falcão had earned the nickname "the eighth King of Rome".

In 1983–84, Juventus won the title from Roma, who finished second, but it was only won on the final day of the season. Falcão scored five goals in his 27 games. Roma's main goal that season, however, was the European Cup, especially as the final was to be played at Roma's own Olympic Stadium. He played every game, as Roma swept past IFK Gothenburg, CSKA Sofia and Dynamo Berlin to reach the semi-finals against Dundee United.

In a previous Serie A game, Falcão injured his knee, so he missed the first leg of the semi-final, as Roma lost 2–0 in Dundee. He returned for the second leg as Roma won 3–0 to reach the final, but again injured his knee in the process. He was fit enough for the final against Liverpool, but played poorly as Roma were eventually defeated on penalties after a 1–1 draw, with Falcão declining to even take a spot kick. This was a marked turning point in his relationship with the club, and the beginning of the end of his time in Rome. Roma again won the Coppa Italia, but despite nearly winning the treble, the mood around the city was not a happy one.

In the 1984–85 season, Falcão was more famous for his off field antics than his on field ones. Due to his knee troubles, he only managed four games and one goal in the league as Roma slumped to eighth place in the championship. Falcão then flew off to New York City for an operation on his knee that was unauthorized by the club's doctors, and Roma subsequently terminated his contract. He went back to Brazil after five years in Rome.

São Paulo

Falcão then signed a contract with São Paulo.

While playing for São Paulo, Falcão won two titles. The first was a Campeonato Paulista in 1985 beating Portuguesa in the final with an aggregate score of 5–2, and the second one a Taça dos Campeões Rio-São, also in 1985, where he scored his one and only goal for the club in the second leg against Fluminense.

Falcão retired from professional football after the 1986 World Cup. He is one of eleven members to have been inducted into the Roma Hall of Fame.[6]

International career

Falcão made 34 appearences for the Brazil national team between 1976 and 1986, scoring six goals.[10] He was a member of the side that finished third at the 1979 Copa América, scoring his only goal of the tournament in the second leg of the semi-finals, a 2–2 draw against eventual champions Paraguay, although the latter nation advanced to the final 4–3 on aggregate.[11] He was surprisingly left out of Brazil's 1978 World Cup squad, despite being included on the 40–player shortlist before the tournament.

Falcão starred in the midfield of the Brazil 1982 World Cup team, along with Toninho Cerezo, Zico, Eder and Socrates in a 4–2–2–2 formation;[12] the side is generally seen by pundits as one of the best teams not to win the World Cup.[13] Although initially he was only intended to be a substitute, due to a suspension to Cerezo, Falcão started in Brazil's opening match, as they beat Soviet Union 2–1;[12] he went on to start in each match of the tournament, scoring the last goal as Brazil then beat Scotland 4–1,[14] and adding another goal in the 4–0 win against New Zealand.[12][15]

In the second phase of the World Cup, in the so-called "Group of Death," his team obtained a 3–1 win against the reigning World Champions and rivals Argentina, meaning that the Brazilians needed only a draw in their next game against Italy to advance to the semi-finals. In this game, despite twice equalising, Brazil were beaten by a Paolo Rossi hat trick as Italy won 3–2, advancing in their place. Falcão got the second equalising goal for Brazil against his adopted country with a drive from the edge of the area, which was deflected by opposing defender Giuseppe Bergomi.[12][16][17] The defeat and resulting elimination affected Falcão and several of his teammates heavily;[18] after the match, he was said to be so distressed that he wanted to give up football.

After muddling through a nondescript season for his club (although he helped the team win the São Paulo State Championship in 1985), he managed to get a call up to the Brazil 1986 World Cup squad, mainly on reputation.

During this World Cup, he only managed to play in two games (coming on as substitute against both Spain and Algeria). Brazil exited in the quarter-finals against the French team of his old rival Michel Platini. After this World Cup, Falcão retired from football.

Coaching career

From 1990 to 1991, Falcão was the manager of the Brazil national team; he led the team to a second place finish at the 1991 Copa América, behind rivals Argentina.[19] His second and longest coaching experience was with América from 1991 to 1993. He also coached Internacional in 1993. After a brief hiatus, in 1994, he was the manager of the Japan national team. In April 2011, after 16 years without managing a club, he was signed by Internacional, replacing Celso Roth.[20] He was then sacked in July, following three consecutive defeats in the Brazilian league.[21][22]

In February 2012, Falcão returned into management, signing an eleven-month deal as head coach of Bahia.[23] He only returned to coaching duties in September 2015, being appointed manager at Sport.[24]

Falcão returned to Internacional in July 2016,[25] but was sacked after three losses and two draws, only one month later.[26] On 17 November 2022, he joined Santos as a sporting coordinator.[27]

On 4 August 2023, Falcão left his role at Santos.[28]

Style of play

An elegant and technically gifted player, with an eye for goal from midfield, and an ability to orchestrate his team's attacking moves, Falcão usually functioned in a holding role as a deep-lying playmaker (known as the regista role, in Italian football jargon),[2][29][30][31][32] although he was capable of aiding his team defensively, as well as creatively and offensively, due to his physique, work-rate, and tenacity. He was known in particular for his flair, control, vision, passing and long-range shooting ability, as well as his tactical intelligence, organisational ability and leadership.[5][29] His role has also been likened to that of a metodista ("centre-half," in Italian football jargon), due to his ability to dictate play in midfield as well as assist his team defensively.[33]

Personal life

Falcão was born in Abelardo Luz, in the Southern Brazilian state of Santa Catarina. His father is Portuguese-Brazilian and his mother Azize has Italian origins, from Calabria.[34] In her 1991 autobiography, La filosofia di Moana ("Moana's philosophy," in Italian), Italian adult film actress Moana Pozzi claimed to have had an affair with Falcão.[35]

Falcao married his first wife, attorney Rosane Leal Damazio, in 1993, with whom he had a son Paulo Roberto Falcão Filho, born on July 21, 1993.

He also worked for many years as a football commentator for Rede Globo and for its sports oriented branch SporTV.

On 4 August 2023, Falcão was accused of sexual harassment by an employee of the apartment hotel he lived in Santos.[36]

Career statistics

Club

Appearances and goals by club, season and competition[1][37]
Club Season League State League[lower-alpha 1] Cup[lower-alpha 2] Continental[lower-alpha 3] Other[lower-alpha 4] Total
DivisionAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoals
Internacional 1973 Série A 34020———360
1974 212180———392
1975 191247———438
1976 155264—61—4710
1977 90327—70—487
1978 275347———6112
1979 2064511———6517
1980 13330—92—255
Total 1582218436—223—36461
Roma 1980–81 Serie A 253—5021—324
1981–82 246—2040—306
1982–83 277—4182—3910
1983–84 275—8081—436
1984–85 41—3010—81
Total 10722—221234—15227
São Paulo 1985[38] Série A 10110———120
1986[39] 0000——2121
Total 10110——21141
Career total 26644195362214572153089

International

Appearances and goals by national team and year [1]
National teamYearAppsGoals
Brazil 197651
197740
197800
197951
198000
198100
198274
198300
198400
198500
198670
Total286

Managerial statistics

As of 22 June 2023.
Managerial record by team and tenure
Team Nat From To Record Ref
G W D L GF GA GD Win %
Brazil Brazil 16 August 1990 20 August 1991 17 6 7 4 22 18 +4 035.29 [40]
Club América Mexico November 1991 November 1992 51 21 14 16 73 66 +7 041.18 [41]
Internacional Brazil September 1993 November 1993 14 5 4 5 17 20 −3 035.71 [42]
Japan Japan May 1994 October 1994 9 3 4 2 16 13 +3 033.33 [43]
Internacional Brazil 10 April 2011 18 July 2011 19 8 5 6 30 24 +6 042.11 [44]
Bahia Brazil 6 February 2012 20 July 2012 36 16 10 10 62 40 +22 044.44 [45]
Sport Recife Brazil 20 September 2015 18 April 2016 34 17 6 11 49 33 +16 050.00 [46]
Internacional Brazil 12 July 2016 8 August 2016 5 0 2 3 6 10 −4 000.00
Total 185 76 52 57 275 224 +51 041.08 —

Honours

Internacional[2]

Roma[2]

São Paulo[2]

Individual

References

  1. 1 2 3 "Paulo Falcão (Player)". National-Football-Teams.com. Retrieved 21 September 2022.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "Falcao, a very special No5". FIFA. Archived from the original on 9 October 2015. Retrieved 19 October 2015.
  3. ↑ "Full List of 110 Nominees for France Football's 'Ballon d'Or Dream Team' Have Been Revealed". 22 October 2020.
  4. ↑ Hayward, Ben (9 November 2023). "The best midfielders of the 1980s". FourFourTwo.com. Retrieved 21 November 2023.
  5. 1 2 "Paulo Roberto Falçao: l'ottavo Re di Roma" [Paulo Roberto Falçao: the eighth King of Rome] (in Italian). Storie di Calcio. Retrieved 5 June 2015.
  6. 1 2 3 "A.S. Roma Hall of Fame: 2013". A.S. Roma. 22 July 2013. Retrieved 4 June 2015.
  7. ↑ Daniel Pearl (3 April 2006). "No flair please, he's Brazilian". London: BBC. Retrieved 3 July 2006.
  8. ↑ "Pele's list of the greatest". BBC Sport. 4 March 2004. Retrieved 22 November 2013.
  9. ↑ Tansey, Joe (31 May 2011). "10 Facts About Falcao: Arsenal, Tottenham Transfer Target". Bleacher Report. Retrieved 21 November 2023.
  10. ↑ Strack-Zimmermann, Benjamin. "Paulo Falcão (Player)". www.national-football-teams.com. Retrieved 23 November 2023.
  11. ↑ "Copa América 1979". RSSSF.com. 8 November 2006. Archived from the original on 12 January 2007. Retrieved 23 November 2023.
  12. 1 2 3 4 Wilson, Jonathan (25 July 2012). "Italy 3-2 Brazil, 1982: the day naivety, not football itself, died". The Guardian. Retrieved 18 November 2023.
  13. ↑ "MOTD Top 10: Best teams not to win World Cup". BBC Sport. 17 November 2022. Retrieved 23 November 2023.
  14. ↑ "Brazil 4-1 Scotland (18 Jun, 1982) Final Score". ESPN. Retrieved 23 November 2023.
  15. ↑ "Brazil 4-0 New Zealand (Jun 23, 1982) Final Score". ESPN. Retrieved 23 November 2023.
  16. ↑ Zoff, Dino (12 June 2014). "Il Mondiale si vince con un bravo «generale»" [The World Cup is won with a good "general"]. Il Sole 24 ORE (in Italian). Retrieved 18 November 2023.
  17. ↑ Simpson, Paul (2 June 2014). "82: The original and harshest Group of Death". FourFourTwo.com. Retrieved 20 November 2023.
  18. ↑ Duarte, Fernando (30 May 2014). "Brazil lost that Italy game in 1982 but won a place in history – Falcão". The Guardian. Retrieved 23 November 2023.
  19. ↑ "Copa América 1991". www.rsssf.org. Retrieved 23 November 2023.
  20. ↑ "Falcão será apresentado nesta segunda à tarde" (in Portuguese). Internacional Official website. 10 April 2011. Archived from the original on 13 April 2011. Retrieved 10 April 2011.
  21. ↑ "Falcao, l'idillio è finito L'Internacional lo caccia" (in Italian). La Repubblica. 18 July 2011. Retrieved 12 February 2012.
  22. ↑ "Internacional sacked Falcao". Sambafoot. 19 July 2011. Retrieved 12 February 2012.
  23. ↑ "Falcão confirmed as new Bahia coach". Sambafoot. 7 February 2012. Retrieved 12 February 2012.
  24. ↑ "Sport anuncia a chegada de Falcão, que assina até o final de 2016". GloboEsporte.com. 20 September 2015. Retrieved 20 September 2015.
  25. ↑ "Internacional – Site oficial". internacional.com.br.
  26. ↑ "Paulo Roberto Falcão deixa o comando técnico do Inter". Gaúcha. 8 August 2016.
  27. ↑ "Paulo Roberto Falcão, novo coordenador esportivo do Santos FC, é apresentado em entrevista coletiva" [Paulo Roberto Falcão, new sporting coordinator of Santos FC, is presented in a press conference] (in Brazilian Portuguese). Santos FC. 17 November 2022. Retrieved 22 June 2023.
  28. ↑ "Nota oficial – Paulo Roberto Falcão" [Official note – Paulo Roberto Falcão] (in Brazilian Portuguese). Santos FC. 4 August 2023. Retrieved 4 August 2023.
  29. 1 2 "Roma 1982/83: Cuore Giallorosso" (in Italian). Storie di Calcio. 17 September 2016. Retrieved 22 September 2018.
  30. ↑ Jonathan Wilson (2 June 2014). "Top 10: Players of Spain '82". FourFourTwo. Retrieved 3 November 2015.
  31. ↑ "Vierchowod uomo in più, Nappy jolly" (in Italian). La Stampa. 10 May 1983. p. 20. Retrieved 22 September 2018.
  32. ↑ "10 cose da sapere sul Divino Falcao" (in Italian). A.S. Roma. 16 October 2020. Retrieved 23 November 2023.
  33. ↑ "La storia della tattica: da Sacchi a Guardiola" (in Italian). Eurosport. 18 May 2015. Retrieved 13 April 2022.
  34. ↑ La Stampa, 23 settembre 1980, pagina 21 archiviolastampa.it
  35. ↑ "I voti di Moana «Tardelli da 8 Falcao da 5»". La Gazzetta dello Sport (in Italian). 10 October 2006. Retrieved 20 November 2023.
  36. ↑ "Paulo Roberto Falcão é denunciado por suspeita de importunação sexual por funcionária de apart hotel no litoral de SP" [Paulo Roberto Falcão is reported due to suspicion of sexual harassment by employee of apartment hotel in the coast of SP] (in Brazilian Portuguese). G1. 4 August 2023. Retrieved 4 August 2023.
  37. ↑ "Falcão" (in Brazilian Portuguese). Futebol 80. Retrieved 28 February 2023.
  38. ↑ "São Paulo Futebol Clube Matches – 1985". RSSSF. Retrieved 28 February 2023.
  39. ↑ "São Paulo Futebol Clube Matches – 1986". RSSSF. Retrieved 28 February 2023.
  40. ↑ "Professor Falcão" [Coach Falcão] (in Brazilian Portuguese). ge. 20 August 2021. Retrieved 22 June 2023.
  41. ↑ "CF América". RSSSF. Retrieved 22 June 2023.
  42. ↑ "Relembre as outras duas passagens de Falcão como técnico do Inter" [Remember the other two stints of Falcão as head coach of Inter] (in Brazilian Portuguese). GloboEsporte.com. 13 July 2016. Retrieved 22 June 2023.
  43. ↑ "Paulo Falcão". National Football Teams. Retrieved 22 June 2023.
  44. ↑ "Falcão é demitido do Internacional" [Falcão is sacked from Internacional] (in Brazilian Portuguese). Veja. 18 July 2011. Retrieved 22 June 2023.
  45. ↑ "Após goleada para o Fluminense, Bahia oficializa a saída de Paulo Roberto Falcão" [After routing to Fluminense, Bahia made official the departure of Paulo Roberto Falcão] (in Brazilian Portuguese). UOL Esporte. 20 July 2012. Retrieved 22 June 2023.
  46. ↑ "Saiba como foi o aproveitamento de Falcão no comando técnico do Sport" [Know how it went the performance of Falcão in charge of Sport] (in Brazilian Portuguese). Torcedores.com. 18 April 2016. Retrieved 22 June 2023.
  47. ↑ "Matches of FIFA XI". Rec.Sport.Soccer Statistics Foundation.
  48. 1 2 José Luis Pierrend (6 March 2012). ""Onze Mondial" Awards: Onze de Onze 1976–2011". Rec.Sport.Soccer Statistics Foundation. Retrieved 14 September 2015.
  49. ↑ World Soccer: The 100 Greatest Footballers of All Time. Retrieved 17 December 2015
  50. ↑ "Pele's list of the greatest". BBC Sport. 4 March 2004. Retrieved 15 June 2013.
  51. ↑ "Hall of Fame" (in Italian). A.S. Roma. Retrieved 27 July 2016.
  52. ↑ "Italian football Hall of Fame to induct ten new stars". 25 October 2016. Retrieved 25 October 2016.

Bibliography

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