Mário Zagallo

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Zagallo
Personal information
Full name	Mário Jorge Lobo Zagallo
Date of birth	August 9, 1931 (age 75)
Place of birth	Maceió, Brazil
Nickname	Velho Lobo (Old Wolf)
Position	Assistant manager (former forward centre/right or striker)
Club information
Current club	Brazil
Professional clubs*
Years	Club	Apps (goals)
1948-1949 1950-1958 1958-1965	América Flamengo Botafogo	? (?) 217 (30)  ? (?)
National team**
1958-1964	Brazil	36(5)
Teams managed
1966-1970 1967-1968 1970-1974 1971-1972 1972-1974 1975 1976-1978 1978-1979 1978-1979 1980-1981 1981-1984 1984-1985 1986-1987 1988-1989 1989-1990 1990-1991 1994-1998 1999-2000 2000-2001 2002	Botafogo Brazil Brazil Fluminense Flamengo Botafogo Kuwait Botafogo Al Hilal Vasco da Gama Saudi Arabia Flamengo Botafogo Bangu United Arab Emirates Vasco da Gama Brazil Portuguesa Flamengo Brazil
* Professional club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of June 4, 2006. ** National team caps and goals correct as of June 4, 2006.

Mário Jorge Lobo Zagallo (born August 9, 1931 in Maceió) is a Brazilian football coach and former player, of Lebanese origin (Zakkour). Zagallo started his footballer career in América in 1948 [1]. He was the first footballer to win the World Cup as a player (1958, 1962), as a coach (1970), and as assistant coach (World Cup 1994), all with the Brazilian national team. He also coached his country to a fourth-place finish in the 1974 World Cup and to a second-place finish in the 1998 World Cup[2]. Zagallo also guided the United Arab Emirates to their first World Cup finals in 1990, but was dismissed from his post before the tournament. Zagallo also was assistant coach (as in 1994, the main coach was Carlos Alberto Parreira) of the Brazilian team in the World Cup of 2006, which was eliminated by France.

As a player, Zagallo was the left-forward of the Brazilian teams in the Cups of 1958 and 1962; he scored goals in both tournaments, including one in the final match against the Swedish team, in 1958. What he lacked in physical stature, Zagallo compensated with exquisite technique and by always being the first man back to defend if his team lost the ball.

In 1970, Zagallo assumed the national team after the previous coach João Saldanha resigned alleging that he was suffering external pressures to include players in the team. Zagallo had the task – and succeeded in performing it – of finding a place in the team for a group of outstanding players such as Pelé, Gérson, Tostão, Jairzinho and Rivelino. In his 1977 autobiography, Pele writes that Zagallo initially restricted his team from playing their attacking game at the 1970 World Cup. Based on a chess format, Zagallo organized a sophisticated method, which he ultimately had to abandon due to player complaints. His side won all six of their matches, scoring 19 times in the process. It was the first time football had witnessed a 5-3-2 formation that could seamlessly transform itself into a 3-5-2 and back again.

On July 23, 2001 the Brazilian football team was defeated (0-2) in the quarter-final of the 2001 Copa America tournament by the low-ranked (and last minute invitee) Honduras. Zagallo, stunned, stated that he never thought to live long enough to see the powerful Brazil being defeated by Honduras.

[edit] Trivia

• He is famously superstitious around the number 13. For example, since 5+8= 13 as well as 9+4=13, he believed that 1958 and 1994 World Cups were special for Brazil. Also regarding the 1994 victory, he used to state that the phrase Brasil tetracampeão ("Brazil four times champion") is comprised of 13 letters.

• Zagallo is one of the best football coaches of his times having won the World Cup with Brazil 4 times playing and coaching. Some compare him to a "football encyclopedia", and players call him The Professor.

• Zagalla was one of the first managers to introduce attacking full backs, a concept he has always remained loyal to -- as the importance of Cafu, Leonardo and Roberto Carlos to the Seleçao’s forward play in 1994 and 1998 stands to prove.

[edit] Quotes

• "I accept criticism, but what hurts is mockery. In Germany, I was elected the best coach in the world. In Brazil, I'm ridiculed."

• "I've lived soccer for 50 years, and this is my happiest moment. After 40 years, our flag will fly again in Europe"

• "He was one of the greatest Brazilian players of his generation and, after winning the World Cup four times, he has left a permanent mark on Brazilian football. It is an honour for me to have worked with him"

  - Ronaldo

[edit] External links

• FIFA Page about Zagallo

Preceded by Alf Ramsey	FIFA World Cup winning managers 1970	Succeeded by Helmut Schön
Preceded by João Saldanha	Brazilian national football team manager 1970-1974	Succeeded by Osvaldo Brandão
Preceded by Carlos Alberto Parreira	Brazilian national football team manager 1995-1998	Succeeded by Vanderlei Luxemburgo
Preceded by Luiz Felipe Scolari	Brazilian national football team manager 2002	Succeeded by Carlos Alberto Parreira

	Brazil squad - 1958 World Cup Champions (1st Title)
1 Castilho | 2 Bellini | 3 Gilmar | 4 Djalma Santos | 5 Dino Sani | 6 Didi | 7 Zagallo | 8 Oreco | 9 Zózimo | 10 Pelé | 11 Garrincha | 12 Nílton Santos | 13 Moacir | 14 De Sordi | 15 Orlando | 16 Mauro | 17 Joel | 18 Mazzola | 19 Zito | 20 Vavá | 21 Dida | 22 Pepe | Coach: Feola

	Brazil squad - 1962 World Cup Champions (2nd Title)
1 Gilmar | 2 Djalma Santos | 3 Mauro | 4 Zito | 5 Zózimo | 6 Nílton Santos | 7 Garrincha | 8 Didi | 9 Coutinho | 10 Pelé | 11 Pepe | 12 Jair Marinho | 13 Bellini | 14 Jurandir | 15 Altair | 16 Zequinha | 17 Mengálvio | 18 Jair da Costa | 19 Vavá | 20 Amarildo | 21 Zagallo | 22 Castilho | Coach: Moreira

	Brazil squad - 1970 World Cup Champions (3rd Title)
1 Félix | 2 Brito | 3 Piazza | 4 Carlos Alberto | 5 Clodoaldo | 6 Marco Antônio | 7 Jairzinho | 8 Gérson | 9 Tostão | 10 Pelé | 11 Rivelino | 12 Ado | 13 Roberto | 14 Baldocchi | 15 Fontana | 16 Everaldo | 17 Joel | 18 Paulo César | 19 Edu | 20 Dario | 21 Zé Maria | 22 Leão | Coach: Zagallo

	Brazil squad - 1974 World Cup
1 Leão | 2 Luis Pereira | 3 Marinho Peres | 4 Zé Maria | 5 Piazza | 6 Marinho Chagas | 7 Jairzinho | 8 Leivinha | 9 César | 10 Rivelino | 11 Paulo César | 12 Renato | 13 Valdomiro | 14 Nelinho | 15 Alfredo | 16 Marco Antônio | 17 Carpegiani | 18 Ademir da Guia | 19 Mirandinha | 20 Edu | 21 Dirceu | 22 Valdir Peres | Coach: Zagallo

	Brazil squad - 1998 FIFA World Cup Runners-up
1 Taffarel | 2 Cafu | 3 Aldair | 4 Júnior Baiano | 5 César Sampaio | 6 Roberto Carlos | 7 Giovanni | 8 Dunga | 9 Ronaldo | 10 Rivaldo | 11 Emerson | 12 Carlos Germano | 13 Zé Carlos | 14 Gonçalves | 15 André Cruz | 16 Zé Roberto | 17 Doriva | 18 Leonardo | 19 Denílson | 20 Bebeto | 21 Edmundo | 22 Dida | Coach: Zagallo