| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Luiz Felipe Scolari | ||
| Date of birth | 9 November 1948 | ||
| Place of birth | Passo Fundo, Brazil | ||
| Height | 1.82 m (5 ft 11 1⁄2 in)[1] | ||
| Playing position | Defender | ||
| Club information | |||
| Current club | Palmeiras (Manager) | ||
| Youth career | |||
| 1966–1973 | Aymoré de São Leopoldo-RS | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps† | (Gls)† |
| 1973–1979 | Caxias | ||
| 1980 | Juventude | ||
| 1980–1981 | Novo Hamburgo | ||
| 1981 | CSA | ||
| Teams managed | |||
| 1982 | CSA | ||
| 1982–1983 | Juventude | ||
| 1983 | Brasil de Pelotas | ||
| 1984–1985 | Al-Shabab | ||
| 1986 | Brasil de Pelotas | ||
| 1986–1987 | Juventude | ||
| 1987 | Grêmio | ||
| 1988 | Goiás | ||
| 1988–1990 | Al Qadisiya | ||
| 1990 | Kuwait | ||
| 1991 | Criciúma | ||
| 1991 | Al-Ahli | ||
| 1992 | Al Qadisiya | ||
| 1993–1996 | Grêmio | ||
| 1996–1997 | Júbilo Iwata | ||
| 1997–2000 | Palmeiras | ||
| 2000–2001 | Cruzeiro | ||
| 2001–2002 | Brazil | ||
| 2003–2008 | Portugal | ||
| 2008–2009 | Chelsea | ||
| 2009–2010 | Bunyodkor | ||
| 2010– | Palmeiras | ||
| * Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only. † Appearances (Goals). |
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Luiz Felipe Scolari (Portuguese pronunciation: [luˈiz fiˈlipi iskoˈlaɾi]), ComIH (born 9 November 1948 in Passo Fundo, Rio Grande do Sul), also known as Felipão in Brazil and Phil Scolari in the United Kingdom[2][3][4], is a World Cup-winning Brazilian football manager. He is currently the manager of Palmeiras. He served as the manager of the Portuguese national team from July 12, 2003 to June 30, 2008. As Portugal's manager he led them to the Euro 2004 final which they lost 1-0 to Greece as well as leading them to 4th place in the 2006 FIFA World Cup. Scolari led Portugal in Euro 2008, but resigned after Portugal lost 3-2 to Germany in the 2nd Round. He was succeeded by Carlos Queiroz on July 5, 2008.
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A defender regarded as more uncompromising than skilful, he was known among his contemporaries as "perna-de-pau" (literally translated as "wooden leg", a Brazilian-Portuguese term for a bad player), Scolari followed in the footsteps of his father Benjamin, who was also a Brazilian professional footballer.[5] His playing career encompassed spells with Caxias, Juventude, Novo Hamburgo, and CSA, and often captained his sides. It was with CSA that he won his only major title as a player - the Alagoano state championship.
Upon retiring as a player in 1982, he was appointed manager of CSA, winning the Alagoano state championship in his first season. After spells with Juventude (twice), Brasil de Pelotas and Al-Shabab of Saudi Arabia, he moved to Grêmio, where he won the 1987 Gaúcho state championship and Palmeiras, one of the biggest and traditionals clubs in Brazil.
He then had a two year stint in charge of Kuwaiti side Al Qadisiya Kuwait, with whom he won the prestigious Kuwait Emir Cup in 1989. This was followed by a brief stint as manager of the Kuwait national team, winning the 10th Gulf Cup in Kuwait. He returned to Brazil after Saddam Hussein invaded Kuwait during the Gulf War and coached Criciúma to their first major national title Copa do Brasil. He returned to club management in the Middle East, managing Al-Ahli and a second spell at Al Qadisiya.
He coached Criciuma E.C. in 1991 when they were Champions of the "Copa do Brasil" beating Gremio. For this national title they did not lose a single game. They won 6 games and tied 4 games.
In 1993, Scolari returned to Grêmio, where he was criticized by the Brazilian media for playing a non-Brazilian pragmatic style of football. He won six titles in only three years including the Copa Libertadores in 1995 which qualified them for the Intercontinental Cup, which they lost to AFC Ajax on penalties.[6][7] The following year they won the Brazilian Championship.[8]
His team featured no real superstar and depended on workman-like players such as Paraguayan right back Francisco Arce (of whom he later took to Palmeiras), the tough-tackling midfielder Dinho, Paulo Nunes, and centre forward Mário Jardel.[8]
In 1997, Scolari became manager of J. League side Júbilo Iwata, but left after eleven games and shortly afterwards took charge of Palmeiras back in Brazil.
In three years, Scolari led Palmeiras to the Copa do Brasil, the Mercosur Cup, and their first Copa Libertadores title with a win on penalties over Deportivo Cali of Colombia. They were also runners-up to Manchester United in the 1999 Intercontinental Cup. He was named South American Coach of the Year for 1999.
In 2000, Scolari was appointed to manage Cruzeiro, coaching them for a year.
Scolari's first taste of international management came in 1990 when he coached the Kuwait national team. They won the Gulf Cup of Nations in 1990, beating Qatar in the final, but he was forced to leave the country when Iraq invaded during the Gulf War, after which he went back to club management for a decade.
In June 2001, Scolari was appointed manager of his native Brazil, who with five matches remaining were in danger of not qualifying for the 2002 FIFA World Cup. Despite losing his first match 1-0 to Uruguay, Scolari eventually guided the team to qualification.
In the build-up to the finals, Scolari refused to include veteran striker Romário in his squad, despite public pressure and a tearful appeal from the player himself.[9] Brazil entered the tournament unfancied, but wins over Turkey, China PR, Costa Rica, Belgium, England, and Turkey again took them to the final, where they beat Germany 2-0 with two goals from Ronaldo to win their fifth FIFA World Cup title.[10] At the end of 2002, Scolari resigned as the manager of Brazil.[11]
Scolari took over as manager of Portugal in 2003 and oversaw their preparations as host nation for UEFA Euro 2004. In the finals, Portugal got through the group stages and saw off England in the quarter-finals on penalties before beating the Netherlands in the semi-finals. However, in the final, they were beaten in a massive 1–0 upset by tournament underdogs Greece.[12]
He managed Portugal in the 2006 World Cup in Germany where they reached the semi-finals, again coming out victorious in the quarter-finals against England. But they did not reach the final due to a semi-final defeat against eventual runners-up France. Following the tournament, Scolari was very heavily linked with the England manager's job, but he ultimately opted to remain as Portugal coach.
Scolari took Portugal to Euro 2008 where they reached the knock-out stages by winning Group A before being eliminated by Germany in the quarter-finals. During the tournament, he announced that he would be joining English Premier League side Chelsea for the 2008–09 season.
Scolari took over as manager of Chelsea on 1 July 2008. This was announced shortly after Portugal's Euro 2008 match against the Czech Republic on 11 June. With this appointment, Scolari became the first World Cup winning manager to manage in the Premier League. In previous press conferences, Scolari had talked about "tantrums" and "triumphs" and had a reputation as a tough and unpredictable person.[13] When asked whether his decision to join Chelsea was financial he responded "Yes, that is one of the reasons." But he added: "I'm 59 and I don't want to work as a coach until I'm 70. I want to retire in four or five years, so it was a financial matter but there are other things." He also said: "I could offer my son the opportunity to study elsewhere. You only get this kind of opportunity once so you take it or leave it, but it was not only financial."[14]
Scolari later said that he had turned down an offer to manage Manchester City.[15]
Scolari's first match in charge of Chelsea was a friendly match against Chinese side Guangzhou Pharmaceutical; Chelsea won 4–0.[16] He made FC Barcelona midfielder Deco, a player he was familiar with on the Portuguese national team, his first signing for a fee of around £8 million,[17] but was subsequently frustrated in his attempts to sign Brazilian international Robinho from Real Madrid.[18]
Scolari's career as Chelsea manager in the Premier League got off to a good start with a 4–0 victory over 2008 FA Cup winners Portsmouth.[19]
Under Scolari, Chelsea had the biggest away win of the club in five years in which Chelsea won 5–0 at the Riverside Stadium in October 2008. It was also the club's biggest win ever at Middlesbrough.
Scolari was sacked as Chelsea manager on 9 February 2009[20] after a run of poor form culminating in a 2-0 defeat at Liverpool followed by frustrating 0–0 home draw with Hull City. The club's stated reason for his removal was that "the results and performances of the team appeared to be deteriorating at a key time in the season."[21] Scolari's replacement at Chelsea for the remainder of the 2008-2009 season was the Dutch Guus Hiddink, who was also managing the Russian national team at the same time.
On 6 June 2009, he was spotted in attendance (with FC Bunyodkor player Rivaldo) at Uzbekistan's World Cup qualifier against Japan, and on 8 June 2009, Scolari revealed that he had signed an 18 month contract with the Uzbekistani champions Bunyodkor [2] The contract made Scolari the highest paid football manager in the world, earning 13€ million a year.[22]
He left by mutual consent on 29 May 2010 after failing to guide Bunyodkor past the last 16 in the Asian Champions League although he cited concern regarding his son's education as the key reason.
On June 13, 2010, Scolari was announced Palmeiras' new manager. He signed a two and a half year contract.[23]
Scolari is famous for his temper and for his histrionic "performance" beside the field while the match is going on, reacting strongly to both the best and the worst moments of his team. A good example of his fierce temper was a 12 September 2007 qualifying match for Euro 2008 against Serbia when, at the end of the game, and after the referee had blown the whistle for a 1-1 draw, Scolari threw a left hook at Serbian player Ivica Dragutinović's face that ended up grazing his cheek.[24]
Scolari's character, however, is often seen as a good point, instead of a drawback, because he tries to keep the players (and himself) free of external pressures: he usually demands a lot more freedom than most coaches are allowed and is bent on exerting a somewhat discretionary power. Some critics mostly agree that his unique character was very beneficial to the Portuguese national team, which had a tradition of talented players but never won anything because of excessive intervention from the federation, the clubs, and the player's agents, as well as a lack of a true "team spirit."
In the 2002 FIFA World Cup, he gave each of his players a copy of Sun Tzu's The Art of War, a Chinese military treatise written during the 6th century BC. He also gave the team recordings of Ivete Sangalo Festa videoclip to enforce the Brazilian spirit and motivate the team engagement.[25]
During his career the media has been fond of pointing out Scolari's facial resemblance to actor Gene Hackman and Marlon Brando's portrayal of Don Vito Corleone in the film The Godfather.
Scolari holds Italian citizenship, since his family emigrated from Veneto. He is said to be a fan of Grêmio and Palmeiras, both of which he has managed. He is also known to have a particular passion for English club Nottingham Forest, whose stylish football he followed as they twice conquered Europe under the legendary Brian Clough.[26]
| Team | Nat | From | To | Record | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| G | W | D | L | Win % | ||||
| CSA | 1982 | 1982 | — | |||||
| Juventude | 1982 | 1983 | — | |||||
| Brasil de Pelotas | 1983 | 1983 | — | |||||
| Al-Shabab | 1984 | 1985 | — | |||||
| Brasil de Pelotas | 1986 | 1986 | — | |||||
| Juventude | 1986 | 1987 | 8 | 2 | 4 | 2 | 25.00 | |
| Grêmio | 1987 | 1987 | 15 | 7 | 4 | 4 | 46.67 | |
| Goiás | 1988 | 1988 | 23 | 5 | 11 | 7 | 21.74 | |
| Al Qadisiya | 1988 | 1990 | 35 | 13 | 8 | 14 | 37.14 | |
| Kuwait | 27 January 1990 | August 1990 | — | |||||
| Criciúma | 1991 | 1991 | — | |||||
| Al-Ahli | 1991 | 1991 | — | |||||
| Al Qadisiya | 1992 | 1992 | 14 | 7 | 6 | 1 | 50.00 | |
| Grêmio | 1993 | 1996 | 85 | 35 | 18 | 32 | 41.18 | |
| Júbilo Iwata | 1996 | 1997 | 30 | 20 | 0 | 10 | 66.67 | |
| Palmeiras | 1997 | 2000 | 80 | 38 | 23 | 19 | 47.50 | |
| Cruzeiro | 2000 | 2001 | 57 | 23 | 16 | 18 | 40.35 | |
| Brazil | 2001 | 2002 | 24 | 18 | 1 | 5 | 75.00 | |
| Portugal | 2003 | June 2008 | 74 | 42 | 18 | 14 | 56.76 | |
| Chelsea | 1 July 2008 | 9 February 2009[27] | 36 | 20 | 11 | 5 | 55.56 | |
| Bunyodkor | Uzbekistan | FEB 2009 | 2010 | 38 | 30 | 4 | 4 | 78.95 |
| Palmeiras | 2010 | - | 38 | 14 | 12 | 12 | 36.84 | |
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