| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | José Eduardo Rosa Vale Castro | ||
| Date of birth | 13 January 1983 | ||
| Place of birth | Coimbra, Portugal | ||
| Height | 1.83 m (6 ft 0 in) | ||
| Playing position | Centre back | ||
| Club information | |||
| Current club | Deportivo La Coruña | ||
| Number | 5 | ||
| Youth career | |||
| Académica | |||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps† | (Gls)† |
| 2002–2004 | Académica B | 50 | (9) |
| 2004–2006 | Académica | 54 | (1) |
| 2006–2009 | Atlético Madrid | 30 | (2) |
| 2008–2009 | → Deportivo La Coruña (loan) | 29 | (1) |
| 2009– | Deportivo La Coruña | 18 | (0) |
| National team‡ | |||
| 2004–2006 | Portugal U21 | 15 | (1) |
| 2009– | Portugal | 1 | (0) |
| * Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 18 September 2011. † Appearances (Goals). |
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José Eduardo Rosa Vale e Castro (born 13 January 1983 in Coimbra), aka Zé Castro, is a Portuguese footballer who plays for Deportivo de La Coruña in Spain, as a central defender.
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Castro entered hometown Académica de Coimbra's youth ranks as a child, and made his first division debuts on 3 October 2004, playing 20 minutes in a 2–1 home triumph against Gil Vicente FC. Despite his young age, he eventually became an undisputed starter and team captain.
In the 2006 off-season, after unfinished advances by Portugal's Big Three, Castro signed with Spain's Atlético de Madrid;[1] in his first year, he benefitted (mainly) from injuries to teammates, going on to appear in 22 top level matches, with two goals (namely an 83rd minute-strike against CA Osasuna for the game's only goal, at home, on 20 January 2007[2]), but featured rarely in the following.
In the summer of 2008, Castro joined fellow league side Deportivo de La Coruña, on a season-long loan, with the Galicians having a buyout clause of €2 million for 50% of the player's rights (the remaining 50% being owned by a company).Again due to injury (habitual starter Pablo Amo was sidelined for months with an Achilles tendon problem), the Portuguese was able to start most of the season, and the option was activated for a permanent move.[3]
Zé Castro appeared in only ten games in the 2009–10 season, and featured even less in the following year, prompting him to request a move in mid-November 2010.[4] In March 2011, he was to be picked as a last-minute substitute for a league match against Real Sociedad after Aythami Artiles went down with a bout of gastroenteritis, but did not present himself at the Estadio Riazor, and could not be traced through his cellphone.[5]
Shortly after his debuts with Académica, Castro became a defensive stalwart for the Portuguese U21s, and appeared at the 2006 European Championship on home soil. There, he appeared in three complete matches, as Portugal exited in the group stage, and scored an own goal in the 0–2 defeat against Serbia.[6]
On 10 June 2009, Castro finally made his full debut, in a 0–0 friendly match in Estonia. On May 10 of the following year, in spite of a poor season at Deportivo, he was included in a provisional squad of 24 players announced by Carlos Queiroz, in view of the 2010 FIFA World Cup; however, after Pepe recovered in time to participate in the competition, he was cut.[7]
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