Zé Castro

Zé Castro
Personal information
Full nameJosé Eduardo Rosa Vale e Castro
Date of birth13 January 1983
Place of birthCoimbra, Portugal
Height1.83 m (6 ft 0 in)
Playing positionCentre back
Club information
Current team
Rayo Vallecano
Number18
Youth career
1990–2002Académica
Senior career*
YearsTeamApps†(Gls)†
2002–2004Académica B53(9)
2003–2006Académica55(1)
2006–2009Atlético Madrid30(2)
2008–2009→ Deportivo La Coruña (loan)29(1)
2009–2013Deportivo La Coruña67(0)
2013–Rayo Vallecano42(0)
National team‡
2004–2006Portugal U2115(1)
2009–Portugal1(0)
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 20 April 2015.

† Appearances (Goals).

‡ National team caps and goals correct as of 10 June 2009

José Eduardo Rosa Vale e Castro (born 13 January 1983), commonly known as Zé Castro, is a Portuguese professional footballer who plays for Spanish club Rayo Vallecano as a central defender.

Club career

Born in Coimbra, 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 impose his qualities, 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).[3] 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.[4][5]

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.[6] 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.[7]

International career

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.[8]

On 10 June 2009, Castro finally made his full debut, in a 0–0 friendly match in Estonia. On 10 May 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.[9]

Honours

Atlético Madrid
Deportivo

References

  1. ↑ Atlético step up spending spree; UEFA.com, 30 May 2006
  2. ↑ Atlético Madrid 1–0 Osasuna; ESPN Soccernet, 20 January 2007
  3. ↑ "Ze Castro, pendiente de firma, llega al Deportivo para reforzar el centro de la zaga" [Ze Castro, signature pending, arrives at Deportivo to bolster center of defense] (in Spanish). Deportivo's official website. 7 July 2008. Retrieved 1 September 2013.
  4. ↑ Ze Castro signs permanent deal with Deportivo La Coruna; PortuGOAL, 3 April 2009
  5. ↑ "El Deportivo ejecuta la opción de compra de Ze Castro" [Deportivo activates Ze Castro buying option] (in Spanish). Deportivo's official website. 3 April 2009. Retrieved 1 September 2013.
  6. ↑ Ze Catsro wants out of Deportivo; PortuGOAL, 16 November 2010
  7. ↑ What's going on with Ze Castro?; Deportivo La Coruña International Peña, 9 March 2011
  8. ↑ "Ivanović caps Portugal misery". UEFA.com. 25 May 2006. Retrieved 4 July 2014.
  9. ↑ "Queiroz calls Pepe in for Portugal". FIFA.com. 1 June 2010. Retrieved 1 June 2010.

External links