Zizinho

Zizinho

Zizinho in 1951
Personal information
Full name	Thomaz Soares da Silva
Date of birth	(1921-09-14)14 September 1921
Place of birth	São Gonçalo, Brazil
Date of death	8 February 2002(2002-02-08) (aged 80)
Place of death	Niterói, Brazil
Height	1.69 m (5 ft 7 in)[1]
Position(s)	Attacking midfielder
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps	(Gls)
1939–1950	Flamengo[2]	172	(88)
1950–1957	Bangu[3]	147	(65)
1957–1960	São Paulo[4]	35	(19)
1959	→ São Bento de Marília (loan)[5][6]	9	(2)
1960	Uberaba	10	(1)
1961	Audax Italiano[7]	16	(3)
Total		389	(178)
International career
1942–1957[8]	Brazil	53	(30)
Managerial career
1960	Bangu
1965–1966	Bangu
1967	Vasco da Gama
1972	Vasco da Gama
1975–1976	Brazil Olympic
1980	Bangu
Medal record Men's Football Representing  Brazil FIFA World Cup Runner-up 1950 Brazil South American Championship Winner 1949 Brazil Runner-up 1945 Chile Runner-up 1946 Argentina Runner-up 1953 Peru Runner-up 1957 Peru 1942 Uruguay
*Club domestic league appearances and goals

Thomaz Soares da Silva, also known as Zizinho (Portuguese pronunciation: [ziˈzĩɲu]; 14 September 1921 – 8 February 2002), was a Brazilian footballer who played as an attacking midfielder for the Brazil national football team.^[9][10] He came to international prominence at the 1950 World Cup, where he scored two goals. He was lauded as a complete player, with an array of offensive skills such as his dribbling, passing, and shooting ability with both feet, as well as his accuracy from dead ball situations and extraordinary vision. He was Pelé's idol,^[7] and is often considered one of the best Brazilian men's footballers of the pre-Pelé era.