For this interview, I look back at the fortunes of
Brazil’s 1982 Generation in the Italian Serie A
The Interview will be as a video link companion, while the Blog
will be a presentation of the events.
The Interviewee is:
Atlético Mineiro’s Supporters Ambassador in
New Jersey, Mr. Stanley Cunha
Mr. Cunha’s contact info:
On Twitter: @consuladogalonj
On Twitter: @stanleycunha
On Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/galonewjersey
On Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/galonewjersey/?fbclid=IwAR0vX8r2SLDTYpN9VtNd5KhIZrBh8PoMt7EjF_sn-rvA1Lbk1UDAaoBoLJ4
My contact information:
on twitter @sp1873 and on
facebook under Soccernostalgia.
Brazil’s 1982 Generation in the Serie A
.jpg) |
Photo From: Spain '82, The Winning of the World Cup, Authors
Phil Soar and Richard Widdows
|
(Brazil squad during the 1982 World Cup) |
During the 1982 World Cup, Tele
Santana’s brilliant Brazil side captured the imagination of the World. The
names of Zico, Socrates and Falcão
became household names. This Group became symbols and standard bearers of
beautiful Football.
It was during this decade as
well as that the League of the Nation that eliminated them, the Italian Serie
A, was becoming the greatest Championship in the World.
The League started to import
the greatest talent on the planet and a number of the Brazilian players of this
1982 Team would end up there.
Paulo Roberto Falcão had been
in Italy since 1980. The former Internacional Porto Alegre midfielder had
joined AS Roma and been impressive in his first couple of seasons. The side was
making a serious tilt at the Scudetto and threatening Juventus’ domination with
Falcão as the symbol and most valuable asset of this team.
Following the 1982 World Cup,
he was just as impressive and would help the side of the Capital to finally win
the Scudetto in 1982/83.
In the following season
(1983/84), he helped Roma reach the Final of the Champions Cup, but Roma lost
in the Final in a penalty kick shoot-out vs. Liverpool (played at Rome).
Things would turn sour for
him in the following season (1984/85), he was mostly injured (only 4
appearances) and ran afoul of the management after he traveled to New York City
for an operation without their authorization. His contract was terminated, and
he returned home to play for Sao Paulo.
 |
Photo From: 1980-81
Calciatori Panini
|
(Paulo Roberto Falcão) |
Two players from this
Brazilian side joined in the 1982/83 season. Though both players: Fluminense
defender Edinho and former Atletico Madrid striker Dirceu rarely featured
during the World Cup.
Edinho joined Udinese
replacing another Brazilian Orlando Pereira. Edinho would have a successful
spell in Udinese for his first four years. His last season (1986/87) would be
tarnished with relegation as the club started with points handicap as
punishment for financial irregularities.
He returned home to Flamengo
in 1987.
 |
Photo From: 1982-83
Calciatori Panini
|
(Edino
Nazareth Filho ‘Edinho’) |
Dirceu was largely
yesterday’s man as a 30-year-old, when he joined newly promoted Verona for the
1982/83 season. He had been one of Brazil’s stars during the 1978 World Cup.
Despite not scoring many
goals (in fact he did not score many goals throughout his Italian career), he
helped Verona to achieve UEFA Cup qualification.
He then bounced from club to
club and played for Napoli (1983/84), Ascoli (1984-85), Como (1985-86) and
Avellino 1986/87).
Despite playing for so many
years in Calcio, his stay there was not memorable.
He returned to Brazil
following his Serie A experience. He sadly was killed in an Automobile accident
on September 15, 1995, aged 43.
 |
Photo From: 1982-83, 1983-84,
1984-85, 1985-86, 1986-87 Calciatori Panini
|
(José
Guimarães ‘Dirceu’) |
For the following season
(1983/84), four more players joined the Serie A.
João ‘Batista’ da
Silva, victim of Maradona’s kick in the World Cup, joined newly- promoted side
Lazio.
Pedro Luís Vicençote ‘Pedrinho’, one of the more unfancied and rarely used players of Santana, joined
newly promoted side Catania.
The two most important
transfers were that of Antonio Carlos ‘Toninho Cerezo’ and Artur
Antunes Coimbra ‘Zico’.
Antonio Carlos ‘Toninho
Cerezo’ joined Paulo Roberto Falcão at Roma, while Artur
Antunes Coimbra ‘Zico’ joined
Edinho at Udinese.
Both transfers were made
amidst much controversy as the Italian Federation initially blocked both moves
but were forced to accept after much protests, especially in Udine.
João ‘Batista’ da
Silva would have three solid years in Italy but was relegated with Lazio at the
end of his second season. He then joined Avellino for the following season
(1985/86). He made only 14 appearances before joining Portuguese side
Belenensses midway through the season.
Pedrinho would suffer
relegation with Catania but would nevertheless stay one more season with the
club at Serie B before returning home.
 |
Photo From: 1983-84
Calciatori Panini
|
(Pedro
Luís Vicençote ‘Pedrinho’) |
 |
Photo From: 1983-84, 1984-85,
1985-86 Calciatori Panini
|
(João
‘Batista’ da Silva) |
 |
Photo From: Guerin Sportivo, October 24-30, 1984
|
(Brazilian
midfielder Batista and Diego Maradona, during the 1982 World Cup Maradona was
sent off after a foul on Batista, October 14, 1984, Lazio 1-Napoli 1) |
Toninho Cerezo would spend
nearly a decade in Italy. Following his spell in Rome, he joined Sampdoria and
had six glorious years, as the Vialli-Mancini inspired side captured the
Scudetto in 1991 with the 36-year-old Cerezo as one of its driving forces. He
also won the Coppa Italia in 1988, 1989 and the Cup Winners Cup in 1990 with
the Genoa side.
He left Italy in 1992
following Sampdoria’s defeat in the 1992 Champions Cup Final vs. Barcelona to
join Tele Santana’s Sao Paulo side.
 |
Photo From: 1983-84, 1986-87
Calciatori Panini
|
(Antonio Carlos ‘Toninho
Cerezo’) |
 |
Photo From: Onze, Issue 109, January 1985
| (AS Roma’s Brazilians Paulo Roberto Falcao and Toninho Cerezo, 1983/84) |
For Zico it was a tale of two
seasons, his first season (1983/84) was simply magnificent as he scored 19
goals and finished second in the Capocannoniere race to Michel Platini and his
20 goals. Udinese just missed out on UEFA Cup qualification.
His second season was a
disappointing one. He missed much of it through injury and then had to defend
himself as he was accused of tax fraud by Italian Authorities.
He left to rejoin Flamengo in
the summer of 1985.
 |
Photo From: 1983-84, 1984-85
Calciatori Panini
|
(Artur
Antunes Coimbra ‘Zico’) |
 |
Photo From: Mondial, new series, issue 46, January 1984
|
(Brazilian
teammates Zico and Falcao) |
The final two members of the
1982 side to come to Italy were National Team captain ‘Sócrates’ Brasileiro
Sampaio de Souza Vieira de Oliveira and Leovegildo Lins
Gama ‘Júnior’.
The pair joined
Serie A for the 1984/85 season. Socrates left Corinthians to join Fiorentina,
while Flamengo defender Junior joined Torino.
Socrates’
solitary season is often referenced as one of Serie A’s worst transfers ever.
It was a mystery how such a gifted player failed to adapt to the Serie A.
It was reported
that he claimed that his teammates had deliberately refused to pass to him.
He returned
home after one unhappy season to join Flamengo. He passed away on December 4,
2011, aged only 57.
_2615x3649.jpg) |
Photo From: France Football,
Issue 2005, September 11, 1984
|
(‘Sócrates’ Brasileiro
Sampaio de Souza Vieira de Oliveira) |
 |
Photo From: 1984-85
Calciatori Panini
|
(‘Sócrates’ Brasileiro
Sampaio de Souza Vieira de Oliveira) |
Junior would
have a more successful time in Italy. In his first season, Torino finished runners-up
to Verona and qualified for the UEFA Cup. He left Torino after three seasons
and joined the newly promoted side Pescara in 1987.
He spent two
seasons there, getting relegated at the end of the second season (1988/89). The
35-year-old Junior returned home to Flamengo and even managed a few appearances
for the National Team as a 37-year old in 1992, before retiring in 1993.
 |
Photo From: 1984-85, 1987-88
Calciatori Panini
|
(Leovegildo
Lins Gama ‘Júnior’) |
On balance, Paulo Roberto Falcão’s Roman adventure appears to be
the most successful of this Group.
This is followed by the
success and longevity of Cerezo and Junior.
Zico is a strange case, as
his first season is one of the greatest ever by a foreign player, only to be
tarnished by a disappointing second season.
Edinho and Batista had a
solid if unspectacular careers in Italy.
Pedrinho was a victim of his
team’s status and not much more could have been expected of him.
Finally, Dirceu spent a
significant time in Italy without really setting the world alight in the tail
end of his career.
It’s a shame that the likes
of Eder, Leandro, Oscar and Luizinho missed out on the Serie A.
_1032x1534.jpg) |
Photo From: France Football,
Issue 2005, September 11, 1984
|
(Leovegildo
Lins Gama ‘Júnior’) |
_2534x3337.jpg) |
Photo From: Onze, Issue 95,
November 1983
|
(Artur
Antunes Coimbra ‘Zico’) |
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