João Vieira Pinto

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For the former Portuguese football player named João Pinto, please see João Domingos Pinto.

João Pinto
Personal information
Date of birth	August 19, 1971
Place of birth	Porto, Portugal
Height	5 feet 7 inches
Playing position	Forward
Club information
Current club	SC Braga
Number	10
Youth clubs
1989–91	Bairro do Falcão Águias da Areosa
Senior clubs1
Years	Club	App (Gls)*
1992-2000 2000–2004 2004–2006 2006–present	SL Benfica Sporting Boavista FC SC Braga
National team2
1991–2002	Portugal	81 (23)
1 Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 13 June 2006. 2 National team caps and goals correct as of 13 June 2006. * Appearances (Goals)

João Manuel Vieira Pinto, CavIH, pron. IPA: [ʒu'ɐ̃ũ vi'ɐiɾɐ 'pĩtu], (born 19 August 1971 in Porto, Portugal) is a Portuguese footballer, who made his name mostly at a domestic level and as a key figure in the Portuguese national team's Golden Generation.

Contents 1 Youth: Porto and Madrid 2 Adulthood 2.1 Benfica 2.2 Sporting 2.3 Aggression 2.4 Decadence: Sporting, World Cup and return to Boavista 3 SC Braga

[edit] Youth: Porto and Madrid

As a youth, João V. Pinto played for the Bairro do Falcão (where he was born, in Campanhã, Porto's east side) and the Águias da Areosa, and once tried to join FC Porto, but was refused, joining Boavista FC instead. As a child, João Pinto impressed with his speed and ball control, and was one of the brightest stars in Portugal's wins in the World Youth Championship in Riyadh and Lisbon in 1989 and 1991 He was the only player ever to have been on the winning side in this competition twice. His performance in the first competition earned him a transfer to Atlético Madrid in 1990, but he was placed instead on Atlético Madrileño, the reserves' side. After a forgettable season, he rejoined Boavista, where he played every game, scoring eight goals, and helping his team win the Portuguese Cup. This season earned him a transfer to Lisbon's SL Benfica.

[edit] Adulthood

[edit] Benfica

In Benfica, João Pinto's career was threatened in late 1992 by a collapsed lung during a game in Scotland for the 1994 World Cup qualifiers. He did recover, but was unable to help Benfica win the title. However, in the next season he played some of what most agree was the best football he ever played at Benfica, with his best moment in a derby against Sporting, where he scored three goals and was on the play of the remaining three of a massive 6-3 victory in the Estádio José Alvalade. This result proved to be decisive for Benfica's title that season.

Dubbed The Golden Boy, João Pinto won the captaincy from António Veloso after Veloso's retirement in 1995, but Pinto was unable to win a national title again. Some consider that the lack of quality of a poorly managed Benfica side played a part in his lack of development after 1995, as he was considered as the main talent of the Portuguese squad, alongside players such as Luís Figo and Rui Costa.

Finally, after a wage dispute with Benfica's president Vale e Azevedo, he was released from contract weeks before the Euro 2000 (making him the only free-agent in the competition), where he helped the national team reach the semi-finals.

• Three times Portuguese Footballer of the Year: 1992, 1993, 1994

[edit] Sporting

After the end of the Euro 2000, João Pinto had several offers from abroad, and after almost signing with Benfica's rivals FC Porto, he settled for Sporting instead. After a relatively poor season in 2000-01, Sporting hired four-time Portuguese Golden Boot winner Mário Jardel, João Pinto returned to his golden years in a magnificent run by Sporting, where he captured his second title. Named the father of the team by Jardel, João Pinto played all but one game, and scored nine goals.

[edit] Aggression

Although a highly talented player, João Pinto was also known for a series of red cards for aggression and bad tackles. His feud with FC Porto player and national teammate Paulinho Santos lasted for years, and both players would be frequently sent off after hitting each other. Other incidents that stirred some controversy included one case of aggression against a fireman during the half-time break and elbowing an Estrela da Amadora player during a practice match.

The lowest point, however, was when he hit Argentine referee Ángel Sánchez in the third game of the group stage at the 2002 World Cup, who had sent him off after a bad tackle early in the match. Pinto was suspended for six months. He also got the reputation of being a diver, but he began to foul less in his later years.

[edit] Decadence: Sporting, World Cup and return to Boavista

Never recovering fully from the incident at the 2002 World Cup, he failed to impress in the following seasons, when Sporting failed to reach the top two spots, and in 2004 he was released from contract, returned to Boavista. Although he was close to signing with Al-Hilal of Saudi Arabia in the January transfer window, he remained with his first professional club. While his name faded away from the sports newspapers, it was mentioned more and more frequently by the sensionalist and tabloid press, after his divorce and an affair with model and actress Marisa Cruz. A father of two, Tiago and Diana, from his previous marriage with high-school sweetheart Carla Pinto, Cruz gave birth to his second son, João, in September of 2005.

He ended his Portugal career with 81 caps, 23 goals, and appearances in Euro 96, Euro 2000, and the 2002 World Cup.

[edit] SC Braga

After a season carrying Boavista's squad (who almost qualified for UEFA), Joao Pinto scored 9 goals and won numerous man of the match awards. João Pinto accepted the invitation of SC Braga's Board and signed for one season. He will be the new number 10 of Braga's squad for next season.

After Ricardo Chaves (ex-Setubal); Zé Carlos (ex-Maritimo) and Maciel (ex-FCPorto/Leiria), João Pinto is the most notable transfer for this period. He was saluted by thousands of SC Braga's fans during his official presentation to the media.

	Portugal squad - 2002 FIFA World Cup
1 Baía | 2 J. Costa | 3 Xavier | 4 Caneira | 5 Couto | 6 Sousa | 7 Figo | 8 Pinto | 9 Pauleta | 10 R. Costa | 11 Conceição | 12 Viana | 13 Andrade | 14 Barbosa | 15 Nélson | 16 Ricardo | 17 Bento | 18 Frechaut | 19 Capucho | 20 Petit | 21 Nuno Gomes | 22 Beto | 23 Rui Jorge | Coach: Oliveira

SC Braga - Current Squad
1 Paulo Santos | 2 Pedro Costa | 3 Paulo Jorge | 5 Nem | 7 Davide | 8 Paíto | 10 João Pinto | 11 Césinha | 12 Dani Mallo | 13 Carlos Fernandes | 14 Castanheira | 15 Wender | 16 Andrade | 17 Frechaut | 18 Diego | 19 Maciel | 20 Luis Filipe | 21 Ricardo Chaves | 23 Andrés Madrid | 25 Jorge Luíz | 28 Rodríguez | 77 Zé Carlos | 79 Chmiest | 87 Bruno Gama | 88 Vandinho | Manager: Jorge Costa