 Juninho in 2014 | |||||||||||||||||
| Personal information | |||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Antônio Augusto Ribeiro Reis Júnior[1] | ||||||||||||||||
| Date of birth | (1975-01-30)30 January 1975 (age 50) | ||||||||||||||||
| Place of birth | Recife, Brazil | ||||||||||||||||
| Height | 1.78 m (5 ft 10 in)[2] | ||||||||||||||||
| Position | Attacking midfielder | ||||||||||||||||
| Youth career | |||||||||||||||||
| 1991–1992 | Sport Recife | ||||||||||||||||
| Senior career* | |||||||||||||||||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) | ||||||||||||||
| 1993–1995 | Sport Recife | 24 | (3) | ||||||||||||||
| 1995–2001 | Vasco da Gama | 121 | (27) | ||||||||||||||
| 2001–2009 | Lyon | 248 | (75) | ||||||||||||||
| 2009–2011 | Al-Gharafa | 40 | (15) | ||||||||||||||
| 2011–2012 | Vasco da Gama | 50 | (11) | ||||||||||||||
| 2013 | New York Red Bulls | 13 | (0) | ||||||||||||||
| 2013 | Vasco da Gama | 21 | (2) | ||||||||||||||
| Total | 517 | (133) | |||||||||||||||
| International career | |||||||||||||||||
| 1999–2006 | Brazil | 40 | (6) | ||||||||||||||
Medal record
| |||||||||||||||||
| * Club domestic league appearances and goals | |||||||||||||||||
Antônio Augusto Ribeiro Reis Júnior (born 30 January 1975), commonly known asJuninho Pernambucano or simplyJuninho,[note 1] is a Brazilian former professionalfootballer who was most recently thesporting director ofLigue 1 clubLyon.[4] A dead-ball specialist noted for his bendingfree kicks, in particular theknuckleball technique which he developed,[5] Juninho holds the record for the highest number of goals scored through free kicks (77) and is considered by many to be the greatest free-kick taker of all time.[5][6][7][8][9]
Juninho began his professional career in 1993 with Brazilian clubSport Recife. Two years later, he joinedVasco da Gama where he played over 100 matches and won six titles. In 2001, he joinedDivision 1 sideLyon where he played for the next eight years, winning seven consecutive league titles and scoring 100 goals in 343 official appearances for the club.[10] Following his departure from Lyon in 2009, Juninho played in Qatar withAl-Gharafa and in the United States withNew York Red Bulls. The latter stint was wedged between two spells back at Vasco, where he ultimately retired in 2013.
Having made his international debut in 1999, Juninho played 40 games for theBrazil national team and scored six goals. He represented Brazil at the2001 Copa América and was part of the squad which won the2005 FIFA Confederations Cup before retiring from international football after the2006 World Cup. From 2013 to 2018, Juninho was a football commentator for Brazilian sports networkRede Globo.
Born inRecife, Juninho started his professional career atSport Recife and quickly established himself as a rising star in Brazilian football. He won two regional titles with the club. According to Juninho, it was as a 13-year-old that he started to take free-kicks and began to develop hisknuckleball technique, tellingFourFourTwo magazine: “I started by copying free-kicks taken byMarcelinho, who played forCorinthians. He was one of my inspirations, and the first player I had ever seen hit the ball head on and make it dance in the air.Didi, who won the World Cup with Brazil in 1958 and 1962, was doing it back then, too. Everyone since has just been tweaking the formula.”[11] It was when he got to France that Juninho says he mastered it.[11]
Juninho Pernambucano joinedVasco da Gama in 1995.[12] He won several trophies during his first stint with the club, including theBrazilian Championship in 1997 and 2000, theCopa Libertadores in 1998, theCopa Mercosur in 2000,[13] as well as the 2000Brazilian Silver Ball award as one of the best Brazilian midfielders of the season.[14] At that time, he was playing withRomário,Edmundo, andJuninho Paulista, and he became a favourite of the Vasco fans.[15] Since that time he has been known asReizinho de São Januário (The Little King ofSão Januário),[7] a reference to Vasco da Gama's stadium, as well asReizinho da Colina (The Little King of the Hill).[12][16]
In 2001, the player won apreliminary injunction against Vasco da Gama, after which he became a free agent.[17] Although he left Vasco for Lyon after a judicial fight, he is still considered a favourite of Vasco fans.[16] Juninho has been cited in a classic chorus sung by the fans remembering his free-kick goal againstRiver Plate[16] atRiver Plate Stadium, during the1998Libertadores which helped the club reach the finals againstBarcelona de Guayaquil, which they won.[18] Juninho played 295 games for Vasco from 1995 to 2001.[19]
In 2001, Juninho moved abroad to play for French clubLyon. Before his arrival atLyon, the club had never wonthe French championship.[20] Starting out in his first season at the club, Lyon won seven league titles in a row.[7][20] At Lyon, Juninho made himself especially noted for his accurate, powerful and variedset pieces. As well as often being ranked the world's greatest free kick exponent, Juninho was a noted passer, providing manyassists, and his leadership abilities prompted Lyon managerGérard Houllier to name him team captain.[21]
Juninho Pernambucano scored 100 goals while at Lyon.[22] Forty-four of those goals were scored from free-kicks,[22] the last of which was a strike from long distance againstMarseille.[23] He scored his 100th goal on his last game for Lyon, through apenalty kick againstCaen.[24] Juninho was also a prolific goalscorer in theChampions League, and he matchedSonny Anderson as the club's top goalscorer in European competitions with 16 goals, on a match againstSteaua Bucharest in November 2008.[25] He later became Lyon's top goalscorer in the Champions League with 18 goals,[22] while reaching three quarter-finals in the competition.[22]
On 26 May 2009, Lyon chairmanJean-Michel Aulas announced in a press conference that the club had accepted Juninho's request to leave Lyon at the end of the season as a free agent, despite the fact that the player still had a year left in his contract.[20][22] During the press conference, Juninho sat next to Aulas and left without saying a word.[26]
On 17 June 2009, Juninho signed a €2.5 million, two-year contract with Qatari clubAl-Gharafa.[27] In his first season with the club, Juninho captained the team to their seventh league title and wins in theQatari Stars Cup andQatar Crown Prince Cup, completing the treble. He finished the season with Player of the Year honours from theQatar Football Association. Juninho played 66 games for Al-Gharafa and scored 25 goals.
On 27 April 2011, Juninho rejoined his former clubVasco da Gama. He scored his first goal for them in his first game back, via a freekick againstCorinthians. He scored another two free kicks and a penalty during the course of the Brazilian top flight season. On 28 March 2012, he played and scored a goal for a 4–1 lead inEdmundo's farewell game againstBarcelona Sporting Club. Vasco went on to win this game 9–1.[28] Juninho then scored a trademark free kick againstEsporte Clube Bahia in the fourth round of theCampeonato Brasileiro; that goal was to be his 16th since returning to Vasco from Al-Gharafa.
In July 2012, Juninho extended his contract with Vasco for 6 months. On 18 July 2012, he made his 350th appearance for the club againstSão Paulo. In August 2012, he played against his youth teamSport Recife and scored a free kick goal, which was his fourth goal from free kicks inCampeonato Brasileiro Série A 2012.
On 17 December 2012, Juninho signed forMajor League Soccer teamNew York Red Bulls.[15][29] He made his first appearance for the team on a friendly match againstMalmö, in which he was a starter.[30] On 3 March 2013, Juninho made his official debut for the Red Bulls, playing the full time in a 3–3 draw against thePortland Timbers.[31] On 17 April, during a 1-0 defeat while playingSporting Kansas City, Juninho toe-poked the ball at opposition goalkeeperJimmy Nielsen as he was time wasting and received a straight red card and suspended for two matches. On 3 July, the club announced that they reached an agreement with Juninho for the cancelation of his contract.[32] The midfielder featured in 13 games for the New York Red Bulls, providing the team with four assists.[33]
On 11 July 2013,Vasco da Gama announced Juninho's return to the club.[34] The player scored and assisted in his third debut for Vasco, in a 3–1 victory against rivalsFluminense.[35] He scored his first home goal of the season againstCriciúma with a 32-metre free kick,[23] also assistingEdmílson for the third goal of the game.[36] He played his third game for Vasco da Gama against another rival teamBotafogo, setting up Andre for Vasco's first goal, in a 3–2 defeat. He played his sixth game againstGrêmio and made another assist. It was his fourth assist inCampeonato Brasileiro. Juninho made his fifth assist againstCorinthians; the game ended in a 1–1 draw. He played his 16th game against Vasco rivals Botafogo and made two assists; the game ended with a 2–2 draw after Botafogo had led 2–0. Juninho played 16 games for Vasco in his third stint with the club, scoring two goals and making seven assists in the Campeonato Brasileiro.
He retired from playing professional football on 2 February 2014.[13] During his years at Vasco da Gama, Juninho won six titles: the Brazilian Championship in 1997 and 2000, the Campeonato Carioca in 1998, the Rio-São Paulo Tournament in 1999, the Copa Libertadores in 1998, and the Copa Mercosur in 2000.[13] He played in 393 games in total for the club, scoring 76 goals.[18]
Following his retirement, Juninho worked as a football commentator for Brazilian sports networkRede Globo, a stint that ended up in 2018.[37][38]
On 7 September 1999, Juninho played two top-level matches in two different countries in the same day. He represented his country in the second half of the friendly match betweenBrazil andArgentina inPorto Alegre, which Brazil won 4–2, playing about fifteen minutes. In spite of a delayed flight toMontevideo, he managed to arrive inUruguay in time to feature in the second half of theCopa Mercosur match between Vasco andNacional. He took part at the2001 Copa América with Brazil.
Although Juninho had a period of prolonged domestic success during the 2000s, that contributed to him being considered one of the best Brazilian players in the world at the time, he was not selected for the Brazilian squad that featured at the2002 FIFA World Cup and the2004 Copa América, missing both because of a recurring knee injury. Brazil would win both tournaments. He was however a member of the Brazil squad that won the2005 FIFA Confederations Cup, scoring a free kick againstEuro 2004 championsGreece.
In the2006 FIFA World Cup, Juninho scored a knuckleball goal in open play againstJapan in a group stage match. Following Brazil's defeat to eventual runners-upFrance in the quarter-finals of the tournament, he announced his international retirement,[39] so as to make way for younger talents coming through the ranks in Brazil, in order to build for the2010 FIFA World Cup.[40]
In May 2019, Juninho was appointed as thedirector of football of his former clubLyon. His first decision was to name formerBrazilian international teammateSylvinho as the head coach of the FrenchLigue 1 team.[41]
"Say Juninho Pernambucano's name, and the first response is likely to be, "Great free kicks." He was the greatest and most versatile free-kick taker there has ever been. Through his early years at Vasco da Gama and his eight-year stint at Lyon, Juninho developed hisknuckleball technique. Whether 20, 30 or 40 yards from goal, the hits were often so pure, of such quality and ferocity, that goalkeepers simply couldn't do anything about them."
Juninho has been described as "one of the world's most feared strikers of a static ball".[42] Frequently ranked the greatest free-kick exponent, the method he used for long-range free kicks is "knuckle balling", where the ball has almost no spinning motion during flight.[43] A successful knuckle ball will "move" or "wobble" in the air unpredictably, veering in a number of different directions (making it difficult to save) before finding the net.[5] He first made his name as a free kick taker with a long range strike againstBayern Munich in the2003–04 Champions League group stage in which the ball dipped viciously at the end of travel that deceived Bayern keeperOliver Kahn, who was considered one of the best goalkeepers in the world at the time.[44]
Juninho has scored from free-kicks beyond 40 yards on a number of occasions: including againstAjaccio in 2006, against Barcelona in 2007, againstNice in 2008, and a strike against Marseille in 2009—his final free kick goal for Lyon. Even before Lyon, he displayed his talent at Vasco da Gama, scoring several free kick goals for the club. Juninho has also scored memorable goals for Brazil, the most famous being acurling freekick from 30 yards againstGreece in the2005 FIFA Confederations Cup. Brazil would go on to win the match 3–0. At the2006 World Cup, during a group stage match againstJapan, he scored a long-range knuckleball from open play. Brazil won the match 4-1.[21] Juninho's free-kick style has been adapted by several other players, such asAndrea Pirlo,[45][46]Cristiano Ronaldo,[47]Didier Drogba,[48] andGareth Bale.[49] The knuckle ball free-kick technique takes a significant amount of skill to replicate and strike accurately. In total, Juninho scored at least 75 goals from direct free kicks throughout his professional football career,[7][8][9] which spanned from 1993 to 2013.[50]
Much like King Arthur had Excalibur and William Tell his crossbow, the folk hero Juninho possessed his own special weapon to save the day — his legendary free-kicks. No one hit a free-kick quite like Juninho. No one.
— Carl Anka of the BBC.[6]
A talented right-footed midfielder, beyond his qualities as a set-piece specialist, Juninho was also known for his skill as an offensiveplaymaker, and for his ability to produce effective passes, which led him to gettingassists on many of his teammates' goals throughout his career.[47] He was also gifted with good technical ability and intelligence, as well as excellent vision and passing range, and powerful and accurate striking ability from distance; furthermore, he drew praise in the media for his tenacity, work-rate, composure under pressure,[51] strong character, and leadership, which saw him serve as clubcaptain both at Lyon and Al-Gharafa.[47][52] A versatile player, although he usually played as anattacking midfielder, he was also capable of playing as awinger or as acentral midfielder.[46]
Juninho is one of the few footballers to publicly speak out against racism in the country, as well as criticizeJair Bolsonaro, the far-right former president of Brazil from 2019 to 2023.[53][54][55][56][57] He is a father and a grandfather.[58]
| Club | Season | League | National cup[a] | League cup | Continental | State league | Other | Total | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Sport Recife | 1993 | Série A | 2 | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | 2 | 0 | |||||
| 1994 | Série A | 22 | 3 | — | — | — | — | 1[b] | 2 | 23 | 5 | |||||
| 1995 | Série A | — | 2 | 0 | — | — | — | — | 2 | 0 | ||||||
| Total | 24 | 3 | 2 | 0 | — | — | — | 1 | 2 | 27 | 5 | |||||
| Vasco da Gama | 1995 | Série A | 21 | 3 | — | — | — | — | — | 21 | 3 | |||||
| 1996 | Série A | 15 | 7 | 2 | 0 | — | 3[c] | 0 | 21 | 3 | 6[d] | 1 | 47 | 11 | ||
| 1997 | Série A | 18 | 4 | 3 | 1 | — | 6[e] | 1 | 21 | 1 | 2[f] | 1 | 50 | 8 | ||
| 1998 | Série A | 18 | 3 | 4 | 0 | — | 7[g] | 1 | 5 | 1 | 2[h] | 1 | 36 | 6 | ||
| 1999 | Série A | 20 | 2 | 4 | 0 | — | 6[i] | 1 | 12 | 4 | 10[j] | 4 | 52 | 11 | ||
| 2000 | Série A | 28 | 7 | 1 | 0 | — | 12[k] | 2 | 8 | 2 | 12[l] | 0 | 61 | 11 | ||
| 2001 | Série A | 1 | 1 | — | — | — | — | — | 1 | 1 | ||||||
| Total | 121 | 27 | 14 | 1 | — | 34 | 5 | 67 | 11 | 32 | 7 | 268 | 51 | |||
| Lyon | 2001–02 | Ligue 1 | 29 | 5 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 8[m] | 0 | — | — | 41 | 5 | ||
| 2002–03 | Ligue 1 | 31 | 13 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 7[n] | 0 | — | 1[o] | 0 | 41 | 13 | ||
| 2003–04 | Ligue 1 | 32 | 10 | 3 | 2 | — | 10[p] | 5 | — | 1[o] | 0 | 46 | 17 | |||
| 2004–05 | Ligue 1 | 32 | 13 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 9[p] | 2 | — | 1[o] | 0 | 45 | 16 | ||
| 2005–06 | Ligue 1 | 32 | 9 | 4 | 1 | — | 8[p] | 4 | — | — | 44 | 14 | ||||
| 2006–07 | Ligue 1 | 31 | 10 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 7[p] | 1 | — | — | 42 | 12 | |||
| 2007–08 | Ligue 1 | 32 | 8 | 4 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 8[p] | 3 | — | — | 46 | 13 | |||
| 2008–09 | Ligue 1 | 29 | 7 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 7[p] | 3 | — | — | 38 | 10 | |||
| Total | 248 | 75 | 19 | 7 | 9 | 0 | 64 | 18 | — | 3 | 0 | 343 | 100 | |||
| Al-Gharafa | 2009–10 | Qatar Stars League | 21 | 7 | 1 | 0 | — | 6[q] | 0 | — | 6[r] | 3 | 34 | 10 | ||
| 2010–11 | Qatar Stars League | 19 | 8 | 3 | 1 | — | 5[q] | 0 | — | 5[r] | 3 | 32 | 12 | |||
| Total | 40 | 15 | 4 | 1 | — | 11 | 0 | — | 11 | 6 | 66 | 22 | ||||
| Vasco da Gama | 2011 | Série A | 21 | 4 | — | — | 5[s] | 1 | — | — | 26 | 5 | ||||
| 2012 | Série A | 29 | 7 | — | — | 7[g] | 2 | 13 | 4 | — | 49 | 13 | ||||
| Total | 50 | 11 | — | — | 12 | 3 | 13 | 4 | — | 75 | 18 | |||||
| New York Red Bulls | 2013 | MLS | 13 | 0 | 2[t] | 0 | — | — | — | — | 15 | 0 | ||||
| Vasco da Gama | 2013 | Série A | 21 | 2 | 1 | 0 | — | — | — | — | 22 | 2 | ||||
| Vasco da Gama total | 192 | 40 | 15 | 1 | — | 46 | 8 | 80 | 15 | 32 | 7 | 365 | 71 | |||
| Career total | 517 | 133 | 42 | 9 | 9 | 0 | 121 | 26 | 80 | 15 | 47 | 15 | 816 | 198 | ||
| National team | Year | Apps | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|
| Brazil[60][61] | 1999 | 4 | 0 |
| 2000 | 3 | 0 | |
| 2001 | 4 | 0 | |
| 2002 | 0 | 0 | |
| 2003 | 4 | 0 | |
| 2004 | 10 | 0 | |
| 2005 | 10 | 4 | |
| 2006 | 5 | 2 | |
| Total | 40 | 6 | |
| No. | Date | Venue | Opponent | Score | Result | Competition |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 16 June 2005 | Zentralstadion,Leipzig, Germany |  Greece | 3–0 | 3–0 | 2005 FIFA Confederations Cup |
| 2 | 9 October 2005 | Estadio Hernando Siles,La Paz, Bolivia |  Bolivia | 1–0 | 1–1 | 2006 FIFA World Cup qualification |
| 3 | 12 November 2005 | Al Nahyan Stadium,Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates |  United Arab Emirates | 5–0 | 8–0 | Friendly |
| 4 | 6–0 | |||||
| 5 | 4 June 2006 | Stade de Genève,Geneva, Switzerland |  New Zealand | 4–0 | 4–0 | Friendly |
| 6 | 22 June 2006 | Westfalenstadion,Dortmund, Germany |  Japan | 2–1 | 4–1 | 2006 FIFA World Cup |
Sport Recife[51]
Vasco da Gama[62]
Lyon[62]
Al-Gharafa[62]
Individual
Notes
Citations
1. Juninho Pernambucano. He was the greatest and most versatile free-kick taker there has ever been.
Brazil squads | |||||||||||||||||||
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