_(cropped).jpg) Culpi in 2017 | |||
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Levir Culpi | ||
| Date of birth | (1953-02-28)28 February 1953 (age 72) | ||
| Place of birth | Curitiba, Brazil | ||
| Position | Centre-back | ||
| Youth career | |||
| Coritiba | |||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 1972–1973 | Coritiba | 20 | (0) |
| 1973 | →Botafogo (loan) | 1 | (0) |
| 1974–1978 | Santa Cruz | 57 | (0) |
| 1978–1979 | Colorado | ||
| 1979–1980 | Atlante | 32 | (1) |
| 1980 | Vila Nova | ||
| 1980–1981 | Colorado | 5 | (0) |
| 1982–1983 | Figueirense | ||
| 1984–1985 | Juventude | ||
| International career | |||
| 1972 | Brazil U20 | ||
| Managerial career | |||
| 1986 | Juventude | ||
| 1986 | Caxias | ||
| 1986–1987 | Atlético Paranaense | ||
| 1988 | Marcílio Dias | ||
| 1988 | Inter de Limeira | ||
| 1989 | Inter de Limeira | ||
| 1989–1990 | Criciúma | ||
| 1990 | Inter de Limeira | ||
| 1991 | Coritiba | ||
| 1991 | Inter de Limeira | ||
| 1992 | Criciúma | ||
| 1992 | Al-Ittifaq | ||
| 1993 | Paraná Clube | ||
| 1994 | Guarani | ||
| 1994–1995 | Atlético Mineiro | ||
| 1995 | Portuguesa | ||
| 1996 | Cruzeiro | ||
| 1997 | Cerezo Osaka | ||
| 1998–1999 | Cruzeiro | ||
| 2000 | São Paulo | ||
| 2001 | Sport | ||
| 2001 | Atlético Mineiro | ||
| 2002 | Palmeiras | ||
| 2003–2004 | Botafogo | ||
| 2004 | Atlético Paranaense | ||
| 2005 | Cruzeiro | ||
| 2005 | São Caetano | ||
| 2006–2007 | Atlético Mineiro | ||
| 2007–2011 | Cerezo Osaka | ||
| 2012–2013 | Cerezo Osaka | ||
| 2014–2015 | Atlético Mineiro | ||
| 2016 | Fluminense | ||
| 2017 | Santos | ||
| 2018 | Gamba Osaka | ||
| 2018–2019 | Atlético Mineiro | ||
| 2021 | Cerezo Osaka | ||
| * Club domestic league appearances and goals | |||
Levir Culpi (born 28 February 1953) is a Brazilian professionalfootballcoach and former player who played as acentre-back.
Known asLevir during his playing days, he was born inCuritiba,Paraná, and started his career with hometown clubCoritiba, in 1972. After spending a six-month loan deal atBotafogo the following year, he signed forSanta Cruz in 1974.[1]
Levir subsequently representedColorado (two stints),Atlante,Vila Nova,Figueirense andJuventude, retiring with the latter in 1985.[2][3]
Immediately after retiring Culpi took up coaching, starting with his last club Juventude. After a stint atCaxias he was namedAtlético Paranaense head coach in 1986, but left the club in the following year.
After a period in charge ofMarcílio Dias,[4] Culpi tookInternacional de Limeira to their second national title, aCampeonato Brasileiro Série B in1988. He subsequently managedCriciúma,Internacional andCoritiba before returning to Criciúma in 1992 and taking the club to the quarterfinals of the1992 Copa Libertadores (being knocked out by eventual championsSão Paulo).
In the following years Culpi rarely settled into a club, being in charge ofAl-Ittifaq,Paraná Clube,Guarani,Atlético Mineiro,Portuguesa andCruzeiro before moving abroad to manageCerezo Osaka in 1997. He returned to Cruzeiro in 1998, notably winningthe year'sRecopa Sudamericana with a 5–0 aggregate success overRiver Plate.
In January 2000 Culpi took over São Paulo, but was sacked in November. After spells atSport and Atlético Mineiro in 2001, he replacedFlávio Murtosa at the helm ofPalmeiras on 3 September 2002,[5] but could not avoid the club'sfirst-ever relegation from the top tier.
In December 2002 Culpi was appointed head coach ofBotafogo,[6] taking the club back to the main category afterfinishing second. On 27 April 2004 he returned to Atlético Paranaense, after resigning withBota.[7]
Culpi again managed Cruzeiro during the 2005 campaign, but was relieved from his duties in July of that year. He subsequently managedSão Caetano[8] before achievinganother promotion with Atlético Mineiro in 2006.[9]
In May 2007,J. League Division 2 sideCerezo Osaka sackedSatoshi Tsunami and appointed Culpi as head coach. During his spell in charge of the team, he discoveredShinji Kagawa, who then played as a defensive midfielder, and used him as an attacking midfielder. Kagawa combined well withTakashi Inui, another talented young player, and the team under Culpi were promoted to theJ. League Division 1 in 2010. He continued to display his ability to develop young players and construct an attacking team. With such players as Kagawa, Inui,Akihiro Ienaga,Hiroshi Kiyotake,Adriano, andMartinez, the team finished 3rd in 2010 and qualified for theAFC Champions League.
In November 2011, Culpi decided not to extend his contract, saying "I've come to the conclusion that now is the time to return to the far distant Brazil and spend time with my family."[10] The following 26 August, however, he returned to the club after replacing compatriotSérgio Soares.[11]
In April 2014, Levir Culpi was announced as Atlético Mineiro coach for the fourth time in his career.[12] He managed to perform a double in 2014, winning both theRecopa Sudamericana and theCopa do Brasil. In 2015, in the first official match of the season, Atlético defeatedTupi 2-0 and he reached his 228th match ahead of the team, becoming the third coach with more games for the club, only behindTelê Santana (434), andProcópio Cardoso (328).[13]
On 3 May 2015, Culpi lifted theCampeonato Mineiro trophy for the fifth time in his career, becoming the fifth coach to do so.[14] He left Atlético Mineiro on 26 November, exactly one year after winning the Copa do Brasil. He was dismissed after a total of 288 matches, with 154 wins, 60 draws and 74 defeats, with 493 goals scored 184 goals conceded.[15]
On 4 March 2016, Culpi was announced as new coach ofFluminense.[16] He won the inauguralPrimeira Liga, but was relieved from his duties on 6 November.[17]
On 6 June 2017, Culpi agreed to a six-month contract withSantos, replacing firedDorival Júnior.[18] On 28 October, he was himself dismissed after a 2–1 loss againstSão Paulo.[19]
On 17 October 2018, Culpi returned toGalo for his fifth spell, replacing dismissedThiago Larghi.[20] He was sacked the following 11 April, after a 4–1 loss againstCerro Porteño.
| Team | From | To | Record | Refs | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| G | W | D | L | Win % | ||||
| Cerezo Osaka | 1 February 1997 | 31 December 1997 | 40 | 21 | 5 | 14 | 052.50 | [21] |
| Cerezo Osaka | 2007 | 2011 | 196 | 100 | 42 | 54 | 051.02 | [21] |
| Cerezo Osaka | 2012 | 2013 | 45 | 20 | 15 | 10 | 044.44 | [21] |
| Fluminense | 4 March 2016 | 6 November 2016 | 52 | 22 | 15 | 15 | 042.31 | [17] |
| Gamba Osaka | 2018 | 2018 | 26 | 9 | 3 | 14 | 034.62 | [21] |
| Cerezo Osaka | 2021 | 2021 | 32 | 14 | 10 | 8 | 043.75 | [21] |
| Total | 422 | 200 | 102 | 120 | 047.39 | |||
Coritiba
Santa Cruz
Inter de Limeira
Criciúma
Paraná
Cruzeiro
São Paulo
Atlético Mineiro
Fluminense
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
| Academics | |