Juliano Belletti

Juliano Haus Belletti (born June 20, 1976 in Cascavel, Brazil), often known as Belletti, is a Brazilian football (soccer) player, with an Italy passport, who currently plays for Chelsea F.C.. He currently plays as a right back but started off as a midfielder and was awarded by Placar with the Silver Ball for his continuous great performances for Atletico Mineiro during the 1999 Brazilian Série A.

Club career

He started his career playing for Cruzeiro Esporte Clube in 1993. In 1995 he moved to São Paulo Futebol Clube, where he earned a solid spot in the starting lineup. In 1999 he played for Clube Atlético Mineiro where he was vice-champion of the Brazilian League. Rumors linked him with a move to La Liga side Valencia CF in 2001, but the move fell apart at the last minute. In 2002 he finally moved to Europe, going to Villarreal CF. In 2004, after a successful spell at Villarreal he signed for FC Barcelona where he became the first-choice right back and a key player in the squad.

F.C. Barcelona

After winning the Spanish La Liga title on his first season, Belletti gradativelly fell out of favor both in Barcelona and in the Brazilian National Team. Being a regular on 04/05 season, he saw a tough competition from catalaunian Oleguer Presas. Barcelona's fans had a chant for him, a not very charming one, on the rythm of Guantanamera: "que malo eres, Belletti, que malo eres". Still, he played most of his second season in-and-out of the first team.

On May 17, in the Stade de France, Paris, Belletti's club FC Barcelona played England club Arsenal FC in the 2006 UEFA Champions League Final. Oleguer was preferred to start rather than Belletti, and he had to make do with a place on the substitute bench. But when manager Frank Rijkaard brought him on for Oleguer he scored the second Football pitch Goals, in a 2006 UEFA Champions League Final win which gave them the 2006 UEFA Champions League crown.

Third season was marked by injuries, and the new competition from Gianluca Zambrotta was a bit too much for him, even with the fans not insulting him anymore. He played very little on the awful season that ended with a bitter second place and very far from the Champions League title.

Chelsea F.C.

On 23 August 2007, Chelsea F.C. officially announced that Belletti had signed a 3-year contract after the player agreed personal terms and passed a medical. He made his English Premier League debut for Chelsea on 25 August 2007, when he came on as a substitute for John Obi Mikel in the 64th minute of their home game against Portsmouth F.C], with the game ending 1-0 to Chelsea.

He made his first start for the club against Aston Villa F.C. at Villa Park. Chelsea lost the game 2-0.

International career

Belletti holds an Italy passport, allowing him to bypass the non-European Union player restrictions in La Liga and to play in the Premier League without a work permit. He has been capped 23 times for the Brazil national football team, scoring 2 goals. Belletti has yet to receive another call-up since 2005 and was left out of the unsuccessful Brazil squad at the 2006 FIFA World Cup.

Honours

- 1 FIFA World Cup: 2002
- 1 UEFA Champions League: 2006
- 2 La Liga (Spain): 2005, 2006
- 2 Supercopa de España (Spain): 2005, 2006