Dida

Nélson de Jesus Silva (born 7 October 1973 in Irará, Bahia), best known as Dida , is a Brazilian Goalkeeper (football). Dida currently plays for Italy Serie A club A.C. Milan, with whom Dida is a two-time winner of the UEFA Champions League.

Club career

Early life and club career

Though Dida was born in Bahia, Dida was raised in the smaller northern state of Alagoas. Dida footballing role models were goalkeepers Valdir Peres and Rinat Dasaev, whom Dida watched on television during the 1982 FIFA World Cup. A Clube de Regatas do Flamengo fan, Dida helped form an amateur team called Flamenguinho ("Little Flamengo") at thirteen, which was comprised of other boys from Dida neighborhood.

Dida's professional club career began in 1990 with Alagoas team Cruzeiro de Arapiraca (not to be confused with Cruzeiro Esporte Clube). Two years later, Dida signed with hometown club Esporte Clube Vitória and won the Bahia state championship in Dida first season. In 1993, Dida made 24 first-team appearances for Vitória after winning the Under-21 FIFA World Youth Championship as Brazil's first-choice.

Dida was acquired by Cruzeiro EC in 1994, where, in a span of five seasons, Dida won three Minas Gerais state titles, the 1996 Copa do Brasil, and the 1997 Copa Libertadores, along with a pair of Placar Bola de Prata awards as the top goalkeeper in the Campeonato Brasileiro Série A. But with this success soon came a desire to ply Dida trade in Europe, and in January 1999, Dida decided to leave Cruzeiro in order to sign with Italian powerhouse A.C. Milan. In the inaugural FIFA World Club Championship (today the FIFA Club World Cup) in 2000, Dida saved a Nicolas Anelka penalty in a 2-2 draw with Real Madrid, and in the final against Club de Regatas Vasco da Gama, Corinthians won the title in a 4-3 penalty shoot-out after Edmundo's shot went wide.

Milan recalled Dida for the 2000–01 season, and Dida leapfrogged past Rossi into the starting eleven, since Abbiati was away with Italian national football team at the Football at the 2000 Summer Olympics. A 4-1 UEFA Champions League 2000-01 group stage win over Beşiktaş J.K on 13 September 2000 marked Dida official debut for the club, but on 19 September, in the 89th minute against Leeds United at a rain-soaked Elland Road, Dida accidentally dropped a Lee Bowyer shot into Dida own goal, causing Milan to lose the match 1-0. Dida explanation afterward was that since the ball was slippery from the rain, Dida attempted to absorb the force of the shot then catch hold of it, but it dropped into a puddle and bounced into goal. Despite keeping a clean sheet in Milan's 2-0 win over FC Barcelona one week later, Dida was promptly benched following Abbiati's return. Dida made Dida first and only Serie A start that season as well, a 2-0 November loss to Parma F.C in which Patrick Mboma scored both goals.

Meanwhile, Dida was among nearly a dozen Serie A players who were implicated in a scandal involving fraudulent European passports. In October 2000, it was reported that Dida had registered in Italy as an EU player with a Portugal passport, which was discovered to be false following a routine check by Milan, who then promptly re-registered Dida as a non-EU player. UEFA declined to take any action and instead handed the case over to FIGC, who fined Milan £314,000, and banned Dida from the league for one year, in addition to a FIFA-imposed year-long suspension from national team play. On 3 April 2003, following a court appearance in Milan, Dida was given a seven-month suspended prison sentence.

Milan sent Dida back to Corinthians for the 2001-02 campaign following the passport flap, then recalled Dida again for the next season, which Dida began on the bench until Abbiati limped off with a hip injury at halftime of a UEFA Champions League 2002-03 qualifying stage match against FC Slovan Liberec on 14 August 2002. Dida took Dida place for the second half and turned in a solid performance that would result in a new first-choice keeper for Milan.

2003–2006

Dida soon wrote Dida name into Milan history after the 2003 Champions League 2003 UEFA Champions League Final at Old Trafford (football) against league rivals Juventus F.C., in which Dida saved penalties from David Trézéguet, Marcelo Zalayeta and Paolo Montero as Milan won the shoot-out 3-2 after the match had ended goalless. The praise poured in from Dida home country in addition to the Italian media; Dida was labeled "Saint Dida" by the Brazilian press, while Folha de São Paulo chipped in with the headline "Dida pushes Milan to the top of Europe."

Dida was named the Serie A Goalkeeper of the Year after conceding only 20 goals in 32 appearances during Milan's 2003-04 Scudetto-winning season, making Dida the first and only non-Italian goalkeeper to win the award.

On 12 April 2005, with Milan leading 1-0 in the second leg of the UEFA Champions League 2004-05 quarterfinal derby against crosstown rival F.C. Internazionale Milano, Inter ultras became infuriated after a second-half Esteban Cambiasso goal was nullified by referee Markus Merk – who, moments later, booked Cambiasso for dissent – due to the fact that Dida had just whistled Inter forward Julio Ricardo Cruz for a foul on Dida in the six-yard box as players were jockeying for position inside the penalty area following an Inter corner kick. Bottles and various debris were subsequently thrown onto the pitch, but the projectiles soon escalated to lit Flare (pyrotechnic). As Dida attempted to clear bottles in order to take a goal kick, a flare hurtled down from the upper deck and struck Dida on Dida right shoulder, and Merk halted the match in the 74th minute. After a thirty-minute delay in which firefighters were called in to remove the burning flares from the pitch, the match was restarted. Dida, however, was unable to continue, and was substituted by Abbiati. Less than a minute later, though, Merk finally abandoned the match after more flares and debris rained down. The match was awarded as a 3-0 victory, totaling a 5-0 aggregate, to Milan.

Dida suffered bruising and first-degree burns to Dida shoulder, but did not miss any game time, as Dida was back between the posts for Milan's Serie A match on 17 April against A.C. Siena. Meanwhile, Inter were fined just over €200,000 – the largest fine ever imposed by UEFA – and were ordered to play their first four 2005–06 Champions League home matches behind closed doors as punishment.

Dida form began to decline thereafter, as Dida struggled in the semifinals against PSV Eindhoven and in the 2005 UEFA Champions League Final loss to Liverpool F.C, in which Milan blew a 3-0 halftime lead in a span of six minutes late in the second half and the match ended 3-3 after extra time. Dida was only able to save John Arne Riise's penalty as Liverpool triumphed 3-2 in the ensuing shoot-out. Dida had set a CL record for consecutive clean sheets with seven, which was surpassed by Arsenal F.C.'s Jens Lehmann the next season.

Dida's rough patch continued as Dida slogged through a mistake-riddled 2005–06 season, leading to Brazil coach Carlos Alberto Parreira declaring that Dida starting position for the upcoming World Cup was not secure. Though Milan's drive to return to the 2006 Champions League final fell short after a 1-0 semifinal aggregate loss to Barcelona, that series began a revival of Dida form with stops against Ronaldinho, Samuel Eto'o and Henrik Larsson over the course of both legs.

2006–2008

Dida got off to a strong start in 2006–07; following a strike by Lazio's Stephen Makinwa in Milan's 2-1 season-opener victory on 10 September, Dida did not allow a Serie A goal for the next 446 minutes of play, and Dida conceded only two goals in five of Milan's six UEFA Champions League 2006-07 group stage matches. Dida made Dida 200th appearance for Milan in a 1-0 defeat of Ascoli Calcio on 20 September, and on 28 January 2007, Dida played Dida 150th career Serie A match in a 1-0 win over Parma. Dida also signed a three-year contract extension with Milan on 10 March, and said afterwards in a Milan Channel interview, "It took six months to reach this agreement and now it's finally done. I'm extremely happy." However, '06–07 represented the first injury-plagued season of Dida career, and Dida missed eleven Serie A matches due to knee and shoulder problems; Dida had missed ten league games in the previous three seasons combined.

Dida play had consequently suffered again by the start of 2007; Dida notably came under heavy criticism after Milan's 3-2 CL semifinal first-leg loss to Manchester United on April 23, Dida form subsequently rebounded again and it continued into the rematch with Liverpool on May 23, where Dida exorcised Dida Istanbul ghosts with three saves from Jermaine Pennant, Steven Gerrard, and Peter Crouch as Milan won 2-1 and raised its seventh Champions League trophy.

On 3 October 2007, during Milan's UEFA Champions League 2007–08 group stage match against Celtic FC in Glasgow, Celtic striker Scott McDonald scored the match-winner in the 90th minute to seal a 2-1 victory. As McDonald and Dida teammates celebrated near the corner flag, 27-year-old Celtic fan Robert McHendry entered the pitch and tapped Dida on the shoulder as Dida ran past the Milan penalty area. Dida attempted to give chase but after a few steps Dida collapsed to the ground, holding the side of Dida face; Dida was stretchered off the pitch and substituted. Although McHendry later turned himself in to police and was given a lifetime ban from Celtic Park, Dida was charged by UEFA with breaching rules upholding "loyalty, integrity and sportsmanship", as it was deemed that Dida injury was feigned. Dida was consequently punished with a two-match suspension, which Milan promptly appealed.

Prior to Milan's Serie A match against Empoli FC at the San Siro on 21 October, Dida offered a gesture of apology to the fans by pausing to bow to each section of the crowd during warmups, and received a round of applause in response. The next day, UEFA reduced Dida ban to one match, and Dida sat out Milan's 4-1 victory over FC Shakhtar Donetsk on October 24.

Dida joined Milan teammates Cafu, Kaká, Ronaldo and Paolo Maldini for the fifth annual Match Against Poverty in Málaga, Spain on 19 November, but Dida missed Milan's group stage rematch against Celtic on 4 December due to illness. In December, Dida became the first two-time winner of the FIFA Club World Cup after Milan defeated Club Atlético Boca Juniors.

Ongoing injury problems and an overall drop in form limited Dida to just thirteen league appearances for the season. Dida participation in the Goal4Africa charity match on 12 July 2008 marked Dida first on-pitch action in six months.

2009–present

With the return of Abbiati as Milan's first choice for the 2008–09 Serie A season, Dida was the starter for Milan's UEFA Cup 2008-09 campaign, which ended with their elimination at the hands of Werder Bremen on February 27, 2009. Dida made Dida season Serie A debut on March 15 against A.C. Siena when Abbiati was carted off with a serious knee injury in the 13th minute, after which Dida was named as the starting keeper for the remainder of the term. Dida made a total of ten league appearances (his fewest with Milan since the 2000-01 season), six of which ended in clean sheets.

International career

With 91 appearances in 11 years, Dida is Brazilian national football team's fourth-highest capped goalie, behind Émerson Leão (107 caps), Cláudio Taffarel (101), and Gylmar dos Santos Neves (94). The only Brazilian keeper to be known by Dida nickname, Dida made Dida Canarinho debut at the 1993 Under-21 1993 FIFA World Youth Championship, where Brazil won the championship for a third time. Dida first cap for the Seleção came in a 1-0 defeat of Ecuador national football team on 7 July 1995.

Dida was the starting keeper for Brazil at the 1996 Summer Olympics, but an error-laden campaign from Brazil, which included a penalty-area collision involving Dida and teammate Aldair, played a role in defeats to Nigerian national football team and Japanese national football team and left Brazil with the bronze medal.

Despite Dida's run of good form with Corinthians at the time of the 2002 FIFA World Cup in Korea and Japan, Luiz Felipe Scolari, who had replaced the fired Wanderley Luxemburgo following Brazil's lackluster qualification, made Marcos Roberto Silveira Reis Dida number one. Dida, along with third-choice keeper Rogério Ceni, never played a minute in Brazil's winning campaign, thus setting a team record with fourteen consecutive WC final matches on the bench in 1998 and 2002 combined.

Dida played four out of five matches in the Confederations Cup 2005 (Marcos made one appearance due to squad rotation), conceding four goals and ranking second in total saves behind Mexico's Oswaldo Sánchez. One memorable moment of the competition was during Brazil's 1-0 group-stage loss to Mexico national football team, when Dida saved a Jared Borgetti spot kick that had to be retaken twice due to repeated player encroachment into the penalty area. Brazil have taken home the trophy twice, in 1997 and 2005, and Dida was the first-choice keeper on both occasions. Overall, Dida participated in five consecutive Confederations Cups from 1997 to 2005, becoming only the third player to accomplish this feat (Antonio Carbajal and Lothar Matthäus), and was also the lone goalie to save a penalty in the 2005 edition.

2006 World Cup

Despite never playing a match during Dida brief tenure at FC Lugano, Dida received a warm reception from the local supporters during Brazil's training sessions in Weggis, Switzerland prior to the 2006 FIFA World Cup finals. During the team's two-week stay in Weggis, Dida also organized a Ping-Pong tournament in which many of Dida teammates, such as Lucimar Ferreira da Silva, Robinho, Frederico Chaves Guedes, Ronaldinho, and Ronaldo, participated. Dida was defeated by Juninho Pernambucano in the championship match, and the winner's trophy was even named after him.

Dida conceded only two goals in five matches as Brazil defeated Croatia national football team, Australia national football team, Japan, and Ghana national football team before being eliminated by France national football team in the quarterfinals, a match which saw the Verdeamarela manage only one shot on goal in the entire contest and led to Parreira's resignation two weeks after the conclusion of the tournament. Due to Dida consistent play in goal, Dida was one of few Seleção players to avoid the wrath of the fans and Brazilian media after the team's elimination. Dida was also the first Afro-Brazilian goalkeeper to start in the World Cup finals since Moacyr Barbosa in the 1950 World Cup; for this accomplishment, Dida was hailed as Dida, o homem que quebrou o tabu ("Dida, the man who broke the taboo"). Dida assumed the role of captain against Japan when regular skipper Cafu was rested for that match, thus becoming only the second Brazilian goalie ever to wear the armband since Emerson Leão in the 1978 FIFA World Cup.

Brazil's loss to France ultimately became Dida's swan song. On 1 October 2006, Brazil coach Dunga announced during a television interview, "Dida told me that the Seleção is no longer a priority in Dida career." Despite Dida World Cup heroics, Dida had not been called up for national team play since the July 2006 inception of Dunga, who had eschewed many of the veterans in favor of a predominantly younger roster for Brazil's post-World Cup matches.

Honours

Vitória

- Campeonato Baiano: 1992

Cruzeiro

- Supercopa Masters: 1994
- Copa Oro: 1995
- Copa do Brasil: 1996
- Copa Libertadores de América: 1997
- Campeonato Mineiro: 1994, 1996, 1997, 1998
- Recopa Sudamericana: 1998

Corinthians

- Campeonato Brasileiro Série A: 1999
- Campeonato Paulista: 1999
- FIFA Club World Championship: 2000
- Torneio Rio-São Paulo: 2002
- Copa do Brasil: 2002

Milan

- Serie A: 2003–04
- Coppa Italia: 2003
- 2004 Supercoppa Italiana: 2004
- UEFA Champions League: 2002–03, 2006–07
- UEFA Super Cup: 2003, 2007
- FIFA Club World Championship: 2007

International

- FIFA World Youth Championship: 1993
- Football at the 1996 Summer Olympics - Bronze medal
- Copa América: 1999
- FIFA World Cup: 2002
- FIFA Confederations Cup: 1997, 2005

Individual

- Placar Bola de Prata: 1993 (Vitória), 1996, 1998 (Cruzeiro), 1999 (Corinthians)
- Serie A Goalkeeper of the Year: 2004
- FIFPro: 2005
- IFFHS World's Best Goalkeeper 2005: 2005
Dida is a five-time nominee of the IFFHS World's Best Goalkeeper Award. Dida was also the first Brazilian keeper ever to be nominated for the Ballon d'Or, doing so twice in 2003 and 2005. On 15 January 2008, Dida was ranked thirteenth out of seventy nominees in IFFHS' All-Time World Goalkeeper Ranking from 1987 to 2007.