Ademir de Menezes

Ademir Marques de Menezes (8 November 1922 – 11 May 1996), best known as Ademir de Menezes (Portuguese pronunciation: [adeˈmiʁ]), was a Brazilian footballer, regarded as one of the best centre forwards in the history of the Brazil national team.[1] His prominent underbite earned him the nickname "Queixada", which means "jaw".

This name uses Portuguese naming customs: the first or maternal family name is Marques and the second or paternal family name is de Menezes.
For other Brazilian footballers named Ademir , see Ademir da Guia and Ademir Roque Kaefer.
Ademir de Menezes
Ademir with Brazil in 1947
Personal information
Full name Ademir Marques de Menezes
Date of birth (1922-11-08)8 November 1922
Place of birth Recife, Brazil
Date of death 11 May 1996(1996-05-11) (aged 73)
Place of death Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
Height 1.76 m (5 ft 9 1⁄2 in)
Playing position(s) Striker
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
1939–1942 Sport Recife 75 (98)
1942–1945 Vasco da Gama 90 (115)
1946–1947 Fluminense 29 (19)
1948–1956 Vasco da Gama 240 (230)
1957 Sport Recife
Total 434 (462)
National team
1945–1953 Brazil 39 (32)
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only

International career

He is best known for his exploits in the 1950 World Cup held in his native Brazil. Playing in an outstanding forward trio involving Zizinho and Jair he won the Golden Boot as the top scorer in the competition. He was the scorer of the first competitive goal at the Maracanã stadium[2] There is some disagreement in the records as to how many goals Ademir scored, with some sources citing seven and others, including the authoritative RSSSF, nine. Despite this feat, he could not bring victory to Brazil in the decisive match against Uruguay – a national tragedy which was later dubbed the Maracanazo.

Ademir also enjoyed success in the Copa América. He played in the 1945, 1946, 1949, and 1953 editions of the tournament, scoring 13 goals in 18 appearances in the competition, including a tournament-winning hat-trick in the final play-off against Paraguay in 1949. He also won the Panamerican Championship with Brazil in 1952. In total, Ademir played 39 times for his country, scoring 32 goals (according to RSSSF) between 1945 and 1953.

Club career

He began his club career with Sport Recife before moving to Vasco da Gama. He played for Vasco for two spells, 1942–1945 and 1948–56, broken by a spell at Fluminense. In total, Ademir made 429 appearances for Vasco, scoring 301 goals, winning five Rio State League championships (1945, 1949, 1950, 1952, 1956). He won another with Fluminense (1946). He was the league's top scorer in 1949 with 30 goals and again in 1950 with 25 goals. Ademir finally retired from playing in 1956, going on to work as a commentator, coach and businessman.

Playing style

A fast and powerful striker, with a strong shot in both feet,[1] Ademir began his career as a left winger before moving to the centre, causing havoc in opposing defences with his skill and sublime finishing. People at the time considered him an unequalled ball juggler who knew every trick in the book. He used to wreak havoc among defences with his quick changes in tempo, fooling his opponents with deceptions carried out almost at lightning speed, his mastering of the ball in all situations and the ability to accelerate rapidly.

Career statistics

International

[3] [4]

Brazil national team
YearAppsGoals
194597
194661
194720
194800
194957
1950914
195100
195252
195331
Total3932

1950 World Cup statistics

The scores contain links to the article on the 1950 FIFA World Cup and the round in question. When there is a special article on the match in question, the link is in the column for round.

Game no. Round Date Opponent Score Ademir's goals Times Ademir's playing time Venue Report
1Group 124 June 1950 Mexico4–0 (1–0)2 30'  79'90 min.Estádio do Maracanã, Rio de Janeiro
2Group 128 June 1950  Switzerland2–2 (2–1)090 min.Estádio do Pacaembu, São Paulo
3Group 11 July 1950 Yugoslavia2–0 (1–0)1 3'90 min.Estádio do Maracanã, Rio de Janeiro
4Final R.9 July 1950 Sweden7–1 (3–0)4 17'  37'  51'  59'90 min.Estádio do Maracanã, Rio de Janeiro
5Final R.13 July 1950 Spain6–1 (3–0)2 15'  57'90 min.Estádio do Maracanã, Rio de Janeiro
6Final R.16 July 1950 Uruguay1–2 (0–0)090 min.Estádio do Maracanã, Rio de Janeiro

Honours

Club
Sport Recife
Vasco da Gama
Fluminense

International
Brazil

Individual

References
  1. Tim Vickery (26 March 2007). "Tim Vickery column". BBC. Archived from the original on 30 March 2007. Retrieved 26 March 2007.
  2. "Maracanã, the largest stadium of the world". Sambafoot.com. Archived from the original on 21 March 2007. Retrieved 23 March 2007.
  3. Ademir de Menezes at National-Football-Teams.com
  4. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 8 February 2011. Retrieved 11 August 2010.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  5. IFFHS' Century Elections
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