Athirson Mazzoli e Oliveira, (born 16 January 1977), better known as Athirson, is a Brazilian football coach and former player who played as a left-back.

Club career

Athirson was born in Rio de Janeiro and played much of his early career at

Flamengo Clube de Regatas do Flamengo (; English: ''Flamengo Rowing Club''), more commonly referred to as simply Flamengo, is a Brazilian sports club based in Rio de Janeiro, in the neighborhood of Gávea, best known for their professional football t ...

. He was signed by Italian club

Juventus Juventus Football Club (from la, iuventūs, 'youth'; ), colloquially known as Juve (), is a professional Association football, football club based in Turin, Piedmont, Italy, that competes in the Serie A, the top tier of the Italian football leagu ...

in 2001, but was loaned to Flamengo in February 2002. His contract was terminated in October 2003.

Late career

In 2005 Athirson was signed by Bayer Leverkusen, but was released after two years, along with fellow Brazilian defender

Roque Junior Roque is an American variant of croquet played on a hard, smooth surface. Popular in the first quarter of the 20th century and billed "the Game of the Century" by its enthusiasts, it was an Olympic sport in the 1904 Summer Games, replacing cr ...

. He then signed a six months contract with Botafogo. but his contract was terminated on 4 October 2007, after just playing only seven times for the club. He signed a one-year contract with Brasiliense on 22 February 2008, then signed for Portuguesa in September 2008. On 26 April 2009 the left-back signed for Cruzeiro on a free transfer until December. He had received an offer from America-RJ after his contract with Portuguesa expired on 31 December 2010. In 2011, he signed for

Duque de Caxias Duque is a Spanish surname meaning "duke". People Notable people with the name include: * Jaime Enrique Duque Correa (1943–2013), Colombian Roman Catholic bishop * Andrés Duque (21st century), American activist * Carlos Duque (1930–2014), Pa ...

to play at

Campeonato Brasileiro Série B The Campeonato Brasileiro Série B is commonly referred to as the Brasileirão Série B (Série B), and until 2022 was officially called Brasileirão Sportingbet by sponsorship reasons. It is the second tier of the Brazilian football league system ...

but was released during the competition. On 6 October 2011, he signed for Projecta, a Brazilian

indoor soccer Indoor soccer or arena soccer (known internationally as indoor football, fast football, or showball) is five-a-side version of minifootball, derived from association football and adapted to be played in walled hardcourt indoor arena. Indoor socc ...

club based at Espírito Santo.

International career

Athirson played five times for the Brazil national team, and was a member of the Brazil squad which finished in second place at the

1999 FIFA Confederations Cup The 1999 FIFA Confederations Cup was the fourth FIFA Confederations Cup, and the second organised by FIFA. The tournament was hosted by Mexico between 24 July and 4 August 1999. It was won by Mexico, who beat Brazil 4–3 in the final. Mexico be ...

. He also made 14 appearances and scored two goals for the Brazilian U-23 side, which competed at the

2000 Summer Olympics The 2000 Summer Olympics, officially the Games of the XXVII Olympiad and also known as Sydney 2000 (Dharug: ''Gadigal 2000''), the Millennium Olympic Games or the Games of the New Millennium, was an international multi-sport event held from 1 ...

. He was a member of the Brazil under-20 squad which won the

1997 FIFA World Youth Championship The 1997 FIFA World Youth Championship, known as the 1997 FIFA/Coca-Cola World Youth Championship for sponsorship purposes, was the 11th staging of the FIFA World Youth Championship. It was held from 16 June to 5 July 1997 in Malaysia. It was th ...

Style of play

Usually an attacking left back or wing-back, Athirson could also play on the left wing, and as an attacking midfielder. He was useful there because of his accurate passing, long-range striking ability, attacking drive, and articulate dribbling skills. His talent, playing style, nationality, and position led him to be compared to compatriot Roberto Carlos in his youth.

Managerial career

Athirson was appointed coach of

Goytacaz Goytacaz might refer to: * Goytacaz Futebol Clube, Brazilian football club * Goytacaz language, Brazilian language * Campos dos Goytacazes Campos dos Goytacazes () is a municipality located in the northern region of Rio de Janeiro State, Brazi ...

in October 2018.

Honours

Club

Flamengo *

Copa de Oro The Copa de Oro (English: ''Gold Cup'', Portuguese: ''Copa Ouro''), or Copa de Oro Nicolás Leoz, was a football cup winners' cup competition contested on 3 occasions by the most recent winners of all CONMEBOL continental competitions. These inclu ...

: 1996 * Copa Mercosur: 1999 *

Taça Rio Taça Rio, or Rio Trophy, is an annual Rio de Janeiro football tournament. It is the second stage competition of the Campeonato Carioca, the state football championship in Rio de Janeiro. It has been organized since 1982 by the Rio de Janeiro St ...

: 2000 * Taça Guanabara: 1999, 2004 * Rio de Janeiro State League: 1999, 2000 * Brazilian League: 1999, 2000 Santos *

Brazilian Cup The Copa do Brasil ( en, Brazil Cup) is a knockout football competition played by 92 teams, representing all 26 Brazilian states plus the Federal District. It is the Brazilian domestic cup and the Brazilian equivalent of the FA Cup, Taça de P ...

: 1998 * Copa CONMEBOL: 1998 * Torneio Rio – São Paulo: 1999 Juventus * Serie A: 2001–02

International

Brazil * Toulon Tournament: 1996 * Gold Cup:

1996 File:1996 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: A Centennial Olympic Park bombing, bomb explodes at Centennial Olympic Park in Atlanta, set off by a radical Anti-abortion violence, anti-abortionist; The center fuel tank explodes on TWA Flight 8 ...

Copa América The Copa América ( en, America Cup) or CONMEBOL Copa América, known until 1975 as the South American Football Championship (''Campeonato Sudamericano de Fútbol'' in Spanish and ''Campeonato Sul-Americano de Futebol'' in Portuguese), is the t ...

1999 File:1999 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The funeral procession of King Hussein of Jordan in Amman; the 1999 İzmit earthquake kills over 17,000 people in Turkey; the Columbine High School massacre, one of the first major school shootin ...

* Pre-Olympic Tournament: 2000

Individual

* Brazilian Bola de Prata ( Placar): 2002

References

External links

* * * {{Goytacaz Futebol Clube managers Living people 1977 births Footballers from Rio de Janeiro (city) Brazilian men's footballers Men's association football defenders Brazilian football managers Brazil men's international footballers Brazil men's under-20 international footballers Olympic footballers for Brazil Campeonato Brasileiro Série A players Serie A players Bundesliga players 1999 FIFA Confederations Cup players Footballers at the 2000 Summer Olympics Brazilian people of Italian descent CR Flamengo footballers Santos FC players Cruzeiro Esporte Clube players Associação Portuguesa de Desportos players Duque de Caxias Futebol Clube players Bayer 04 Leverkusen players Botafogo de Futebol e Regatas players Juventus FC players America Football Club (Rio de Janeiro) players São Cristóvão de Futebol e Regatas managers Esporte Clube Flamengo managers Goytacaz Futebol Clube managers Brazilian expatriate men's footballers Brazilian expatriate sportspeople in Germany Expatriate men's footballers in Germany Brazilian expatriate sportspeople in Italy Expatriate men's footballers in Italy