Ricardo Alberto Silveira de Carvalho (; born 18 May 1978) is a Portuguese former professional
footballer who played as a
centre-back
In the sport of association football, a defender is an outfield position whose primary role is to stop attacks during the game and prevent the opposition from scoring.
Centre-backs are usually positioned in pairs, with one full-back on either s ...
.
Carvalho began his career at
Porto, where he had loan spells at
Leça,
Vitória de Setúbal and
Alverca
Alverca do Ribatejo () is a city (''cidade'') and a former civil parish in the municipality of Vila Franca de Xira, Portugal. In 2013, the parish merged into the new parish Alverca do Ribatejo e Sobralinho.
It covers an area of and had a pop ...
, before winning domestic and European trophies under
José Mourinho
José Mário dos Santos Mourinho Félix GOIH (; born 26 January 1963), is a Portuguese professional football manager and former player who is the current head coach of Italian Serie A club Roma. Once dubbed "The Special One" by the British ...
's management. In July 2004, Carvalho transferred to
Chelsea for a fee of just under €30 million. With the Blues, he won two
Premier League titles in a row and one
League Cup, in his first two seasons. In 2008, he was voted the team's Players' Player of the Year. Two years later, he helped Chelsea win the
league and
FA Cup, the first
Double in the club's history. In August 2010, after six years with Chelsea, he transferred to
Real Madrid
Real Madrid Club de Fútbol (, meaning ''Royal Madrid Football Club''), commonly referred to as Real Madrid, is a Spanish professional football club based in Madrid.
Founded in 1902 as Madrid Football Club, the club has traditionally wor ...
for a fee of £6.7 million, winning two domestic honours under Mourinho's management before a free transfer to
Monaco in 2013.
In international football, Carvalho's national team career began on 11 October 2003 in a friendly match against
Albania. He represented Portugal in three
UEFA European Championships and two
FIFA World Cups, and was a member of the team that won
UEFA Euro 2016. He was a regular in Portugal's lineup during
Euro 2004, when his country advanced all the way to the
final before losing to
Greece. At the
2006 World Cup
The 2006 FIFA World Cup, also branded as Germany 2006, was the 18th FIFA World Cup, the quadrennial international football world championship tournament. It was held from 9 June to 9 July 2006 in Germany, which had won the right to host the ...
, he played in six matches for Portugal, who finished fourth after reaching the semi-finals.
Club career
Porto (1997–2004)
Ricardo Carvalho was brought to the
Porto junior team in the 1996–97 season. In the oncoming season, Carvalho made his professional debut when he signed on loan for
Leça. Between 1999 and 2001, he had loan spells at
Vitória de Setúbal and
FC Alverca
Futebol Clube de Alverca is a Portuguese football club based in Alverca do Ribatejo, Vila Franca de Xira. It currently plays in the Portuguese 3rd Division.
History
F.C. Alverca was founded on 1 September 1939.
After many decades in the lower ...
. He returned to Porto in the
2001–02 season, being third choice behind
Jorge Costa and
Jorge Andrade
Jorge Manuel Almeida Gomes de Andrade (; born 9 April 1978) is a Portuguese football manager and former professional player who played as a central defender.
After playing two years with Porto he went on to represent Deportivo (169 offici ...
, but he quickly won a place in the starting XI, forming a terrific partnership with Andrade in the centre of defence, which brought disappointment to
captain
Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police department, election precinct, e ...
Jorge Costa who, in April 2002, joined
Charlton Athletic on a five-month loan spell. Carvalho made 25 appearances in the
Portuguese league that season.
In the following
season, Jorge Costa returned to Porto and Jorge Andrade moved to
Deportivo de La Coruña in Spain. With
José Mourinho
José Mário dos Santos Mourinho Félix GOIH (; born 26 January 1963), is a Portuguese professional football manager and former player who is the current head coach of Italian Serie A club Roma. Once dubbed "The Special One" by the British ...
in charge, Carvalho started the campaign as the third option behind Costa and
Pedro Emanuel
Pedro Emanuel dos Santos Martins Silva (born 11 February 1975), known as Pedro Emanuel, is a Portuguese retired footballer who played mainly as a central defender, currently manager of Saudi Arabian club Khaleej FC.
In his 16-year profession ...
, but later, his excellent form led him to a place in the first team, appearing in the most important games of the season, including the
UEFA cup semi-finals matches against
Lazio and the
UEFA Cup final
The UEFA Europa League, formerly the UEFA Cup, is an association football competition established in 1971 by UEFA. It is considered the second most important international competition for European clubs, after the UEFA Champions League. Clubs qu ...
where Porto beat
Celtic
Celtic, Celtics or Keltic may refer to:
Language and ethnicity
*pertaining to Celts, a collection of Indo-European peoples in Europe and Anatolia
**Celts (modern)
*Celtic languages
**Proto-Celtic language
* Celtic music
*Celtic nations
Sports Fo ...
3–2 in
extra time
Overtime or extra time is an additional period of play specified under the rules of a sport to bring a game to a decision and avoid declaring the match a tie or draw where the scores are the same. In some sports, this extra period is played onl ...
. It was Carvalho's first international trophy. By his great season, he was named
Portuguese League Footballer of the Year and Porto Footballer of the Year.
It was in the
2003–04 season that Carvalho made his name as a world-class footballer. His solid performances helped the club win the Portuguese league title for the second year in a row, and the most prestigious club trophy in European football, the
UEFA Champions League. In this tournament, Carvalho played in all of Porto's matches, including the 3–0 win against
Monaco in the
final. Subsequently, his great performances merited the
UEFA Club Best Defender of the Year In recognition of the best players in the UEFA Champions League each year, UEFA gives out several awards to the most outstanding performers of the European club football season. The awards are presented in August each year at a special gala in Monac ...
award, voted into the
UEFA Team of the Year, and was named one of the 50 players shortlisted for the
2004 Ballon d'Or
The 2004 Ballon d'Or, given to the best football player in Europe as judged by a panel of sports journalists from UEFA member countries, was delivered to the Ukrainian striker Andriy Shevchenko on 13 December 2004. On 9 November 2004, was announc ...
), finishing ninth in the voting, being the only defender in top ten. He was selected for the Portuguese
UEFA Euro 2004 squad
In military terminology, a squad is among the smallest of military organizations and is led by a non-commissioned officer. NATO and US doctrine define a squad as an organization "larger than a team, but smaller than a section." while US Army do ...
, in which tournament he was also nominated for the
UEFA Euro Team of the Tournament. At the end of the season, Carvalho has been tracked by a host of top European clubs, including
Internazionale,
Barcelona,
Real Madrid
Real Madrid Club de Fútbol (, meaning ''Royal Madrid Football Club''), commonly referred to as Real Madrid, is a Spanish professional football club based in Madrid.
Founded in 1902 as Madrid Football Club, the club has traditionally wor ...
and
Manchester United
Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of City of Salford, Salford to ...
. Real Madrid offered
€8.2 (
£7) million for Carvalho, but Porto warned the Spaniards they would not accept anything less than €23.5 (£20) million for the defender after the Spanish team made a much lower offer. Days later, English club
Chelsea offered €30 (£25.5) million for the centre back, which the Portuguese team accepted.
Chelsea (2004–2010)
At
Stamford Bridge Stamford Bridge may refer to:
* Stamford Bridge, East Riding of Yorkshire, a village in England
** Battle of Stamford Bridge, 25 September 1066
* Stamford Bridge (bridge), a bridge in the village of Stamford Bridge
* Stamford Bridge (stadium), in L ...
, Carvalho, who was considered one of the best centre-backs at Euro 2004, joined his former manager José Mourinho and former teammate
Paulo Ferreira on a three-year contract. He signed for a fee of €30 million (£20 million at the time)
and performed extremely well in his first season with Chelsea, helping them win the
Premier League title, their first top-flight domestic title in 50 years, and the
League Cup. He scored his first goal for Chelsea in a 3–1 victory over
Norwich City. His partnership with
captain
Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police department, election precinct, e ...
John Terry in central defence was hailed as a major factor behind Chelsea's two Premier League titles in a row.
The start of
2005–06 season was not as smooth for him, as he was publicly lambasted by Mourinho after making comments about his selection policy. Carvalho said the Chelsea manager's decision to drop him for the first game of the season was "incomprehensible", but Mourinho responded, "Carvalho seems to have problems understanding things, maybe he should have an IQ test," and then left him out for next game, against
Arsenal
An arsenal is a place where arms and ammunition are made, maintained and repaired, stored, or issued, in any combination, whether privately or publicly owned. Arsenal and armoury (British English) or armory (American English) are mostly ...
, and fined him a reported £85,000. He later returned to favour, though, and was a near-regular in the side from September. On 19 October 2005, he scored his first goal of the season in a 4–0 home win against
Real Betis in the
UEFA Champions League group stage. Carvalho continued his scoring run in
Europe by netting his second goal of the season in Chelsea's 2–0 away victory over
Anderlecht
Anderlecht (, ) is one of the 19 municipalities of the Brussels-Capital Region, Belgium. Located in the south-western part of the region, it is bordered by the City of Brussels, Forest, Molenbeek-Saint-Jean, and Saint-Gilles, as well as the ...
on 23 November. In January, in a 1–1 Premier League draw against
Charlton Athletic, Carvalho received the first
red card A red card is a type of penalty card that is shown in many sports after a rules infraction.
Red card may also refer to:
Art, entertainment, and media
* ''Red Card'' (album), 1976 release by Streetwalkers
* Red card, suit (cards) of hearts or dia ...
of his Chelsea career, after he received his second yellow for what the referee judged to be a tackle from behind on Charlton striker
Darren Bent. Later, on 29 April 2006, he scored again a goal, his third of the season, in a 3–0 Premier League victory over
Manchester United
Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of City of Salford, Salford to ...
, finishing off a move he had started on the edge of his own
penalty area by smashing the ball into the net, to help Chelsea clinch the title for the second consecutive year.
In the
2006–07 season, Carvalho scored again against Manchester United an important goal in a 1–1 draw – a header from a
Frank Lampard corner that also bounced off
Louis Saha's head. On 7 April, he scored another goal against
Tottenham Hotspur, firing a low, 30-yard drive past the reach of Spurs goalkeeper
Paul Robinson; as a result Chelsea narrowed the gap on Premier League leaders Manchester United to three points. Just 21 days later, on 28 April, Carvalho injured the medial ligaments of his right leg in a Premier League match against
Bolton Wanderers
Bolton Wanderers Football Club () is a professional football club based in Horwich, Bolton, Greater Manchester, England, which competes in . The club played at Burnden Park for 102 years from 1895 after moving from their original home at Pike's ...
. The injury meant Carvalho missed the second leg of the
Champions League semi-final against
Liverpool. He also missed the
FA Cup final against Manchester United, which Chelsea won after a goal from
Didier Drogba
Didier Yves Drogba Tébily (; born 11 March 1978) is an Ivorian retired professional footballer who played as a striker. He is the all-time top scorer and former captain of the Ivory Coast national team. He is best known for his career at ...
during extra time. On 18 May 2007, the day of his 29th birthday, Carvalho signed a five-year contract extension with Chelsea, keeping him at the club through the
2011–12 season. For his great performances during the 2006–07 season, Carvalho has been recognized by a number of organisations.
Sky Sports listed him as one of seven candidates for the Premiership's "Defender of the Year". He was also one of three Chelsea players nominated for the club's "Player of the Year" honour, which was ultimately won by
Michael Essien
Michael Kojo Essien (born 3 December 1982) is a Ghanaian former professional Association football, footballer who played as a midfielder and is currently a member of Danish Superliga club FC Nordsjælland, Nordsjælland's coaching staff. He was ...
.
Carvalho continued his excellent form into the
2007–08 season. Following the departure of manager
José Mourinho
José Mário dos Santos Mourinho Félix GOIH (; born 26 January 1963), is a Portuguese professional football manager and former player who is the current head coach of Italian Serie A club Roma. Once dubbed "The Special One" by the British ...
, the Spanish champions, Real Madrid, have once again expressed their interest in Carvalho. A Madrid source said, "We have never been able to get Carvalho because of his connection with Mourinho. Now he has left Chelsea, we feel there's a real chance." But the Portuguese did not leave the English club. On 26 December 2007, in a 4–4 home draw against
Aston Villa
Aston Villa Football Club is a professional football club based in Aston, Birmingham, England. The club competes in the , the top tier of the English football league system. Founded in 1874, they have played at their home ground, Villa Park ...
, on the 79th minute, the home side were outmanoeuvred in the middle of the field leaving only goalkeeper
Petr Čech and Carvalho between Villa's
striker
Striker or The Strikers may refer to:
People
*A participant in a strike action
*A participant in a hunger strike
*Blacksmith's striker, a type of blacksmith's assistant
*Striker's Independent Society, the oldest mystic krewe in America
People wi ...
,
Gabriel Agbonlahor, and the goal, Carvalho attempted the block, went in two-footed and was red carded for the foul, in the same night, he issued a public apology for his horror tackle on the forward. In that season, Carvalho was one of the most consistent performers at the club and his efforts were rewarded when he scored his first goal of the season in his 150th appearance for the club, a 1–0 Premier League victory over
Middlesbrough. Later, on 26 April, Carvalho made his 100th appearance in the Premier League against Manchester United, despite Chelsea's 2–1 win, he marred his centenary mark with an error that allowed
Wayne Rooney to equalise. His solid performances in the
Champions League helped the club reach the
final, Chelsea's first ever Champions League final appearance and Carvalho's second. ''The Blues'', however, lost 6–5 on
penalties
Penalty or The Penalty may refer to:
Sports
* Penalty (golf)
* Penalty (gridiron football)
* Penalty (ice hockey)
* Penalty (rugby)
* Penalty (rugby union)
* Penalty kick (association football)
* Penalty shoot-out (association football)
* Penalty ...
against Manchester United after a 1–1 draw following
extra time
Overtime or extra time is an additional period of play specified under the rules of a sport to bring a game to a decision and avoid declaring the match a tie or draw where the scores are the same. In some sports, this extra period is played onl ...
. Carvalho played in all 120 minutes and he was booked one time for a high challenge on
Cristiano Ronaldo right before the end of first half. On 8 May 2008, Carvalho was voted by his fellow Chelsea colleagues as Chelsea's "Players Player of the Year", while finishing in the top three for Chelsea's "Player of the Year" award voted by Chelsea fans, along with
Michael Ballack and
Joe Cole.
Carvalho opened his account for the
2008–09 season against
Manchester City
Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of Salford to the west. The tw ...
in a 1–3 away victory, on 13 September 2008. He was a somewhat peripheral figure for the rest of the season, as injury, the sacking of
Luiz Felipe Scolari, and subsequent appointment of
Guus Hiddink
Guus Hiddink (; born 8 November 1946) is a Dutch former football manager and professional player. He enjoyed a long career playing as a midfielder in his native Netherlands. Retired as player in 1982, Hiddink went into management, leading both c ...
meant that he lost his place in the team to Brazilian teammate
Alex
Alex is a given name. It can refer to a shortened version of Alexander, Alexandra, Alexis.
People
Multiple
*Alex Brown (disambiguation), multiple people
* Alex Gordon (disambiguation), multiple people
*Alex Harris (disambiguation), multiple pe ...
. He clocked up only 18 appearances in all competitions, two as substitute, scoring one goal.
[Carvalho's Profile](_blank)
, Chelsea. Retrieved 15 April 2014.
In July 2009, Carvalho told Chelsea he wanted to quit the club to join
Internazionale. He said, "I have had four extraordinary years at Chelsea until this year, which has not been very good - indeed it was the worst of my career." He played only 18 times in that season at Chelsea. But a move to Inter to link up with Mourinho collapsed when the Italian club wanted to sign him as a free transfer.
The appointment of
Carlo Ancelotti, coupled with recovery from injury, saw Carvalho regain his place in the Chelsea team. He made a fine start to the
2009–10 season, scoring a diving header in the
2009 FA Community Shield
The 2009 FA Community Shield (also known as The FA Community Shield sponsored by McDonald's for sponsorship reasons) was the 87th FA Community Shield, an annual football match contested by the winners of the previous season's Premier League and FA ...
match against Manchester United, a game in which he also received the
Man of the Match award. Chelsea got off to a terrible start conceding inside 10 minutes, but second-half goals from Carvalho and Frank Lampard looked enough to pull the team back from behind to win the trophy, only for Wayne Rooney to clip home an equaliser in stoppage time, forcing penalties. Chelsea went on to win the match 4–1 on penalties, following a 2–2 draw at the end of normal time. On 20 December 2009, Carvalho made his 200th appearance in a 1–1 draw against
West Ham United in the Premier League, where the defender was booked just before the half-hour mark for a challenge on
Guillermo Franco, before West Ham had their best chance of the opening stages. On 24 March, in a 5–0 win over
Portsmouth, Carvalho suffered ankle ligament damage; it seemed serious but it was not necessary a corrective surgery on this injury, leaving the team with just two first-choice central defenders in Alex and captain John Terry, and scaring the
Portugal national team head coach,
Carlos Queiroz, with the risk of not being able to go to
2010 FIFA World Cup
, image = 2010 FIFA World Cup.svg
, size = 200px
, caption = ''Ke Nako. (Tswana and Sotho for "It's time") Celebrate Africa's Humanity'It's time. Celebrate Africa's Humanity'' (English)''Dis tyd. Vier Afrika se mensd ...
. Due to the injury, Carvalho missed all the following league matches, including the title match victory against
Wigan Athletic. It was Carvalho's third Premier League title with the Blues. Six days later, on 15 May, he missed another important match, the
2010 FA Cup final
The 2010 FA Cup Final was the 129th final of the FA Cup, the world's oldest domestic football cup competition. The match took place on 15 May 2010, at Wembley Stadium, London, in front of a crowd of over 88,000 and a British television audience ...
, which they won after a single goal from Didier Drogba. By winning the title, Chelsea secured the first ever
Double in the club's history. At the end of the season, on 24 July, ''
The Sun'' carried reports that Carvalho had expressed his desire to leave Chelsea and link up with former manager José Mourinho, who was now in charge at Real Madrid in Spain.
Real Madrid (2010–2013)
On 10 August 2010, Real Madrid signed Carvalho for a reported fee of €7.9 (£6.7) million on a two-year contract. He made his debut on 13 August 2010 in a friendly match against
Bayern Munich
Fußball-Club Bayern München e. V. (FCB, ), also known as FC Bayern (), Bayern Munich, or simply Bayern, is a German professional sports club based in Munich, Bavaria. It is best known for its professional men's football team, which pla ...
, which Real Madrid won 4–2 on penalties after a 0–0 draw. His
La Liga debut came on 29 August, in a 0–0 draw against
Mallorca
Mallorca, or Majorca, is the largest island in the Balearic Islands, which are part of Spain and located in the Mediterranean.
The capital of the island, Palma, is also the capital of the autonomous community of the Balearic Islands. The Bal ...
, and, in the following match, against
Osasuna, he scored his first Liga goal;
Mesut Özil
Mesut Özil (, ; born 15 October 1988) is a German professional footballer who plays as an attacking midfielder for Süper Lig club İstanbul Başakşehir. Özil is known for his technical skills, creativity, passing skills, and vision. He can ...
raced to the penalty area and managed to thread a low cross for
Cristiano Ronaldo, whose first time shot was blocked by the Osasuna's goalkeeper
Ricardo, but the Portuguese managed to tip-toe the rebound for Carvalho to score the go-ahead goal, giving his team a 1–0 home victory. On 19 October 2010, in a
UEFA Champions League victory against
Milan, Carvalho was named the Man of the match by the Spanish newspaper ''
Marca Marca may refer to:
Places
* Marca, Sălaj, a commune in Sălaj County, Romania
* Marca, a tributary of the Barcău in Sălaj County, Romania
* an alternative name for Merca, Somalia
* Marca District, in the province Recuay, Peru
* Marçà, a vil ...
''. Some weeks later, on 7 November, Carvalho proved again to be in good shape in a 2–0
derby victory against
Atlético Madrid
Club Atlético de Madrid, Sociedad Anónima Deportiva, S.A.D. (; meaning "Athletic Club of Madrid"), known simply as Atleti in the Spanish-speaking world and commonly referred to at international level as Atlético Madrid, is a Spanish profess ...
, where he scored his second goal in La Liga, being named again the man of the match. Next month on day 19, in a 1–0 home victory against
Sevilla, Carvalho received his first red card for the club; having already been booked in the first half, he was shown a second yellow following an aerial challenge with Sevilla's
Álvaro Negredo in the second half. On 19 February 2011, he scored his third and last season goal against
Levante in another 2–0 league victory. Carvalho made 48 appearances in all competitions that season, bringing calmness and solidness to the defence, and was a heavy reason why Real Madrid had the best defense in Champions League, only letting five goals get past their goalkeeper.
Carvalho started the
2011–12 season well and remained as first-choice centre-back along with
Pepe, until a lower back injury kept him sidelined. He returned to action on 18 January in Real Madrid's 2–1 home defeat to
Barcelona, in the
Copa del Rey quarter-finals first leg at the
Santiago Bernabéu Stadium.
There was significant speculation about his future with Real Madrid in the
2012–13 season, with manager José Mourinho publicly stating on 29 August 2012 that "his services were no longer needed" by the club. However, he opted to stay at the club until the end of his contract.
Monaco (2013–2016)
On 28 May 2013,
Monaco confirmed on their website that they had secured the services of the Portuguese defender from Real Madrid. He moved to the newly promoted
Ligue 1
Ligue 1, officially known as Ligue 1 Uber Eats for sponsorship reasons, is a French professional league for men's association football clubs. At the top of the French football league system, it is the country's primary football competition. A ...
club on a free transfer when his Real Madrid contract expired on 1 July. Carvalho signed a one-year contract with Monaco, with the option of a second year.
Carvalho was sent off for two yellow cards on 10 August 2014, as Monaco began their season with a 2–1 defeat at home against
Lorient. On 14 April 2015, he fouled
Álvaro Morata to concede a penalty which was converted by
Arturo Vidal as Monaco lost to
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 the first leg of the quarter-finals of the
Champions League. In July 2015, he signed a new one-year deal, keeping him at the club until July 2016.
On 10 August 2016, it was announced that Monaco had not renewed his contract, ending a three-year spell with the
Ligue 1
Ligue 1, officially known as Ligue 1 Uber Eats for sponsorship reasons, is a French professional league for men's association football clubs. At the top of the French football league system, it is the country's primary football competition. A ...
club.
Shanghai SIPG (2017–2018)
On 9 January 2017, Carvalho was announcing his engagement by
André Villas-Boas's
Shanghai SIPG in the
Chinese Super League. He officially joined Shanghai SIPG on 15 February 2017.
On 6 October 2017, was handed a seven-month suspended prison sentence in Spain for tax fraud.
International career
Senior team
During the 2003–04 season, Carvalho earned his first
cap for the
Portugal national team on 11 October 2003 in a 5–3 friendly match win over
Albania. He established himself as a key member of the national team starting XI during the
UEFA Euro 2004 championship on home soil, after replacing captain
Fernando Couto in the heart of Portugal's defence following the team's defeat against
Greece in the opening group game.
In the tournament, he was nominated for the
UEFA Euro Team of the Tournament along with his compatriots
Maniche,
Luís Figo and Cristiano Ronaldo.
Carvalho formed a strong partnership with Jorge Andrade in the Portuguese defence as his country reached the
final, though they lost 1–0 to Greece in a stunning upset.
Carvalho started in all of Portugal's six games in the tournament, including an epic game against
England, where the defender was named
Carlsberg Carlsberg may refer to:
Places
* Carlsberg (district), a district in Copenhagen, Denmark
** Carlsberg station, its train station
* Carlsberg, Germany, a municipality in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany
* Carlsberg Fjord, Greenland Other uses
* Carlsbe ...
Man of the Match, and Portugal emerged victorious
6–5 on penalties.
BBC Sport football expert
Alan Hansen said that Carvalho was, along with
Sol Campbell, the best defender at Euro 2004.
Carvalho represented Portugal at the
2006 World Cup
The 2006 FIFA World Cup, also branded as Germany 2006, was the 18th FIFA World Cup, the quadrennial international football world championship tournament. It was held from 9 June to 9 July 2006 in Germany, which had won the right to host the ...
in Germany, finishing fourth overall. During the quarter-final game against England, referee
Horacio Elizondo adjudged
Wayne Rooney to have trodden on Carvalho's groin, right in front of him, and the English player was sent off for violent conduct. The English media, however, speculated that teammate Cristiano Ronaldo had influenced Elizondo's decision by aggressively complaining, after which he was seen in replays winking at the Portuguese bench following Rooney’s dismissal. In the following semi-final game against
France in
Munich on 5 July 2006, Carvalho was whistled for a foul against France's
Thierry Henry in the penalty area, resulting in a penalty kick.
Zinedine Zidane converted the spot kick to give France a 1–0 win over Portugal. Also in the same game, Carvalho was booked with his second yellow card of the knockout phase, and was forced to miss the third place game against hosts
Germany on 8 July in
Stuttgart
Stuttgart (; Swabian: ; ) is the capital and largest city of the German state of Baden-Württemberg. It is located on the Neckar river in a fertile valley known as the ''Stuttgarter Kessel'' (Stuttgart Cauldron) and lies an hour from the ...
, which ended in a 3–1 defeat. He in played each of his team's other preceding matches throughout the World Cup, as a member of Portugal's central defensive pairing in the team's starting lineup alongside
Fernando Meira, and as a result of his performances, he was one of the 23 players nominated for the
All Star Team of the tournament.
Carvalho was named in the
Portuguese squad for
Euro 2008. He played in three of Portugal's four matches in the tournament, including the 2–0 win against
Turkey and the 3–1 victory over
Czech Republic in the
group stage and the
quarter-finals match where Portugal lost 3–2 to Germany. Two years later, Carvalho was named again in the
Portuguese squad for the
2010 World Cup
, image = 2010 FIFA World Cup.svg
, size = 200px
, caption = ''Ke Nako. (Tswana and Sotho for "It's time") Celebrate Africa's Humanity'It's time. Celebrate Africa's Humanity'' (English)''Dis tyd. Vier Afrika se mensd ...
. He formed a partnership with
Bruno Alves
Bruno Eduardo Regufe Alves (; born 27 November 1981) is a Portuguese former footballer who played as a central defender, currently being sporting director of Super League Greece club AEK Athens.
He began and spent most of his professional ...
in the centre of defence, playing in all group stage matches without conceding a goal. This time, Portugal reached the round of 16, where they subsequently lost 1–0 against
Spain via a
David Villa goal.
On 31 August 2011, Carvalho retired from international football after leaving the concentration without talking to his coach and teammates before Portugal's match against
Cyprus for a
Euro 2012 qualifying
The qualifying competition for UEFA Euro 2012 was a series of parallel association football competitions held over 2010 and 2011 to decide the qualifiers for UEFA Euro 2012, held in Poland and Ukraine. The draw for the qualifying rounds was held ...
match, announcing in a statement carried by state news agency Lusa he had been "disrespected".
On 3 October 2014, after an absence of more than three years, Carvalho was called up by newly appointed Portugal manager
Fernando Santos, for the friendly against France and the
Euro 2016 qualifying match against
Denmark. On 29 March 2015, in a qualifier against
Serbia, he headed the opening goal in a 2–1 home victory, his first international goal for over eight years. At 38, he was the oldest outfield player at the
Euro 2016 finals in France. He started in all three of his team's group stages matches, but was dropped from the starting line-up for the knock-out stages of the competition; Portugal went on to win the tournament, defeating the hosts 1–0 in the
final in extra time, although Carvalho remained on the bench.
International goals
Under–21
Senior team
Style of play
Carvalho was always a
centre back who stood out in particular for his intelligence, and ability to read the game and time his challenges. He was quick, good in the air and possessed superb technique and good passing ability, which led him to be compared to the legendary Italian defender
Franco Baresi
Franchino Baresi (; born 8 May 1960) is an Italian football youth team coach and a former player and manager. He mainly played as a sweeper or as a central defender, and spent his entire 20-year career with Serie A club AC Milan, captaining th ...
.
Although he did not possess the physical strength of other defenders, he was known for his tenacity and hard-tackling style of play; in an interview with the Champions League's official magazine, Carvalho said of his playing style and physique:
As such throughout his career, he was often paired with a more physical centre-back, such as his defensive partner at Chelsea,
John Terry, whose powerful and aggressive playing style was complemented by Carvalho's mobility, technique, intelligence, speed of thought, and ball–playing ability.
Despite not being as tall as most centre-backs (1.83 m), Carvalho was also known for his ability to win aerial duels against larger, more physical opponents, as demonstrated by the three headed goals he scored against Manchester United with
Rio Ferdinand (1.91 m) and
Nemanja Vidić (1.90 m) in defence. In the same UEFA Champions League's official magazine interview, he stated:
Carvalho's Real Madrid profile described him as "known for his perfect positioning, his foresight and his ability to advance the ball out of the first third". At his peak, Carvalho was regarded by several pundits and football figures as one of the best defenders in the world,
and is considered to be one of the greatest defenders in the history of the Premier League.
Coaching career
He was most recently the assistant manager of
Andre Villas Boas in French club
Marseille.
Career statistics
Club
[Carvalho's Profile](_blank)
www.soccerbase.com. Retrieved 25 October 2015.
International
Honours
Porto
*
Primeira Divisão/Liga:
1998–99,
2002–03,
2003–04
*
Taça de Portugal:
2002–03
*
Supertaça Cândido de Oliveira:
2003
File:2003 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: The crew of STS-107 perished when the Space Shuttle Columbia disintegrated during reentry into Earth's atmosphere; SARS became an epidemic in China, and was a precursor to SARS-CoV-2; A des ...
*
UEFA Champions League:
2003–04
*
UEFA Cup:
2002–03
Chelsea
*
Premier League:
2004–05,
2005–06,
2009–10
*
FA Cup:
2006–07,
2008–09,
2009–10
*
Football League Cup
The EFL Cup (referred to historically, and colloquially, as the League Cup), currently known as the Carabao Cup for sponsorship reasons, is an annual knockout competition and major trophy in men's domestic football in England. Organised by the ...
:
2004–05,
2006–07
*
FA Community Shield
The Football Association Community Shield (formerly the Charity Shield) is English football's annual match contested at Wembley Stadium between the champions of the previous Premier League season and the holders of the FA Cup. If the Premier Le ...
:
2005
File:2005 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: Hurricane Katrina in the Gulf of Mexico; the Funeral of Pope John Paul II is held in Vatican City; "Me at the zoo", the first video ever to be uploaded to YouTube; Eris was discovered in ...
,
2009
File:2009 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: The vertical stabilizer of Air France Flight 447 is pulled out from the Atlantic Ocean; Barack Obama becomes the first African American to become President of the United States; 2009 Iran ...
Real Madrid
*
La Liga:
2011–12
*
Copa del Rey:
2010–11
1 (one, unit, unity) is a number representing a single or the only entity. 1 is also a numerical digit and represents a single unit of counting or measurement. For example, a line segment of ''unit length'' is a line segment of length 1. I ...
*
Supercopa de España
The Supercopa de España or the ''Spanish Super Cup'' is a super cup tournament in Spanish football. Founded in 1982 as a two-team competition, the current version has been contested since 2019–20 by four teams: the winners and runners-up of ...
:
2011–12
Portugal
*
UEFA European Championship:
2016
File:2016 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Bombed-out buildings in Ankara following the 2016 Turkish coup d'état attempt; the impeachment trial of Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff; Damaged houses during the 2016 Nagorno-Karabakh ...
Individual
*
UEFA Club Best Defender of the Year In recognition of the best players in the UEFA Champions League each year, UEFA gives out several awards to the most outstanding performers of the European club football season. The awards are presented in August each year at a special gala in Monac ...
: 2003–04
*
UEFA Team of the Year:
2004
2004 was designated as an International Year of Rice by the United Nations, and the International Year to Commemorate the Struggle Against Slavery and its Abolition (by UNESCO).
Events January
* January 3 – Flash Airlines Flight 6 ...
*
UEFA Euro Team of the Tournament:
Portugal 2004
*
FIFA World Cup All-Star Team:
Germany 2006
The 2006 FIFA World Cup, also branded as Germany 2006, was the 18th FIFA World Cup, the quadrennial international football world championship tournament. It was held from 9 June to 9 July 2006 in Germany, which had won the right to host the ...
*
Chelsea Players' Player of the Year: 2008
*
FIFA FIFPro World XI Nominee 2005, 2007, 2008, 2011
Orders
*
Medal of Merit,
Order of the Immaculate Conception of Vila Viçosa (
House of Braganza
The Most Serene House of Braganza ( pt, Sereníssima Casa de Bragança), also known as the Brigantine Dynasty (''Dinastia Brigantina''), is a dynasty of emperors, kings, princes, and dukes of Portuguese origin which reigned in Europe and the Ame ...
)
*
Commander of the
Order of Merit
The Order of Merit (french: link=no, Ordre du Mérite) is an order of merit for the Commonwealth realms, recognising distinguished service in the armed forces, science, art, literature, or for the promotion of culture. Established in 1902 by K ...
Footnotes
:A. Includes the
Football League Cup
The EFL Cup (referred to historically, and colloquially, as the League Cup), currently known as the Carabao Cup for sponsorship reasons, is an annual knockout competition and major trophy in men's domestic football in England. Organised by the ...
and the
Portuguese League Cup. The Portuguese League Cup was founded only in 2007,
so Ricardo Carvalho never played in this tournament.
:B. Includes other competitive competitions, including the
Portuguese Super Cup
Portuguese may refer to:
* anything of, from, or related to the country and nation of Portugal
** Portuguese cuisine, traditional foods
** Portuguese language, a Romance language
*** Portuguese dialects, variants of the Portuguese language
** Portu ...
,
FA Community Shield
The Football Association Community Shield (formerly the Charity Shield) is English football's annual match contested at Wembley Stadium between the champions of the previous Premier League season and the holders of the FA Cup. If the Premier Le ...
,
Supercopa de España
The Supercopa de España or the ''Spanish Super Cup'' is a super cup tournament in Spanish football. Founded in 1982 as a two-team competition, the current version has been contested since 2019–20 by four teams: the winners and runners-up of ...
and the
UEFA Super Cup.
References
External links
*
*
*
*
*
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Carvalho, Ricardo
1978 births
Living people
People from Amarante, Portugal
Portuguese men's footballers
Men's association football defenders
FC Porto players
Leça F.C. players
FC Porto B players
Vitória F.C. players
F.C. Alverca players
Chelsea F.C. players
Real Madrid CF players
AS Monaco FC players
Shanghai Port F.C. players
Primeira Liga players
Premier League players
La Liga players
Ligue 1 players
Chinese Super League players
UEFA Champions League winning players
UEFA Cup winning players
Portugal men's youth international footballers
Portugal men's under-21 international footballers
Portugal men's international footballers
UEFA Euro 2004 players
2006 FIFA World Cup players
UEFA Euro 2008 players
2010 FIFA World Cup players
UEFA Euro 2016 players
UEFA European Championship-winning players
Portuguese expatriate men's footballers
Portuguese expatriate sportspeople in England
Portuguese expatriate sportspeople in Spain
Portuguese expatriate sportspeople in Monaco
Portuguese expatriate sportspeople in China
Expatriate men's footballers in England
Expatriate men's footballers in Spain
Expatriate men's footballers in Monaco
Expatriate men's footballers in China
Commanders of the Order of Merit (Portugal)
Footballers from Porto District