Antônio Carlos Cerezo (born 21 April 1955), known as Toninho Cerezo (), is a Brazilian former

footballer A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugb ...

. Cerezo is commonly regarded as one of the finest Brazilian

defensive midfielder A midfielder is an Glossary of association football terms#O, outfield position in association football. Midfielders may play an exclusively defensive role, breaking up attacks, and are in that case known as defensive midfielders. As #Cent ...

s of all time, most notably having played for his hometown's team

Atlético Mineiro Atlético, Spanish for ''athletics'', or Athletico in English, may refer to: Sports Teams Athletico *Athletico SC (Lebanon), a Lebanese football academy *Athletic Bilbao, or Atletico Bilbao, Basque students athletic club (also forming Athletic Cl ...

;Toninho Cerezo
/ref> he also played for several other clubs in both Brazil and Italy throughout his career. At international level, Cerezo took part at the

1978 Events January * January 1 – Air India Flight 855, a Boeing 747 passenger jet, crashes off the coast of Bombay, killing 213. * January 5 – Bülent Ecevit, of CHP, forms the new government of Turkey (42nd government). * January 6 � ...

and

1982 FIFA World Cup The 1982 FIFA World Cup was the 12th FIFA World Cup, a quadrennial Association football, football tournament for men's senior national teams, and was played in Spain between 13 June and 11 July 1982. The tournament was won by Italy national foo ...

s – winning a bronze medal in the former edition of the tournament – and the

1979 Copa América The 1979 edition of the Copa América association football tournament was played between 18 July and 12 December. It was not held in a particular country, all matches were played on a home and away basis. Defending champions Peru were given a bye ...

, where Brazil finished in third place.

Club career

Throughout his career, Cerezo played as a defensive midfielder with

Roma Roma or ROMA may refer to: Places Australia * Roma, Queensland, a town ** Roma Airport ** Roma Courthouse ** Electoral district of Roma, defunct ** Town of Roma, defunct town, now part of the Maranoa Regional Council * Roma Street, Brisbane, a ...

, Cruzeiro, Sampdoria, São Paulo and the Brazilian national team. While playing in Brazil, he won the

Bola de Ouro The ''Bola de Ouro'' (Golden Ball) is an annual award given each year, since 1973, by Brazilian sports magazine ''Placar'' to the best player in the Campeonato Brasileiro. A group of sports journalists watch every match of the competition and rat ...

in 1977 and 1980 and the Bola de Prata in 1976. During his time in Italy, Cerezo won the Coppa Italia four times; in 1991 he won the Serie A with Sampdoria, but lost the Coppa Italia final to

A.S. Roma ' (''Rome Sport Association''), commonly referred to as Roma (), is a professional football club based in Rome, Italy. Founded by a merger in 1927, Roma has participated in the top tier of Italian football for all of its existence, except for ...

. With São Paulo he was a two-time winner of the Intercontinental Cup, and also won the Copa Libertadores once. Cerezo was named the best player of the 1993 Intercontinental Cup final.(He scored the second goal and assisted Müller's game-winning goal in a 3–2 victory against Milan.) In 1997, he retired as a player, and, after doing some studies and probations in Italy, he returned to Brazil, and start a career as a manager at Vitória, reaching the semifinals of the Brasileirão Série A. He also led Japanese powerhouse Kashima Antlers in the

J.League The , officially is Japan's professional football league including the first division J1 League, second division J2 League and third division J3 League of the Japanese association football league system. J1 League is one of the most successfu ...

for six years. He won five major titles in Japan, two league championships, one Emperor's Cup, and two league cups. After his time in Japan, he coached Brazilian clubs

, and Guarani, as well as some Asian clubs, such as Al-Hilal, Al-Shabab,

Al Ain Al Ain ( ar, ٱلْعَيْن, , ) is a city in the western side of Tuwwam region and the seat of the administrative division of its namesake, Al Ain in the Emirate of Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates. It is bordered to the east by the Omani ...

; he later returned to Brazil once again as head manager of

Sport Recife Sport Club do Recife, (; known as Sport Recife or Sport, is a Brazilian sports club, located in the city of Recife, in the Brazilian state of Pernambuco. Founded in 1905, the club currently plays in Série B. In football, the club has w ...

, leaving the club just one month later.

International career

Cerezo won 57 caps (full international games), between March 1977 and June 1985, with the Brazilian national team, scoring five goals. He played in the

1978 FIFA World Cup The 1978 FIFA World Cup was the 11th edition of the FIFA World Cup, a quadrennial international football world championship tournament among the men's senior national teams. It was held in Argentina between 1 and 25 June. The Cup was won by ...

, where they finished in third place, and in the

, where they were eliminated in the second round in a group which contained defending champions and continental rivals

Argentina Argentina (), officially the Argentine Republic ( es, link=no, República Argentina), is a country in the southern half of South America. Argentina covers an area of , making it the second-largest country in South America after Brazil, th ...

, as well as the eventual champions Italy. He was also due to go to the 1986 tournament, but a hamstring injury in May ruled him out of the upcoming World Cup. He was a member of the Brazilian team that finished in third place at the 1979 Copa América. At the

one of his back passes was intercepted by Italian striker

Paolo Rossi Paolo Rossi (; 23 September 1956 – 9 December 2020) was an Italian professional footballer who played as a forward. He led Italy to the 1982 FIFA World Cup title, scoring six goals to win the Golden Boot as top goalscorer, and the Golden ...

, who went on to score; the match ended in a 2–3 loss to Italy, which also saw Rossi score a hat-trick, and as a result, Brazil were knocked out of the tournament in a dramatic upset. For many years after the event, he was widely criticized for this error by many Brazilian fans and members of the press.

Style of play

A tall and strong midfielder, with a slender frame, Cerezo is regarded as one of the greatest Brazilian

s of all time, and was well known for his tireless work-rate, stamina, and tactical awareness, as well as his dynamic, physical, and energetic style of play. Although he was usually deployed in a holding role, Cerezo was also an elegant and highly creative player, who was highly regarded in the media for his technique, vision, ability to understand the game, and passing range, which enabled him to orchestrate attacking moves for his team, get forward, and create chances for teammates after winning back possession; as such, he often functioned as a

deep-lying playmaker A midfielder is an outfield position in association football. Midfielders may play an exclusively defensive role, breaking up attacks, and are in that case known as defensive midfielders. As central midfielders often go across boundari ...

in midfield throughout his career. Although he was mainly a team player, who preferred to assist other players over scoring himself, he also possessed an accurate shot.

Personal life

Cerezo is Roman Catholic and is father of four children, including fashion model

Lea T Leandra Medeiros Cerezo, known professionally as Lea T (born 19 February 1981), is a Brazilian-born, Italian-raised transgender fashion model. She has been called the "muse" of Riccardo Tisci, chief creative officer of British luxury brand Bur ...

Career statistics

Club

International

Managerial statistics

Honours

Player

Club

;Nacional *

Campeonato Amazonense The Campeonato Amazonense, officially Campeonato Amazonense de Futebol Profissional, is the football championship for professional clubs of the state of Amazonas, Brazil. Format The 2021 Campeonato Amazonense is divided into two stages: First S ...

: 1974 ;Atlético Mineiro *

Campeonato Mineiro Campeonato Mineiro is the state football league of the state of Minas Gerais and is controlled by the Minas Gerais Football Federation FMF (Federação Mineira de Futebol). The history of Campeonato Mineiro can be divided into two parts: befor ...

: 1976, 1978, 1979, 1980, 1981, 1982, 1983 *

Campeonato Brasileiro Série A The Campeonato Brasileiro Série A (; English: "Brazilian Championship A Series"), commonly referred to as the Brasileirão (; English: "Big Brazilian"), and also known as Brasileirão Assaí due to sponsorship with Assaí Atacadista, is a Br ...

1977 Events January * January 8 – Three bombs explode in Moscow within 37 minutes, killing seven. The bombings are attributed to an Armenian separatist group. * January 10 – Mount Nyiragongo erupts in eastern Zaire (now the Democratic Re ...

runner-up,

1980 Events January * January 4 – U.S. President Jimmy Carter proclaims a grain embargo against the USSR with the support of the European Commission. * January 6 – Global Positioning System time epoch begins at 00:00 UTC. * January 9 – In ...

runner-up ;Roma * Coppa Italia: 1984,

1986 The year 1986 was designated as the International Year of Peace by the United Nations. Events January * January 1 **Aruba gains increased autonomy from the Netherlands by separating from the Netherlands Antilles. ** Spain and Portugal ent ...

European Cup The UEFA Champions League (abbreviated as UCL, or sometimes, UEFA CL) is an annual club football competition organised by the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) and contested by top-division European clubs, deciding the competit ...

1984 Events January * January 1 – The Bornean Sultanate of Brunei gains full independence from the United Kingdom, having become a British protectorate in 1888. * January 7 – Brunei becomes the sixth member of the Association of Southeast A ...

runner-up ;Sampdoria * Serie A: 1990–91 * Coppa Italia:

1988 File:1988 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The oil platform Piper Alpha explodes and collapses in the North Sea, killing 165 workers; The USS Vincennes (CG-49) mistakenly shoots down Iran Air Flight 655; Australia celebrates its Bicentenn ...

1989 File:1989 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The Cypress Street Viaduct, Cypress structure collapses as a result of the 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake, killing motorists below; The proposal document for the World Wide Web is submitted; The Exxo ...

1991 File:1991 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Boris Yeltsin, elected as Russia's first president, waves the new flag of Russia after the 1991 Soviet coup d'état attempt, orchestrated by Soviet hardliners; Mount Pinatubo erupts in the Ph ...

runner-up * UEFA Cup Winners' Cup:

runner-up,

1990 File:1990 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The 1990 FIFA World Cup is played in Italy; The Human Genome Project is launched; Voyager I takes the famous Pale Blue Dot image- speaking on the fragility of humanity on Earth, astrophysicis ...

1992 File:1992 Events Collage V1.png, From left, clockwise: 1992 Los Angeles riots, Riots break out across Los Angeles, California after the Police brutality, police beating of Rodney King; El Al Flight 1862 crashes into a residential apartment buildi ...

runner-up *

Supercoppa Italiana The Supercoppa Italiana ( en, Italian Super Cup) is an annual football match contested by the winners of the Serie A and the Coppa Italia in the previous season. If the same team wins both the Serie A and Coppa Italia titles in the previous seaso ...

;São Paulo *

Campeonato Paulista The Campeonato Paulista Série A1, commonly known as Campeonato Paulista, nicknamed Paulistão, is the top-flight professional football league in the Brazilian state of São Paulo. Run by the FPF, the league is contested between 16 clubs and typ ...

: 1992 * Intercontinental Cup:

1993 File:1993 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The Oslo I Accord is signed in an attempt to resolve the Israeli–Palestinian conflict; The Russian White House is shelled during the 1993 Russian constitutional crisis; Czechoslovakia is peace ...

* Copa Libertadores:

Supercopa Sudamericana The Supercopa Libertadores (English: ''Libertadores Supercup''), also known as the Supercopa Libertadores João Havelange, Supercopa João Havelange or simply Supercopa, was a football club competition contested annually between 1988 and 1997 by t ...

: 1993 * Recopa Sudamericana:

1994 File:1994 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The 1994 Winter Olympics are held in Lillehammer, Norway; The Kaiser Permanente building after the 1994 Northridge earthquake; A model of the MS Estonia, which sank in the Baltic Sea; Nels ...

Individual

* South American U-20 Championship Top Scorer: 1977 *

: 1977, 1980 * Bola de Prata: 1976, 1977, 1980 * FIFA XI (Reserve): 1979 * World XI Soccer: 1983 * Intercontinental Cup Most Valuable Player of the Match Award: 1993 * A.S. Roma Hall of Fame: 2016

Manager

Club

;Kashima Antlers *

2000 File:2000 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Protests against Bush v. Gore after the 2000 United States presidential election; Heads of state meet for the Millennium Summit; The International Space Station in its infant form as seen from S ...

2001 The September 11 attacks against the United States by Al-Qaeda, which killed 2,977 people and instigated the global war on terror, were a defining event of 2001. The United States led a multi-national coalition in an invasion of Afghanist ...

J.League Cup The is a Japanese football (soccer) competition organized by J.League. It has been sponsored by Yamazaki Biscuits (YBC) of Yamazaki Baking (formerly Yamazaki Nabisco) since its inception in 1992. It is also known as the or (Levain is one of YB ...

: 2000, 2002 * Emperor's Cup: 2000 *

Suruga Bank Championship The J.League Cup / Copa Sudamericana Championship was an annual intercontinental football match held in Japan, contested by the reigning champions of the J.League Cup and the Copa Sudamericana. The tournament was previously officially called the S ...

2013 File:2013 Events Collage V2.png, From left, clockwise: Edward Snowden becomes internationally famous for leaking classified NSA wiretapping information; Typhoon Haiyan kills over 6,000 in the Philippines and Southeast Asia; The Dhaka garment fa ...

;Al-Shabab *

UAE Football League The UAE Pro League ( ar, دوري المحترفين الإماراتي), known for sponsorship reasons as the ADNOC Pro League, is the top professional football league in the United Arab Emirates (UAE). The first team to win the title was Al O ...

2008 File:2008 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Lehman Brothers went bankrupt following the Subprime mortgage crisis; Cyclone Nargis killed more than 138,000 in Myanmar; A scene from the opening ceremony of the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing; ...

References

*''Enciclopédia do Futebol Brasileiro'', Volume 1 – Lance, Rio de Janeiro: Aretê Editorial S/A, 2001.

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Cerezo, Toninho 1955 births Living people Footballers from Belo Horizonte Brazilian people of Spanish descent Brazilian footballers 1978 FIFA World Cup players 1982 FIFA World Cup players Brazil international footballers Brazilian expatriate footballers Expatriate footballers in Italy Campeonato Brasileiro Série A players Serie A players Brazilian football managers Expatriate football managers in Japan Brazilian expatriate sportspeople in the United Arab Emirates Campeonato Brasileiro Série A managers Clube Atlético Mineiro players Nacional Futebol Clube players A.S. Roma players U.C. Sampdoria players Cruzeiro Esporte Clube players Paulista Futebol Clube players São Paulo FC players América Futebol Clube (MG) players Esporte Clube Vitória managers J1 League managers Kashima Antlers managers Guarani FC managers Clube Atlético Mineiro managers Al Hilal SFC managers Al Shabab Al Arabi Club managers Al Ain FC managers Sport Club do Recife managers Association football midfielders Brazilian Roman Catholics