List of international goals scored by Zico

Arthur Antunes Coimbra (, born 3 March 1953), better known as Zico (), is a Brazilian football coach and former player who played as an attacking midfielder. Often called the "White Pelé", he was a creative playmaker, with excellent technical skills, vision and an eye for goal, who is considered one of the most clinical finishers and best passers ever, as well as one of the greatest players of all time. He is also widely regarded as the greatest Brazilian to never win the World Cup. One of the world's best players of the late 1970s and early 1980s, he is regarded as one of the best playmakers and free kick specialists in history, able to bend the ball in all directions."Kings of the free-kick"
FIFA. Retrieved 22 August 2014 As stated on goal.com, Zico is the player that scored the most goals from direct free kicks, with 101 goals.

In 1999, Zico came eighth in the FIFA Player of the Century grand jury vote, and in 2004 was named in the FIFA 100 list of the world's greatest living players. As stated by Pelé himself, considered one of the greatest players of all time, "throughout the years, the one player that came closest to me was Zico".

With 48 goals in 71 official appearances for Brazil, Zico is the fifth highest goalscorer for his national team. He represented Brazil in the 1978, 1982 and 1986 World Cups. They did not win any of those tournaments, even though the 1982 squad is considered one of the greatest Brazilian national squads ever. Zico is often considered one of the best players in football history not to have been a member of a World Cup winning squad. He was chosen as the 1981 and 1983 Player of the Year.

Zico has coached the Japanese national team, appearing in the 2006 FIFA World Cup and winning the 2004 Asian Cup, and Fenerbahçe, who were a quarter-finalist in 2007–08 in the Champions League under his command. He was announced as the head coach of CSKA Moscow in January 2009. In September 2009, Zico was signed by Greek side Olympiacos for a two-year contract after the club's previous coach, Temuri Ketsbaia, was dismissed. He was fired four months later, in January 2010. In August 2011, Zico was appointed as coach of Iraq to lead them in the 2014 FIFA World Cup qualification. He resigned on 29 November 2012.

Zico works as technical director at Kashima Antlers.

Early years

Born in 1953, Zico came from a lower-middle-class family of Portuguese origin, in the neighbourhood of Quintino Bocaiúva, Rio de Janeiro. In common with many young Brazilians, he spent much of his youth dreaming of being a professional footballer and skipped school to play football on the streets. His passion for the sport made him famous in the neighbourhood, where people would gather to see the boy's brilliant performances against older children and teenagers. At that time he was playing for ''Juventude'', a local futsal street team run by his older brothers and friends, and had also begun to play for futsal club ''River Futebol Clube'' on Sundays.

His nickname originated in Zico's own family from increasingly shortened versions of ''Arthurzinho'' ("Little Arthur") which then became ''Arthurzico'', then ''Tuzico'' and, finally, ''Zico'', a version created by his cousin Ermelinda "Linda" Rolim.

In 1967, at 14 years old, he had a scheduled trial at América, where his brothers Antunes and Edu were professional players. But on a Sunday, during a River match, Zico scored nine goals and caught the attention of radio reporter Celso Garcia, who asked Zico's father to take him to a trial at Flamengo instead. Being a Flamengo fan, Zico had his father's approval, and so began his path towards becoming one of the most admired players in the history of the sport.

Youth career

Zico was not physically strong, and his story of determination and discipline began with a tough muscle and body development program conducted by physical education teacher José Roberto Francalacci. A combination of hard work and also a special diet sponsored by his team enabled Zico to develop a strong body and become an athlete; this later proved to be essential for his success.

During 1971 and 1972, he shifted from youth to professional team and back. Coach Fleitas Solich had confidence in Zico's abilities and promoted him, on the other hand the situation changed when the Paraguayan coach left and Zagallo took over. He believed Zico to be too young and sent him back to the youth team. Things only improved for Zico when Joubert, his first coach at the youth team, was appointed the new coach for the seniors and fully promoted him after 116 matches and 81 goals in the youth team.

Club career

Flamengo (1971–1983)

While at Flamengo, Zico was a key player during the most glorious period of the team's history. Along with many other titles, in his first period at Flamengo he led the team to victory in the 1981 Copa Libertadores, the 1981 Intercontinental Cup and four national titles (1980, 1982, 1983 and 1987). On the field, Zico made goals in all imaginable ways, was also a great assister and team organiser and was known for his excellent vision of the field. He was a two-footed player and an expert at free kicks.

Udinese (1983–1985)

After receiving offers from A.S. Roma and A.C. Milan, moving to Italy seemed right and a four-million dollar proposal from Udinese was on the table. Such an amount of money made bigger clubs pressure the FIGC (Italian Football Federation) that blocked the transfer expecting financial guarantees. This caused a commotion in Udine as enraged Friulians flocked to the streets in protest against the Italian federation and the federal government. Historical reasons would make them shout "''O Zico, o Austria!''" ("Either Zico or Austria"). At the end of the controversy, the deal went through and though leaving Flamengo fans in sadness, Zico made the Friulians fans finally dream of better days.

In the 1983–84 Serie A, his first in Italy, his partnership with Franco Causio promised to take Udinese to a higher level, gaining respect from giants Juventus and Roma. His free kicks caused such an impact that TV sports programs would debate how to stop them. Despite his excellent performance, the club's season ended in disappointment as Udinese, in spite of scoring almost twice as many goals as the previous year, only gathered 32 points and was ninth in the final standing, losing three places in comparison to 1982–83. Zico scored 19 goals,Italy Championship 1983/84
one fewer than top scorer Michel Platini, having played 4 fewer matches than the French footballer due to an injury. Plus, he was voted 1983 Player of the Year by '' World Soccer Magazine''.

His following season would be punctuated by injuries and suspensions for openly attacking referees. He also used to complain about the board's lack of ambition for not signing competitive players, which made the team too dependent on him. Furthermore, Italian tax officials pressed charges against him for tax evasion. Pressured, Zico delivered an amazing display against Diego Maradona's Napoli, his last match as a ''bianconero'', and returned to Brazil and Flamengo, sponsored by a group of companies.

He became a fan favorite with his spectacular goals and is still adored now by all Udinese fans.

Back to Flamengo (1985–1989)

Only one month after returning, he suffered a severe knee injury after a violent tackle from Bangu's defender Marcio Nunes, which interrupted his career for several months, even affecting his form in the 1986 FIFA World Cup. Recovered from injuries, things improved for Zico in 1987 when he led Flamengo to the Copa União title.

December 1989 marks Zico's last official appearance for Flamengo in a Brazilian National Championship match against rivals Fluminense. Zico scored the first goal and Flamengo won the match 5–0.

Two months later, at Maracanã, he would play his last match ever as a Flamengo player facing a World Cup Masters team composed of names like Eric Gerets, Claudio Gentile, Franco Causio, Alberto Tarantini, Jorge Valdano, Mario Kempes, Paul Breitner, Karl-Heinz Rummenigge and Falcão.
With 731 matches for Flamengo, Zico is the player with the 2nd most appearances for the club. His 508 goals make him the club's top scorer ever.

The achievements of the greatest idol in Flamengo's history inspired the Brazilian singer Jorge Ben Jor to write a song in his honour – ''Camisa 10 da Gávea'' – helping create the mystique of the club's number 10.

Brief retirement

Zico represented Brazil in the World Cup of Masters, scoring in the final of the 1990 and 1991 editions.

After Brazil's first presidential election in many years, the new president Fernando Collor de Mello appointed Zico as his Minister of Sports. Zico stayed at this political assignment for about a year and his most important contribution was a piece of legislation dealing with the business side of sport teams.

Kashima Antlers (1991–1994)

In 1991, Zico interrupted his political assignment when he accepted an offer to join the Sumitomo Metals in Kashima, Ibaraki Prefecture, at the time in the second tier, to help the club secure a place in Japan's first fully professional football league that was set to officially launch in 1993 – J1 League. Zico played for Sumitomo in 1991–92, the last season before the old Japan Soccer League was disbanded, and finished as the second division's top scorer. When the new league launched, In the opening match of the J.League he scored a hat-trick in a 5–0 win over Nagoya Grampus. The small town club, promoted and rebranded Kashima Antlers, was not expected to compete with richer, more glamorous clubs like Yokohama Marinos and Verdy Kawasaki. Zico, however, helped the Antlers to win the J.League Suntory Series and a runners-up finish in its inaugural season, leading the club to cement its place among the league's elite. On 15 June 1994, he scored the final goal in his career in a 2–1 win over Júbilo Iwata.

His discipline, talent and professionalism meshed very well with Japanese culture and his influence earned him the nickname from Japanese football fans. He became a local legend in Japan for having built a contender from almost nothing and putting the city of Kashima on the map. A statue in his honor stands outside Kashima Soccer Stadium

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