Aílton José Almeida (born 20 August 1984), simply known as Aílton (), is a Brazilian former footballer who played as a forward.

Club career

Örgryte IS

He moved to F.C. Copenhagen from Swedish

Örgryte IS Örgryte Idrottssällskap, commonly referred to as Örgryte IS, Örgryte () or (especially locally) ÖIS or Öis, is a Swedish sports club based in Gothenburg. It consists of four departments, namely bowling, football, athletics and wrestling. ...

on 1 January 2007 for 22 million Danish kroner, which by then was a transfer record for a Danish club. Both F.C. Copenhagen and

Brøndby IF Brøndbyernes Idrætsforening (, usually abbreviated to Brøndby IF (), is a Danish professional Football club (association football), football club based in Brøndbyvester. Brøndby IF denotes the professional football section of Brøndbyernes ...

struggled for Almeida's signature, but after some hesitation from Brøndby IF, he ended up at F.C. Copenhagen.

F.C. Copenhagen

Scoring in his only second game for F.C. Copenhagen against Brøndby IF in one of the New Firm matches, he was considered a new star and a start of a new era for the club, which for many years had suffered from a lack of goals from the strikers. However, he did not manage to follow up on his performances, and was subsequently placed on the bench as a substitute. On 15 April 2007, Ailton scored with a

bicycle kick In association football, a bicycle kick, also known as an overhead kick or scissors kick, is an acrobatic strike where a player kicks an airborne ball rearward in midair. It is achieved by throwing the body backward up into the air and, before ...

in F.C. Copenhagen's 4–2 win over OB, which led to many people thinking his breakthrough was finally about to come, but he yet again had to see himself become a substitute. After the winter break in the 2007–08 season Aílton got a chance in the

Danish Cup The Danish Cup (; often referred to as Pokalen) is the official "single-elimination tournament, knockout" cup competition in Danish football, run by the Danish Football Association. The cup has been contested annually since 1955. The winner will ...

quarterfinals, where F.C. Copenhagen was to face Næstved BK. He scored a goal in the beginning of the second half following an assist from his countryman José Júnior. In the beginning of the 2008–09 season he had been playing regularly, becoming an important member of the starting line-up and the attacking play, however, he still had trouble finding the net. He however started against

FC Midtjylland Football Club Midtjylland (, "Central Jutland") is a Danish professional football club based in Herning and Ikast. The club is the result of a merger between Ikast FS and Herning Fremad. Midtjylland competes in the Danish Superliga, which they ...

on 16 November 2008 and scored two goals. He scored again against

Manchester City Manchester City Football Club is a professional association football, football club based in Manchester, England, that competes in the Premier League, the English football league system, top flight of Football in England, English footbal ...

in an

UEFA Cup The asterisk ( ), from Late Latin , from Ancient Greek , , "little star", is a Typography, typographical symbol. It is so called because it resembles a conventional image of a star (heraldry), heraldic star. Computer scientists and Mathematici ...

match home at Parken. During the season, he scored 11 goals in the

league League or The League may refer to: Arts and entertainment * ''Leagues'' (band), an American rock band * ''The League'', an American sitcom broadcast on FX and FXX about fantasy football * ''League of Legends'', a 2009 multiplayer online battle a ...

and 4 goals in the cup, being influential in securing the cup and the league titles. During the next season he appeared in 39 matches and scored 8 goals in all competitions, helping F.C. Copenhagen to win the

again, and reach the

knockout phase A single-elimination knockout, or sudden-death tournament is a type of elimination tournament where the loser of a match-up is immediately eliminated from the tournament. Each winner will play another in the next round, until the final match-up, w ...

of the season's

Europa League The UEFA Europa League (UEL), usually known simply as the Europa League, is an annual association football, football club competition organised since 1971 by the UEFA, Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) for eligible European footb ...

APOEL

On 28 July 2010, Aílton signed a three-year contract with APOEL. A transfer fee of

€ The euro sign () is the currency sign used for the euro, the official currency of the eurozone. The design was presented to the public by the European Commission on 12 December 1996. It consists of a stylized letter E (or epsilon), crossed by t ...

700,000 was paid to F.C. Copenhagen, which is the transfer record in the history of APOEL. He made his debut on 5 August 2010 against

FK Jablonec FK Jablonec () is a Czech Republic, Czech professional association football, football club based in Jablonec nad Nisou. The club has played in the top league of Czech football, Czech First League, since 1994. History Jablonec played its first se ...

in the

UEFA Europa League The UEFA Europa League (UEL), usually known simply as the Europa League, is an annual association football, football club competition organised since 1971 by the UEFA, Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) for eligible European footb ...

3rd qualifying round. He scored his first goal with APOEL on 26 August 2010 against

Getafe CF Getafe Club de Fútbol S.A.D. () is a Spanish professional association football, football club based in Getafe, a city in the Community of Madrid. They compete in La Liga, the top tier of the Football in Spain, Spanish football. The team has pla ...

on the UEFA Europa League play-off round, in a match which ended 1–1 after extra time. Ailton had a very good first season with APOEL. He played in all championship matches and scored 7 goals, helping his new club to win the

2010–11 Cypriot First Division The 2010–11 Cypriot First Division was the 72nd season of the Cypriot top-level football league. It began on 27 August 2010 with the first matches of the first round and will end on 11 May 2011 with the last matches of the second round. The def ...

. After the three championship titles which he won with F.C. Copenhagen, he won his fourth consecutive championship title, this time with APOEL. He was voted by

Cyprus Football Association The Cyprus Football Association (CFA) (, ) is the governing body of football in Cyprus and is based in Nicosia. It organises Cyprus's football championships, whose top league is the Cypriot First Division. It also organises the Cypriot Cup, the ...

as the player of the season (MVP) 2010–11 in the

Cypriot First Division The Cypriot First Division (), also known as the Cyprus League by Stoiximan for sponsorship reasons, is a professional association football league in Cyprus and the highest level of the Cypriot football league system. Operated by the Cyprus Fo ...

. He started the 2011–12 season in fine form, scoring 4 goals in the UEFA Champions League qualifying rounds that helped APOEL qualify for the

group stage A tournament is a competition involving at least three competitors, all participating in a sport or game. More specifically, the term may be used in either of two overlapping senses: # One or more competitions held at a single venue and concentr ...

of the

2011–12 UEFA Champions League The 2011–12 UEFA Champions League was the 57th season of Europe's premier club football tournament organised by UEFA, and the 20th season in its current Champions League format. As part of a trial that started in the 2009–10 UEFA Europa Lea ...

. In the first group stage match against

Zenit Saint Petersburg Football Club Zenit (, ), also known as Zenit Saint Petersburg or simply Zenit, is a Russian professional football club based in Saint Petersburg. Founded in 1925 (or in 1914, according to some Russian sources), the club plays in the Russian Pr ...

on 13 September 2011, he scored the winner 75 minutes in as his side came from behind to claim a 2–1 victory. On 19 October 2011, he scored the equaliser 19 minutes in as APOEL snatched a 1–1 draw at

FC Porto Futebol Clube do Porto, Order of Prince Henry, MHIH, Order of Merit (Portugal), OM (), commonly known as FC Porto or simply Porto, is a Portuguese professional sports club based in Porto. It is best known for the professional association footbal ...

. He followed up on that success by scoring from the spot in his side's 2–1 victory over

in the reverse encounter in

Nicosia Nicosia, also known as Lefkosia and Lefkoşa, is the capital and largest city of Cyprus. It is the southeasternmost of all EU member states' capital cities. Nicosia has been continuously inhabited for over 5,500 years and has been the capi ...

He also appeared in the round-of-16 triumph over

Olympique Lyonnais Olympique Lyonnais (), commonly referred to as simply Lyon () or OL, is a French professional association football, football club based in Lyon, Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes, France. With origins dating back to 1899, they were founded in 1950 and p ...

where he converted his attempt in the

penalty shootout The penalty shootout is a method of determining a winner in sports matches that would have otherwise been drawn or tied. The rules for penalty shootouts vary between sports and even different competitions; however, the usual form is similar to pe ...

. In total, he scored three goals in the group phase and seven overall in the competition, as the club reached the

quarter-finals A single-elimination knockout, or sudden-death tournament is a type of elimination tournament where the loser of a match-up is immediately eliminated from the tournament. Each winner will play another in the next round, until the final match-up, w ...

for the first time ever. He made his last two appearances for APOEL in the 2012–13 season against

Aalesunds FK Aalesunds Fotballklubb, commonly known as Aalesund or AaFK, is a Norwegian professional association football, football club from the town of Ålesund (town), Ålesund, that competes in the Norwegian first division, the second tier of the Norwegi ...

for the second qualifying round of the

2012–13 UEFA Europa League The 2012–13 UEFA Europa League was the 42nd season of Europe's secondary club football tournament organised by UEFA, and the 4th season since it was renamed from the UEFA Cup to the UEFA Europa League. The final was played at the Amsterdam Are ...

, appearing in both legs and scoring the opening goal in APOEL's 2–0 first leg home win.

Terek Grozny

On 5 September 2012, Aílton joined the Russian side Terek Grozny on a three-year contract, after he completed his transfer from APOEL for a fee reportedly in the region of , which was the transfer record for a Cypriot club. On 14 September 2012, he made his debut for Terek. He opened the score in a 2–0 away win over the reigning champions Zenit St. Petersburg.

Al-Hilal

In July 2015, he joined Al-Hilal on a one-year contract. Ailton was given Shirt #9 in the league and domestic cups and #99 in the AFC

Saudia Domestic Competitions

Hilal Winning - Saudi Super Cup 2015 Win * Ailton helped Al Hilal win the Saudi Super Cup, game played vs Derby rivals Al Nasser Club in Saudi Professional League.

2015/16 Saudi Pro League

Ailton scored 1 Goal in a Saudi Professional League's game against Al Wahda Club Club. Al Hilal Won that game 2–0. Ailton scored 1 goal in a Saudi Professional League's game against Al Fateh Club. Al Hilal Won that game 2–1.

2015 Asian Champions League

Ailton joined Hilal as they were attempting to qualify for the semi-finals of the Asian Champions League. In the quarter-finals game, Al Hilal played against Lakhwia FC of Qatar.

Quarter-finals

Ailton scored 1 goal, and Al Hilal Won 4–1 in first leg of the quarter finals. In the second leg Hilal drew with Lakhwia FC 2-2

Return to Örgryte and retirement

On 28 January 2019, Aílton returned to Örgryte IS, competing in Superettan, signing a three-year contract. On 29 September 2022, he announced his retirement from professional football.

Career statistics

Honours

Club

Copenhagen *

Danish Superliga The Danish Superliga (, ) is a professional association football league in Denmark and the highest level of the Danish football league system. The league is currently contested by 12 teams each year, with 2 teams relegated. It is the current ...

: 2006–07, 2008–09, 2009–10 *

: 2008–09 APOEL *

2010–11 1 (one, unit, unity) is a number, numeral, and glyph. It is the first and smallest positive integer of the infinite sequence of natural numbers. This fundamental property has led to its unique uses in other fields, ranging from science to sp ...

Cypriot Super Cup The Cypriot Super Cup is a Cypriot football trophy, contested in an annual match between the previous season's Cypriot First Division champions, and the Cypriot Cup winners. The match is contested at the beginning of the football season, and is ...

: 2011 Al-Hilal *

Saudi Crown Prince Cup The Saudi Crown Prince's Cup () was the oldest Saudi Arabian annual cup competition. History The cup was the oldest and first domestic football competition in Saudi Arabia; the first edition was held in 1956–57; five editions were played betwe ...

: 2015–16 *

Saudi Super Cup The Saudi Super Cup () is the annual super cup tournament in Saudi Arabian football. Founded in 2013 as a two-team competition, the Super Cup has been contested by four teams since 2022: the winners and runners-up of the King's Cup and the Sa ...

2015 2015 was designated by the United Nations as: * International Year of Light * International Year of Soil __TOC__ Events January * January 1 – Lithuania officially adopts the euro as its currency, replacing the litas, and becomes ...

Individual

Spring Profile: 2009 *

Player of the season: 2010–11

References

External links

*
Profile
at APOEL FC {{DEFAULTSORT:Ailton 1984 births Living people Brazilian men's footballers Footballers from Minas Gerais Tupi Football Club players Clube Atlético Mineiro players Örgryte IS players F.C. Copenhagen players APOEL FC players FC Akhmat Grozny players Al-Hilal Saudi FC players Al Jazira Club players Al Dhafra FC players Allsvenskan players Danish Superliga players Cypriot First Division players Russian Premier League players Saudi Pro League players UAE Pro League players Brazilian expatriate men's footballers Men's association football forwards Expatriate men's footballers in Cyprus Expatriate men's footballers in Denmark Expatriate men's footballers in Russia Expatriate men's footballers in Saudi Arabia Brazilian expatriate sportspeople in Cyprus People from Itabira 21st-century Brazilian sportsmen