Mané Garrincha

Manuel Francisco dos Santos (28 October 1933 – 20 January 1983), nicknamed Mané Garrincha, best known as simply Garrincha (, "little bird"), was a Brazilian professional footballer who played as a right winger. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest players of all time, and by many, one of the greatest dribblers ever.

Garrincha played a vital role in Brazil's 1958 and 1962 World Cup victories. In 1962, when Pelé was injured, Garrincha led Brazil to a World Cup victory with a dominating performance throughout the tournament. He also became the first player to win the Golden Ball (Player of the tournament), Golden Boot (Leading Goalscorer) and the World Cup in the same tournament. He was also named in the World Cup All-Star Teams of both 1958 World Cup and 1962 World Cup. In 1994, he was named in the FIFA World Cup All-Time Team. Brazil never lost a match while fielding both Garrincha and Pelé."Remembering the genius of Garrincha"
BBC. Retrieved 8 December 2013 In 1999, he came seventh in the FIFA Player of the Century grand jury vote. He is a member of the World Team of the 20th Century, and was inducted into the Brazilian Football Hall of Fame.World All-Time Teams
rsssf.org. Retrieved 9 May 2014 Due to his immense popularity in Brazil, he was also called ''Alegria do Povo'' (People's Joy) and ''Anjo de Pernas Tortas'' (Bent-Legged Angel).

At club level, Garrincha played the majority of his professional career for the Brazilian team Botafogo. In the Maracanã Stadium, the home team room is known as "Garrincha"."Garrincha, the never forgotten genius of Brazilian football"
. World Soccer. In the capital Brasília, the Estádio Nacional Mané Garrincha is named after him. He is credited for inspiring the first bullfighting chants of olé to be used at football grounds.Ruy Castro (2013). "Garrincha: The Triumph and Tragedy of Brazil's Forgotten Footballing Hero" p.89. Random House

Early life

Garrincha was born in Pau Grande, a district of Magé, in the state of Rio de Janeiro, in 1933. He was born with his right leg 6 centimetres shorter than his left, also his left leg turned outwards and his right turned inwards, leading one doctor to certify him as crippled as a child.

His father was an alcoholic, drinking cachaça heavily, a problem which Garrincha would inherit. A boy with a carefree attitude, he was smaller than other kids his age, with his sister Rosa noticing he was as small as a little bird she started calling him Garrincha, the north-eastern name for the wren, a little brown bird.Ruy Castro. P. 19 The name stuck and by the age of four years he was known as Garrincha to his family and friends. Garrincha was also known as Mané (short for ''Manuel'') by his friends. The combined ''Mané Garrincha'' is common among fans in Brazil.

Garrincha was known amongst footballing scouts but did not arrive in professional football until his late teens; he had no interest in a professional career despite his immense talent.

Garrincha's younger brother, Jimmy dos Santos, played 20 games for Série A side CR Vasco da Gama in 1959.

Club career

Garrincha was already married and a parent when he signed for Botafogo in 1953. Team officials were ecstatic to learn that he was over 18 and able to be treated as a professional. In his first training session, he demonstrated his extraordinary skills by dribbling the ball through the legs of Nílton Santos, a Brazilian international defender and defensive midfielder who had 16 international caps. Santos was so impressed with the young Garrincha, he asked that Botafogo sign him. He played in a 5–0 win for Botafogo's reserves and then scored a hat trick on his first-team début against Bonsucesso on 19 July 1953.

Garrincha continued to play brilliantly, but Brazil had other talented players in his position, notably Julinho and together with a new European style of play centered on teamwork, he was not named in the squad for the 1954 World Cup. He helped Botafogo win the Campeonato Carioca in 1957 by scoring 20 goals in 26 games finishing second in the league scoring charts and this convinced the national team selectors to name him to the 1958 World Cup squad. After the 1962 World Cup, Garrincha returned to Rio and carried Botafogo to victory in the 1962 ''Campeonato Carioca'' final against Flamengo. Garrincha played for Botafogo for 12 years, the bulk of his professional career. He won the ''Campeonato Carioca'' three times with them, scored 232 goals in 581 matches, and became a symbol of the history of the club.

In 1966, with his career declining, he was sold to Corinthians. Two years later, he signed for Colombian team Atlético Junior. The same year he went back to Brazil and joined Flamengo, where he would stay until 1969. In 1971, there were rumours that Garrincha, 38, would join French club Red Star, but he never signed and stayed in Brazil. "Garrincha to Red Star!"
– allezredstar.com

An entertainer renowned for his dribbling skills in taking on opposing players, Garrincha inspiring the first bullfighting chants of olé to be used at football grounds; during a 1958 club game for Botafogo he gave a footballing lesson to River Plate defender Vairo, constantly teasing, feinting and going past him to ole's from the crowd, and when he "forgot" the ball and sprinted away with Vairo running after him the chants of olés changed to laughter. Garrincha's professional career as a footballer lasted until 1972, when he played for Olaria, but he played occasional exhibition matches until 1982.

Garrincha was subject to numerous transfer attempts by rich European clubs like Juventus of Turin, Italy who tried to sign him in 1954. Real Madrid of Spain tried to sign him in 1959 after some stunning performances by him on a tour of Europe. Inter Milan, AC Milan and Juventus of Italy considered jointly signing him in 1963 (he would have to spend a season with each); a deal that would have been unique in football.

International career

Garrincha played 50 international matches for Brazil between 1955 and 1966, and was a starter for the national team in the 1958, 1962 and 1966 World Cups. Brazil lost only one match with him on the pitch, against Hungary at the 1966 World Cup. This was the last time Garrincha played in National team. Pelé did not play the game against Hungary, and thus Brazil never lost when Garrincha and Pelé were in the same lineup.

His first cap was against Chile in Rio de Janeiro in 1955. He played two matches at the Copa América of 1957 and four in the 1959 edition, Brazil finished runners up in both editions.

1958 World Cup

On 29 May, ten days before the 1958 World Cup finals started, Garrincha scored one of his most famous goals, against Fiorentina in Italy. He beat four defenders and the goalkeeper, before stopping on the goal line. Rather than kicking the ball into the open goal, he then dribbled past the returning Enzo Robotti to score. Despite his stunning performance his coaches were upset at what they considered an irresponsible move and this likely led to Garrincha not being picked for Brazil's first two matches of the 1958 tournament. However, he did start their third match against the USSR; this match marked the debut of both Garrincha and Pelé (although Garrincha was seven years older than Pele, both being born in October, respectively in 1933 and in 1940). The Soviets were one of the favourites for the tournament, and the Brazilians had been nervous about playing them. Their manager, Vicente Feola, decided to attack directly from the kickoff. Garrincha received the ball on the right wing, beat three opposing players and took a shot which hit the post. With the match still less than a minute old, he set up a chance for Pelé, who hit the crossbar, and continually caused problems for the Soviet defence. Brazil were so impressive in the opening moments that the game's start is often referred to as "the best three minutes of football of all time". Brazil won the match 2–0.

Following the Brazilians' narrow 1–0 quarter-final win against Wales on 19 June 1958, Mel Hopkins

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