Renato Dirnei Florêncio Santos (born 15 May 1979), known simply as Renato, is a Brazilian former professional

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, rugby lea ...

. A

central midfielder In the sport of association football, a midfielder takes an Glossary of association football terms#O, outfield position primarily in the middle of the pitch. Midfielders may play an exclusively defensive role, breaking up attacks, and are in t ...

with good heading ability in spite of a small frame, he played most of his professional career in Spain with

Sevilla Seville ( ; , ) is the capital and largest city of the Spanish autonomous community of Andalusia and the province of Seville. It is situated on the lower reaches of the River Guadalquivir, in the southwest of the Iberian Peninsula. Seville ...

, appearing in 286 official games with the club (39 goals scored). A Brazilian international during two years, Renato was part of the squads that won

one 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 ...

Copa América The CONMEBOL Copa América (; known until 1975 as the South American Football Championship), often simply called the Copa America, is the top men's quadrennial association football, football tournament contested among list of men's national ass ...

and

Confederations Cup The FIFA Confederations Cup was an international association football tournament for men's national teams, held every four years by FIFA. It was contested by the holders of each of the six Continental football championships, continental champions ...

Club career

Guarani

Renato was born in Santa Mercedes,

São Paulo São Paulo (; ; Portuguese for 'Paul the Apostle, Saint Paul') is the capital of the São Paulo (state), state of São Paulo, as well as the List of cities in Brazil by population, most populous city in Brazil, the List of largest cities in the ...

. Known as ''Renatinho'' during his beginnings, he was a

Guarani FC Guarani Futebol Clube, colloquially called Guarani, is a Brazilian association football club in Campinas, São Paulo. Guarani is the only club not based in a state capital or coastal city to have won the top tier of the Brazilian Championsh ...

youth graduate, and made his senior debut on 17 April 1996 when he started in a 1–0

Campeonato Paulista The Campeonato Paulista Série A1, commonly known as Campeonato Paulista, nicknamed Paulistão, is the top-flight professional state football league in the Brazilian state of São Paulo. Run by the São Paulo State Football Federation (FPF), ...

home loss against

São Paulo FC São Paulo Futebol Clube () is a professional Association football, football club in the Morumbi, São Paulo, Morumbi district of São Paulo, Brazil. It plays in Campeonato Paulista, São Paulo (state), São Paulo's premier State football lea ...

. He scored his first professional goal on 6 September 1998, netting the first in a 2–0 home win over

Sport Club Internacional Sport Club Internacional (), commonly known as Internacional, Inter de Porto Alegre, a cidade do Grêmio or simply Inter, is a Brazilian professional Association football, football club based in Porto Alegre. They play in the Campeonato Bras ...

Santos

In June 2000, Renato moved to fellow top-level club

Santos FC Santos Futebol Clube () is a Brazilian sports club based in Vila Belmiro, a ''bairro'' in the city of Santos, São Paulo, Santos. It plays in the Campeonato Paulista, the São Paulo (state), state of São Paulo's premier State football lea ...

for a R$2 million fee. He made his competitive debut on 2 August, starting in a 2–0 home success over

Esporte Clube Vitória Esporte Clube Vitória () is a Brazilian professional club based in Salvador, Bahia, Salvador, Bahia founded on 13 May 1899. It competes in the Campeonato Brasileiro Série A, as well as in the Campeonato Baiano, the top flight of the Bahia St ...

. Renato scored his first goal for the ''Fish'' on 7 February 2001, netting the first in a 3–0 home win against

CR Vasco da Gama Club de Regatas Vasco da Gama (; English: Vasco da Gama Club of Rowing), commonly referred to as Vasco da Gama or simply Vasco, is a sports club based in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Although originally a rowing club and then a multi-sport club, Va ...

for the Torneio Rio–São Paulo championship. He added a further five during the campaign, being a regular starter. In 2003, Renato scored a career-best nine goals in the year's ''Brasileirão'', and was also an ever-present figure for the team in their

Copa Libertadores The CONMEBOL Libertadores, also known as Copa Libertadores de América (), is an annual continental club football competition organized by CONMEBOL since 1960. It is the highest level of competition in South American club football. The tournam ...

run.

Sevilla

On 7 July 2004, Renato signed a five-year contract with

Sevilla FC Sevilla Fútbol Club () is a Spanish professional association football, football club based in Seville, Andalusia, that competes in La Liga, the Spanish football league system, top flight of Spanish football. The club was formed on 25 January ...

from Spain, aged 25. Alongside compatriots Adriano and Daniel Alves, as well as several club youth graduates, he would play an essential part in the

Andalusia Andalusia ( , ; , ) is the southernmost autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community in Peninsular Spain, located in the south of the Iberian Peninsula, in southwestern Europe. It is the most populous and the second-largest autonomou ...

ns'

La Liga The Campeonato Nacional de Liga de Primera División, commonly known as the Primera División or La Liga, and officially known as LaLiga EA Sports for sponsorship reasons, is a professional association football league in Spain and the highest ...

consolidation, making his competition debut on 29 August: after just one minute on the pitch, in the start of the second half of the home fixture against

Albacete Balompié Albacete Balompié is a List of football clubs in Spain, Spanish football team based in Albacete, in the autonomous community of Castile–La Mancha. Founded on 5 July 1939, it currently plays in Segunda División, the second tier of Spanish foo ...

, he scored the game's only goal. From 2005 to 2007, Renato played 16

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 ...

games in both seasons combined, as Sevilla won the tournament twice in a row. His only goal was a decisive one, as he scored in the 2–0 home win against CA Osasuna in the second leg of the semi-finals of the 2006–07 edition (2–1 on aggregate); he was also utilized in both finals. In the 2008–09 season, Renato netted eight times in 32 matches to help the side finish in third position. Four of those came from December 2008 to January 2009, against

Real Madrid Real Madrid Club de Fútbol (), commonly referred to as Real Madrid, is a Spanish professional Football club (association football), football club based in Madrid. The club competes in La Liga, th ...

(4–3 win, away),

Villarreal CF Villarreal Club de Fútbol, Sociedad Anónima Deportiva, S.A.D., usually abbreviated to Villarreal CF, is a Spanish professional association football, football club based in Villarreal, in the Province of Castellón, Castellón province of easte ...

(1–0, at home),

Deportivo de La Coruña Real Club Deportivo de La Coruña (), commonly known as Deportivo La Coruña () or simply Depor, is a Spanish professional association football, football club based in the city of A Coruña, Galicia, that competes in the Segunda División, the ...

(3–1 triumph, away) and

CD Numancia Club Deportivo Numancia de Soria, S.A.D. is a Spanish football club in Soria, in the autonomous community of Castile and León. Founded on 9 April 1945, it plays in , holding home games at '' Nuevo Estadio Los Pajaritos''. Besides football it ...

(1–0, at home). On 4 October 2009, Renato scored through a header in a 2–1 home win against Real Madrid. He contributed with 33 games and four goals to Sevilla's fourth-place finish, with the subsequent

qualification Qualification may refer to: Processes * Qualifications-Based Selection (QBS), a competitive contract procurement process established by the United States Congress * Process qualification, ensures that manufacturing and production processes can ...

to the

UEFA Champions League The UEFA Champions League (UCL) is an annual club association football competition organised by the UEFA, Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) that is contested by List of top-division football clubs in UEFA countries, top-divisio ...

; at the end of the campaign he extended his link to the club for a further year, until June 2012.

Botafogo

On 26 May 2011, Renato cut ties with Sevilla by mutual agreement and signed a three-year contract with

Botafogo de Futebol e Regatas Botafogo de Futebol e Regatas (; ''Botafogo Football and Rowing'') is a Brazilian sports club based in the neighborhood of Botafogo, in the city of Rio de Janeiro. Although it competes in a number of different sports, Botafogo is mostly known ...

. He was a regular starter during his first two years at the club, forming a strong midfield unit alongside internationals Nicolás Lodeiro and

Clarence Seedorf Clarence Clyde Seedorf (; born 1 April 1976) is a Dutch former professional Association football, football manager and player. He is regarded by many as one of the greatest midfielders of all time. He is currently working primarily remotely as ...

, but later served as a backup to

Gabriel In the Abrahamic religions (Judaism, Christianity, Islam), Gabriel ( ) is an archangel with the power to announce God's will to mankind, as the messenger of God. He is mentioned in the Hebrew Bible, the New Testament and the Quran. Many Chris ...

; he was also marred by injuries during the 2013 season.

Santos return

On 13 May 2014, Renato left Botafogo and returned to Santos, signing a deal until the end of the campaign. He was named among the substitutes two days later, but remained unused during the 4–2 home win against Princesa do Solimões Esporte Clube. After struggling with injuries, Renato was mainly used as a backup to Arouca and Alison, playing as a

defensive midfielder In the sport of association football, a midfielder takes an outfield position primarily in the middle of the pitch. Midfielders may play an exclusively defensive role, breaking up attacks, and are in that case known as defensive midfielders. ...

. On 13 January 2015, despite appearing in only 14 matches after his return, he renewed his contract for a further year. On 1 March 2015, Renato scored his first goal after his return, netting his team's second in a 4–2 home win over Clube Atlético Linense. He was a regular starter during the season, partnering Thiago Maia and contributing with 53 appearances and two goals. On 13 April 2016, aged already 36, Renato agreed to an extension with Santos until the end of 2017. The following 27 January, after being an ever-present figure during the year, he renewed his contract until December 2018. On 18 September 2018, Renato was announced the new

director of football A sporting director, or director of sport, is an senior management, executive management position in a sports club. The role is well known as a manager role for European football clubs, which are sometime also "sports clubs", offering many typ ...

of Santos in immediate effect, whilst acting also as a player until the expiration of his contract. He announced his retirement on 24 November, and played his last match hours later, after replacing goalscorer

late into a 3–2 home win against Atlético Mineiro; he represented the club in 425 matches, scoring 33 goals and winning four titles.

International career

Renato made his debut for

Brazil Brazil, officially the Federative Republic of Brazil, is the largest country in South America. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by area, fifth-largest country by area and the List of countries and dependencies by population ...

in 2003, being picked for the squads at the 2004 Copa América and the

2005 FIFA Confederations Cup The 2005 FIFA Confederations Cup association football, football tournament was the seventh FIFA Confederations Cup. It was held in Germany between 15 June and 29 June 2005, as a prelude to the 2006 FIFA World Cup. The tournament was won by 2002 FI ...

: in the former he played all six matches – all minutes – and made five substitute appearances in the latter, with the national side winning both competitions.

Career statistics

Club

International

Honours

Santos *

Campeonato Brasileiro Série A The Campeonato Brasileiro Série A (; English: "Brazilian Championship A Series"), commonly referred to as the Brasileirão (; English: "Big Brazilian" or "Great Brazilian"), the Série A or the Brazilian Série A (to distinguish it from the I ...

2002 The effects of the September 11 attacks of the previous year had a significant impact on the affairs of 2002. The war on terror was a major political focus. Without settled international law, several nations engaged in anti-terror operation ...

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 60 ...

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 ...

2016 2016 was designated as: * International Year of Pulses by the sixty-eighth session of the United Nations General Assembly. * International Year of Global Understanding (IYGU) by the International Council for Science (ICSU), the Internationa ...

Copa do Brasil The Copa do Brasil () is a knockout football competition played by 92 teams, representing all 26 Brazilian states plus the Federal District. It is the Brazilian domestic cup and it is the Brazilian equivalent of the FA Cup, Taça de Portugal, ...

runner-up:

Sevilla *

Copa del Rey The , commonly known as , or (in English) the Spanish Cup or King's Cup, and formerly known as Copa del Presidente de la República (1932–1936) and Copa del Generalísimo (1939–1976), is an annual knockout football competition in Spanis ...

: 2006–07, 2009–10 *

Supercopa de España The Supercopa de España, also known as the Spanish Super Cup, is a super cup tournament in Football in Spain, Spanish football. Founded in 1982 Supercopa de España, 1982 as a two-team competition, the current version has been contested since 2 ...

2007 2007 was designated as the International Heliophysical Year and the International Polar Year. Events January * January 1 **Bulgaria and Romania 2007 enlargement of the European Union, join the European Union, while Slovenia joins the Eur ...

: 2005–06, 2006–07 *

UEFA Super Cup The UEFA Super Cup is an annual super cup Association football, football match organised by UEFA and contested by the winners of the two main European club competitions: the UEFA Champions League and UEFA Europa League. The competition's offic ...

2006 2006 was designated as the International Year of Deserts and Desertification. Events January * January 1– 4 – Russia temporarily cuts shipment of natural gas to Ukraine during a price dispute. * January 12 – A stampede during t ...

Botafogo *

Campeonato Carioca The Campeonato Carioca (Carioca Championship), officially known as Campeonato Estadual do Rio de Janeiro (Rio de Janeiro State Championship), also commonly known as the Cariocão, is the top-flight professional state football league in the Br ...

2013 2013 was the first year since 1987 to contain four unique digits (a span of 26 years). 2013 was designated as: *International Year of Water Cooperation *International Year of Quinoa Events January * January 5 – 2013 Craig, Alask ...

Brazil *

FIFA Confederations Cup The FIFA Confederations Cup was an international association football tournament for men's national teams, held every four years by FIFA. It was contested by the holders of each of the six continental championships ( AFC, CAF, CONCACAF, CONMEBO ...

2005 2005 was designated as the International Year for Sport and Physical Education and the International Year of Microcredit. The beginning of 2005 also marked the end of the International Decade of the World's Indigenous Peoples, Internationa ...

Individual * Bola de Prata: 2003

References

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Renato 1979 births Living people Footballers from São Paulo (state) Brazilian men's footballers Men's association football midfielders Campeonato Brasileiro Série A players Guarani FC players Santos FC players Botafogo de Futebol e Regatas players La Liga players Sevilla FC players UEFA Europa League–winning players Brazil men's international footballers 2004 Copa América players 2005 FIFA Confederations Cup players Copa América–winning players FIFA Confederations Cup–winning players Santos FC non-playing staff Brazilian expatriate men's footballers Expatriate men's footballers in Spain Brazilian expatriate sportspeople in Spain