Júlio César (footballer, born 1963)

Júlio César da Silva (born 8 March 1963), usually known as Júlio César, is a Brazilian former professional footballer who played as a centre-back.[1] Throughout his career, he played with multiple teams in Brazil and Europe, and also represented the Brazil national team at the 1986 FIFA World Cup, and at the 1987 Copa América.

Júlio César

Júlio César in September 2014
Personal information
Full name	Júlio César da Silva
Date of birth	8 March 1963
Place of birth	Bauru, Brazil
Height	1.89 m (6 ft 2 in)
Position(s)	Centre back
Youth career
0000–1978	Noroeste Bauru
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps	(Gls)
1979–1986	Guarani	54	(3)
1986–1987	Brest	32	(1)
1987–1990	Montpellier	93	(10)
1990–1994	Juventus	89	(3)
1994–1999	Borussia Dortmund	80	(7)
1998	→ Botafogo (loan)	16	(0)
1999	→ Panathinaikos (loan)	3	(0)
1999–2000	Werder Bremen	12	(0)
2001	Rio Branco
Total		379	(24)
National team
1986–1993	Brazil	13	(0)
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only

Club career

Born in Bauru, São Paulo, Júlio César began his career in 1979 with Brazilian club Guarani. He moved to Europe in 1986, after a successful World Cup in Mexico, spending a season with French club Stade Brestois. The following season, he played for Montpellier, where he remained for three seasons, winning the Coupe de France during his final season with the team.[2][3]

He moved to Italian club Juventus in 1990,[4] in an attempt to strengthen the club's fragile defence, making his Serie A debut on 9 September 1990, in a 2–1 away win over Parma. He remained in Turin until 1994, although, despite some solid performances, his time with the club was largely unsuccessful; his only trophy with Juventus was the UEFA Cup, which he won in 1993, under Giovanni Trapattoni.[2] In total, he made 125 appearances for Juventus, scoring six goals, two of which came in European Competitions, and three of which came during his 91 Serie A appearances.[3]

In 1994, he was purchased by German club Borussia Dortmund, where he immediately won consecutive Bundesliga and DFL-Supercup titles, during his first two seasons with the team, as well as the UEFA Champions League and the Intercontinental Cup in 1997 (though he missed the final of the former through injury).[5] He remained with the club until 1999, apart from loans to Brazilian club Botafogo in 1998, and Greek club Panathinaikos in 1999. Later that year, he joined Werder Bremen for the 1999–2000 Bundesliga season, before moving back to Brazil once again, to play for Rio Branco, in 2001, where he retired.[2]

International career

Júlio César played 13 official matches for the Brazil national team, from April 1986 to June 1993; he made his debut on 8 April 1986, in a 3–0 home win over East Germany.[2] He also played for Brazil against "The Rest of the World" in 1989 and for "The Rest of the World" against Brazil in 1990.

He played for Brazil at the 1986 FIFA World Cup in Mexico and won the Best Central Defender Award, being elected to the team of the tournament.[2][4] However, his outstanding performance in the tournament was tempered by his penalty miss against France in the memorable quarter-final in Guadalajara. With the penalty-shootout tied at 3–3, after Michel Platini's had infamously shot his spot kick over the bar, Cesar stepped up for Brazil only to see his powerful effort crash against the left post. Luis Fernández converted the next penalty and subsequently won the match for France.[6] The following year, he also represented his country at the 1987 Copa América.[7]

Style of play

Widely considered to be one of Brazil's best centre-backs, Júlio César was known for his physical strength, speed, and aerial ability, as well as his positioning, tackling, and adeptness at reading the game.[2][3][4][6] A quick, versatile, and powerful defender, with good feet, vision, and passing range, he was also capable of playing as a sweeper, a position which allowed him to contribute to his teams' attacks, and make runs into the opponent's half, where he used his aerial prowess, as well as his midfield-like elegance on the ball and technical skills, to great effect; he was also an accurate set-piece and penalty kick taker, possessing a powerful shot from distance, which made him an additional offensive threat.[2][3][4][6]

Career statistics

Club

Appearances and goals by club, season and competition

Club	Season	League			National Cup		Continental		Other		Total
		Division	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals
Guarani	1980[8]	Série A
	1981[8]	Série B
	1982[8]	Série A	17	2							17	2
	1983[8]	Série A	11	0							11	0
	1984[8]	Série B	8	0							8	0
	1985[8]	Série A	18	1							18	1
	1986[8]	Série A
	Total		54	3							54	3
Brest	1986–87[9]	French Division 1	32	1							32	1
Montpellier	1987–88[9]	French Division 1	37	5							37	5
	1988–89[9]	French Division 1	26	1			2	0			28	1
	1989–90[9]	French Division 1	30	4							30	4
	Total		93	10			2	0			95	10
Juventus	1990–91[9]	Serie A	29	1	4	0	8	2	1[lower-alpha 1]	0	42	3
	1991–92[9]	Serie A	33	1	7	1	0	0	0	0	40	2
	1992–93[9]	Serie A	16	1	3	0	7	0	0	0	26	1
	1993–94[9]	Serie A	11	0	2	0	4	0	0	0	17	1
	Total		89	3	16	1	19	2	1	0	125	6
Borussia Dortmund	1994–95[9]	Bundesliga	25	1	2	1	10	1	0	0	37	3
	1995–96[9]	Bundesliga	23	2	3	0	6	0	1[lower-alpha 2]	1	33	3
	1996–97[9]	Bundesliga	10	3	1	0	4	0	0	0	15	3
	1997–98[9]	Bundesliga	17	1	0	0	7	0	2[lower-alpha 3]	0	26	1
	1998–99[9]	Bundesliga	5	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	5	0
	Total		80	7	6	1	27	1	3	1	116	10
Botafogo (loan)	1998[8]	Série A	16	0							16	0
Panathinaikos (loan)	1998–99[9]	Alpha Ethniki	3	0							3	0
Werder Bremen	1999–2000[9]	Bundesliga	12	0	2	0	6	0	0	0	20	0
Rio Branco	2001[8]	Série C
Career total			379	24	24	2	54	3	4	1	461	30

1. Appearance in Supercoppa Italiana
2. Appearance in DFB-Supercup
3. One appearance in DFB-Ligapokal, one appearance in FIFA Club World Cup

International

Appearances and goals by national team and year[8]

National team	Year	Apps	Goals
Brazil	1986	6	0
	1987	3	0
	1988	0	0
	1989	1	0
	1990	0	0
	1991	1	0
	1992	0	0
	1993	2	0
Total		13	0

Honours

Club

Montpellier[2]

• Coupe de France: 1989–90

Juventus[2]

• UEFA Cup : 1992–93

Borussia Dortmund[2]

• Bundesliga; 1994–95, 1995–96
• UEFA Champions League: 1996–97
• Intercontinental Cup: 1997
• DFL-Supercup: 1995, 1996

Individual

• FIFA World Cup All-Star Team: 1986[4][6]
• kicker Bundesliga-best defender: 1995
• FIFA XI: 1999[10]

References

1. "Julio Cesar" (in German). kicker.de. Retrieved 5 March 2011.
2. Darwin Pastorin. "JULIO CESAR" (in Italian). Treccani: Enciclopedia dello Sport (2002). Retrieved 13 February 2016.
3. Stefano Bedeschi (8 March 2015). "Gli eroi in bianconero: JULIO CESAR" (in Italian). Tutto Juve. Retrieved 13 February 2016.
4. "'AGNELLI, NON FALLIRO' '" (in Italian). La Repubblica. 28 July 1990. Retrieved 13 February 2016.
5. "Borussia Dortmund In The 96/97 UEFA Champions League". byfarthegreatestteam.com. 6 May 2017. Retrieved 8 July 2019.
6. GIANNI MURA (28 June 1986). "DA PFAFF A VALDANO ECCO I MR. UNIVERSO" (in Italian). La Repubblica. Retrieved 13 February 2016.
7. Martín Tabeira (22 August 2008). "Copa América 1987". RSSSF. Retrieved 13 February 2016.
8. "Júlio César". National Football Teams. Retrieved 5 February 2021.
9. "Júlio César » Club matches". worldfootball.net. Retrieved 5 February 2021.
10. FIFA XI´s Matches - Full Info Archived 17 November 2015 at the Wayback Machine

External links

• Júlio César at National-Football-Teams.com
• Julio Cesar da Silva at fussballdaten.de (in German)