Leandro Damião

Leandro Damião da Silva dos Santos (Brazilian Portuguese: [leˈɐ̃dɾu daˈmjɐ̃w]; born 22 July 1989), known as Leandro Damião or simply Damião, is a Brazilian professional footballer who plays as a striker for Japanese club Kawasaki Frontale. He has been capped at international level by Brazil.

In this Portuguese name, the first or maternal family name is da Silva and the second or paternal family name is dos Santos.
Leandro Damião
Damião playing for Internacional in 2013
Personal information
Full name Leandro Damião da Silva dos Santos
Date of birth (1989-07-22) 22 July 1989[1]
Place of birth Jardim Alegre, Brazil
Height 1.88 m (6 ft 2 in)[2]
Position(s) Striker
Youth career
Atlético Ibirama
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2007–2009 Atlético Ibirama 18 (8)
2007 → XV de Indaial (loan)
2008 → Marcílio Dias (loan) 2 (0)
2008 → Cidade Azul (loan) 0 (0)
2009 → Internacional B (loan) 0 (0)
2009–2013 Internacional 150 (73)
2014–2018 Santos 39 (11)
2015 → Cruzeiro (loan) 35 (13)
2016 → Real Betis (loan) 3 (0)
2016–2017 → Flamengo (loan) 22 (5)
2017–2018 → Internacional (loan) 35 (11)
2019– Kawasaki Frontale 118 (50)
International career
2012 Brazil U23 5 (6)
2011–2013 Brazil 17 (3)
Medal record
Representing  Brazil
Men's Football
Silver medal – second place2012 LondonTeam Competition
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 15:07, 5 July 2023 (UTC)

Club career

Early career

Damião began his career as a midfielder, playing for local teams in Jardim Alegre, Paraná.[3] Having failed a trial as a midfielder at Atlético Ibirama, he had a new opportunity as a striker and was signed by team.

Known as Leandrão at the time, Damião was first loaned to XV de Outubro de Indaial in 2007,[4] before playing the 2008 Campeonato Brasileiro Série C for Marcílio Dias;[5] he would later join Cidade Azul in the same year.[6] Back to Atlético Ibirama, he scored eight goals in the 2009 Campeonato Catarinense and was transferred to Internacional, initially for the under-20 team.[7][8]

Internacional

At Internacional, he won three titles with the club's under-20 side and earned a call-up to the B team.[3] He scored twice in his Campeonato Gaúcho debut and was then called up to the first team for their 2010 Copa Libertadores campaign. Damião won his first major title in August 2010 when he helped Internacional defeat Guadalajara in the Copa Libertadores Finals.[9] He scored the club's second goal in their second leg victory in Porto Alegre to win the competition 5–3 on aggregate.[10] His performances at the Porto Alegre club earned him a place in the Brazil national football team and praise from Ronaldo, also drawing the interest of European clubs.

"Leandro Damiao, from Internacional de Porto Alegre. He's tall, strong, a very good goalscorer, a threat in the air and skilful with both feet. He'll play a big part in 2014."

Ronaldo, when asked to apply "the new Ronaldo" tag to one of the current Seleção crop by FIFA.com.[11]

During the 2013 summer, he had offers from English side Tottenham Hotspur[12] and Italian club Napoli.[13] He was close to join the Italian side, but the deal fell through because "sponsorship contracts made it impossible".[14] Even though the club bought Gonzalo Higuaín after failing to land the Brazilian striker, Napoli chairman Aurelio De Laurentiis later stated that Rafa Benítez wanted Damião instead of Higuaín.[15]

Santos

After a season below standards with Internacional (only 13 goals in nearly 50 matches), Damião signed a five-year deal[16] with fellow top-divisioner Santos FC in December, who paid a R$ 41 million fee, supported by investors, to bring Damião to Vila Belmiro.[17] He was presented on 9 January of the following year.[18] It was the highest fee ever paid by a Brazilian club to sign a national player,[19] only behind the R$60.5 million that brought Carlos Tevez to Corinthians.[20]

Damião made his Santos debut on 6 February 2014, starting in a 2–1 away win over Linense, scoring a goal which was later disallowed due to offside.[21] He scored his first goal for Peixe on the 20th, netting his side's first of a 2–1 away success over Atlético Sorocaba; eight days later he netted his second, the last of a 5–0 home thrashing of Bragantino.

Despite scoring five goals in 13 appearances as Santos came second in the league, Damião was hugely criticised due to his lack of agility and pace, plus his inability to score on a regular basis. He only scored more than one goal with a Santos shirt on 30 November, netting both goals in a 2–0 home win against Botafogo.

Cruzeiro (loan)

On 29 December 2014, after lengthy negotiations, Damião was loaned to league champions Cruzeiro, in a season-long deal, after a largely disappointing year at Santos.[22] He was the top goalscorer of 2015 Campeonato Mineiro with nine goals, but had a disappointing 2015 Campeonato Brasileiro Série A with only four goals scored.[23]

Battle in court

In 2015, Damião took legal action against Santos to terminate his contract after failing to receive payment for his image rights for three months and was granted the release of his contract in December 2015.[24] The decision was overturned the following month, with the fee of 200 million (reais for any national transfer and euros for any international) being activated if he were to sign for another club.[25]

On 7 January 2016, Damião was again declared a free agent,[26] but on 26 January, after being on the verge of signing for Spanish club Real Betis for a fee of R$65 million.[27]

An agreement was reached between Damião and Santos on 30 January 2016, as the player was attempting to sign with Real Betis. On 1 February 2016, the Spanish club pulled out of the deal that would bring him on an 18-month loan, leaving the player as a free agent.[28]

Betis

On 4 February 2016, after a turnover in the club's board which involved the president's resignation, Damião signed a six-month deal with Betis with a buyout clause set on €12 million.[29] He made his La Liga debut 23 days later, replacing Jorge Molina after 56 minutes of an eventual 2–2 draw against Rayo Vallecano at the Estadio Benito Villamarín.[30]

Flamengo (loan)

On 14 July 2016 Flamengo signed Damião from Santos on a one-year loan deal.[31]

Internacional (loan)

After his loan with Flamengo ended, Damião returned on loan to Internacional, who were at the time out of promotion spots in the 2017 Campeonato Brasileiro Série B.[32][33] He scored 8 times in the competition[34] and helped Internacional to return to the first division after finishing in second place.[35] He stayed with Internacional in 2018, helping the team finish third in the 2018 Campeonato Brasileiro Série A and scoring 10 goals in the competition, just one less than teammate Nico López.[36] Damião scored a total of 19 goals in his second spell at Internacional, reaching a total of 109 goals scored for the club and becoming the team's 10th best all-time top scorer.[37]

On 11 December 2018, Internacional announced that Damião would not remain at the club after the player received an "irrefusable" offer from a Japanese club.[38]

Kawasaki Frontale

On 14 December 2018, Kawasaki Frontale announced the signing of Leandro Damião in a one-year contract for the 2019 season.[39] On 10 March 2019 Damião scored his first goal for the club against Yokohama F. Marinos, also achieving a brace.[40] He scored 13 goals in the 2020 J.League campaign and helped the Frontale to win the J.League title.[41] On 1 January 2021, he assisted Kaoru Mitoma's match winning goal in a 1–0 victory over Gamba Osaka in the final of the 2020 Emperor's Cup.[42] On 8 July, he scored a hat-trick in an AFC Champions League match against Daegu FC.[43] He became the J.League's joint top scorer in the 2021 J.League campaign with 23 goals,[44] winning the J.League MVP Award.[45]

International career

Damião was given his first call-up to the Brazil national team in March 2011 for the friendly against Scotland after Alexandre Pato withdrew from the squad due to injury. "I'm taking advantage of the circumstances to summon a player who has been playing well with Internacional and is young enough to play in the Olympics," said head coach Mano Menezes.[46] He won his first cap in the match at the Emirates Stadium in London, which Brazil won 2–0.[47][48]

Damião scored his first goal for Brazil in a 1–0 friendly win against Ghana on 5 September at Craven Cottage.[49] He also represented Brazil at the 2012 Olympic football tournament in London, being the tournament's top scorer with six goals in five appearances as Brazil finished runners-up to Mexico.[50]

Career statistics

Club
As of 5 July 2023[1]
Appearances and goals by club, season and competition
Club Season League State league National cup Continental Other Total
DivisionAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoals
Atlético Ibirama 2008[8] Catarinense —20———20
2009 —168———168
Total —188———188
Marcílio Dias (loan) 2008 Série C 20————20
Cidade Azul (loan) 2008[6] Catarinense ————6[lower-alpha 1]060
Internacional B 2009 — ————22[lower-alpha 2]112211
Internacional 2010 Série A 25784—111[lower-alpha 3]03512
2011 28141317—842[lower-alpha 4]35138
2012 1971411—106—4324
2013 26517850——4813
Total 983352405019113317787
Santos 2014 Série A 26613550——4411
Cruzeiro (loan) 2015 2341292194—4618
Real Betis (loan) 2015–16 La Liga 30————30
Flamengo (loan) 2016 Série A 152——10—162
2017 73104203110238
Total 2251042041103910
Internacional (loan) 2017 Série B 178————178
2018 Série A 14340—21—204
Total 3111400021003712
Kawasaki Frontale 2019 J1 League 2395[lower-alpha 5]1106[lower-alpha 6]21[lower-alpha 7]13613
2020 34131[lower-alpha 5]141——3915
2021 35232[lower-alpha 5]1515[lower-alpha 6]61[lower-alpha 7]04831
2022 23500303[lower-alpha 6]21[lower-alpha 7]0307
2023 3000300[lower-alpha 6]00[lower-alpha 7]060
Total 118508316214103116066
Career total 324991176930348273015554221
  1. Appearances in Copa Santa Catarina
  2. Appearances in Copa FGF
  3. Appearance in FIFA Club World Cup
  4. Appearances in Recopa Sudamericana
  5. Appearances in J.League Cup
  6. Appearances in AFC Champions League
  7. Appearance in Japanese Super Cup

International
As of 2 June 2013[51]
Appearances and goals by national team and year
National teamYearAppsGoals
Brazil 201141
2012101
201331
Total173
Scores and results list Brazil's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Damião goal.
List of international goals scored by Leandro Damião
No. Date Venue Opponent Score Result Competition
15 September 2011Craven Cottage, London, England Ghana1–01–0Friendly
215 August 2012Råsunda Stadium, Solna Municipality, Sweden Sweden1–03–0Friendly
36 April 2013Estadio Ramón Tahuichi Aguilera, Santa Cruz de la Sierra, Bolivia Bolivia1–04–0Friendly

Honours

Internacional B

Internacional

Flamengo

Kawasaki Frontale

Brazil U23

Brazil

Individual

References
  1. "Leandro Damião da Silva dos Santos". Soccerway. Global Sports Media. Retrieved 19 July 2011.
  2. "Leandro Damiao" (in Japanese). Kawasaki Frontale. Retrieved 22 September 2022.
  3. "Leandro Damiao: I've achieved my dream". FIFA. 21 April 2011. Archived from the original on 24 April 2011. Retrieved 28 June 2011.
  4. "Leandro Damião, o inicio da sua carreira!" [Leandro Damião, the start of his career] (in Brazilian Portuguese). SD XV de Outubro. 13 December 2011. Retrieved 28 November 2021.
  5. "Marcílio Dias apresenta seis reforços para a Série C" [Marcílio Dias present six additions for the Série C] (in Brazilian Portuguese). NSC Total. 21 May 2008. Retrieved 28 November 2021.
  6. "De Leandrão a Leandro Damião…" [From Leandrão to Leandro Damião] (in Brazilian Portuguese). NotiSul. 2 September 2021. Retrieved 28 November 2021.
  7. "Trajetória" [Career] (in Portuguese). Leandro Damião. Archived from the original on 8 April 2015. Retrieved 3 February 2016.
  8. "Leandro Damião: de desconhecido no Inter, ao atleta que conquistou o Brasil" [Leandro Damião: from an unknown at Inter, to the athlete who has conquered Brazil] (in Brazilian Portuguese). NSC Total. 10 September 2011. Retrieved 28 November 2021.
  9. Sturtridge, Tim (19 August 2010). "Internacional superstars claim Copa Libertadores win". The Independent. Retrieved 28 June 2011.
  10. "Copa Libertadores: Internacional claim the title". ESPNsoccernet. 19 August 2010. Retrieved 28 June 2011.
  11. "Leandro Damiao: The new Ronaldo?". givemefootball.com. 20 April 2012. Retrieved 12 June 2012.
  12. "Tottenham reabre negociações por Leandro Damião" [Tottenham re-opens negotiations for Leandro Damião] (in Portuguese). Goal.com. 6 June 2013. Retrieved 7 February 2014.
  13. Alegre, Por GLOBOESPORTE COM Porto. "Napoli faz oferta de R$ 73 milhões por Leandro Damião, afirma jornal italiano". globoesporte.com.
  14. "Agent: 'Damiao-Napoli ruined by sponsors' | Football Italia". Archived from the original on 9 August 2013.
  15. "Napoli, De Laurentiis punge Benitez: "Higuain l'ho preso io, lui voleva Damiao"". la Repubblica. 30 October 2015.
  16. "Compra mais cara da história do Santos, Leandro Damião vai reencontrar ex-clube pela quarta vez – Jovem Pan". Compra mais cara da história do Santos, Leandro Damião vai reencontrar ex-clube pela quarta vez – Jovem Pan. 22 October 2018.
  17. Inter aceita e Leandro Damião fecha com o Santos (Inter agrees and Leandro Damião signs with Santos); Fox Sports, 11 December 2013 (in Portuguese)
  18. "Leandro Damião dirige bonde e é recebido com festa por torcedores do Santos FC" [Leandro Damião conducts tramcar and is received with party by Santos FC's supporters] (in Portuguese). Santos FC. 9 January 2014. Archived from the original on 7 February 2014. Retrieved 7 January 2014.
  19. "Mais caro da história, Damião se apresenta no Santos e diz não sentir a pressão". Extra Online.
  20. Janeiro, Por GLOBOESPORTE COM Rio de. "Timão tem quatro das cinco maiores contratações do futebol brasileiro". globoesporte.com.
  21. "Na estreia de Damião, Santos vence Linense com gol de Menino da Vila" [In Damião's debut, Santos beats Linense with a goal from a Menino da Vila] (in Portuguese). Globo Esporte. 6 February 2014. Retrieved 7 February 2014.
  22. "Santos aceita proposta, e Leandro Damião será emprestado ao Cruzeiro" [Santos accepts bid, and Damião will be loaned to Cruzeiro] (in Portuguese). Globo Esporte. 29 December 2014. Retrieved 30 December 2014.
  23. "Tabela do Brasileirão da Série A 2022 | Tabela Oficial".
  24. "Decisão favorável a Leandro Damião na Justiça gera dívida de R$65 milhões ao Santos" [Favourable decision to Damião on the Court creates a R$65 million debt to Santos] (in Portuguese). Época. 10 December 2015. Retrieved 27 January 2016.
  25. "Justiça diz que Damião terá que pagar R$200 mi por liberação do Santos" [The Court says that Damião will have to pay R$200 mi as a release clause from Santos] (in Portuguese). Folha de S. Paulo. 4 January 2016. Retrieved 27 January 2016.
  26. "Damião 'derruba' multa na Justiça e está livre do Santos novamente" [Damião 'takes down' fee on the Court and is free from Santos again] (in Portuguese). UOL Esporte. 7 January 2016. Retrieved 27 January 2016.
  27. "Damião terá de pagar R$65 mi para deixar o Santos. Advogado irá recorrer" [Damião will have to pay R$65 mi to leave Santos. Lawyer will appeal] (in Portuguese). UOL Esporte. 26 January 2016. Retrieved 27 January 2016.
  28. "Conselho veta contratação, e Betis desiste de Leandro Damião, diz jornal". globoesporte.com.
  29. "Real Betis signs striker Leandro Damiao". Betis' official website. 4 February 2016. Archived from the original on 9 February 2016. Retrieved 6 February 2016.
  30. "Manucho es un puntazo" [Manucho is a surprise] (in Spanish). Marca. 27 February 2016. Retrieved 11 March 2016.
  31. "Damião vê parceria com Guerrero, escolhe número "1+8" e cita Obina" (in Portuguese). globoesporte.com. 14 July 2016. Retrieved 19 July 2016.
  32. "Internacional acerta a volta de Leandro Damião ao clube". ESPN.
  33. "Flamengo encaminha saída de Leandro Damião para o Internacional e o libera de jogo". Extra Online.
  34. "Tabela do Brasileirão | Série B 2021".
  35. "Tabela do Brasileirão | Série B 2021".
  36. "tabela | brasileirão série a". ge.
  37. "No sacrifício, Damião vira artilheiro no Brasileirão e entra para top-10 de goleadores do Inter". ge.
  38. "Sem acerto por renovação, Inter encerra negociações com Leandro Damião". ge.
  39. ""Grêmio do Japão", Kawasaki Frontale anuncia a contratação de Leandro Damião".
  40. "Yokohama F. Marinos vs. Kawasaki Frontale - 10 March 2019 - Soccerway". us.soccerway.com.
  41. "「自分の特徴を理解してくれた」川崎Fのレアンドロ・ダミアンが今季13ゴール目". gekisaka. 19 December 2021. Retrieved 5 January 2021.
  42. "川崎フロンターレが天皇杯初優勝！三笘薫決勝弾でガンバ大阪下し二冠達成". footballv\channel. 1 January 2021. Retrieved 5 January 2021.
  43. "レアンドロ・ダミアンの圧巻ハットトリック！ 川崎F、大邱下しACL5連勝でGS首位通過" (in Japanese). Soccer KIng. 9 July 2021. Retrieved 25 January 2022.
  44. "川崎Ｆダミアン得点王「特に意識するところはない。勝利、優勝が大切」" (in Japanese). ニッカンスポーツ. 4 December 2021. Retrieved 25 January 2022.
  45. "最優秀選手賞（MVP）はレアンドロ ダミアン選手が受賞" (in Japanese). J League. 6 December 2021. Retrieved 25 January 2022.
  46. "Alexandre Pato misses Brazil friendly with Scotland". BBC Sport. 24 March 2011. Retrieved 28 June 2011.
  47. Murray, Ewan (27 March 2011). "Neymar shines brightest as Brazil make light work of Scotland". The Guardian. Retrieved 28 June 2011.
  48. Campbell, Andy (27 March 2011). "Scotland 0–2 Brazil". BBC Sport. Retrieved 28 June 2011.
  49. "Brazil 1–0 Ghana". BBC Sport. 5 September 2011. Retrieved 5 September 2011.
  50. "Damião é o artilheiro das Olimpíadas - Londres 2012 - Superesportes". www.pe.superesportes.com.br.
  51. "Leandro Damião". National Football Teams. Benjamin Strack-Zimmermann. Retrieved 16 April 2012.
  52. "年間最優秀選手にレアンドロダミアン". Jiji Press. Retrieved 28 March 2022.
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