Digão (footballer, born 1988)

Rodrigo Junior Paula Silva (born 7 May 1988, in Duque de Caxias), also called Digão, is a Brazilian footballer.[1][2]

Digão
Personal information
Full name Rodrigo Junior Paula Silva[1]
Date of birth (1988-05-07) 7 May 1988[2]
Place of birth Duque de Caxias, Brazil[2]
Height 1.87 m (6 ft 1+1⁄2 in)[2]
Position(s) Centre back[2]
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2009–2013 Fluminense[2] 92 (4)
2014–2016 Al-Hilal 45 (1)
2016–2017 Al-Sharjah 26 (1)
2017–2019 Cruzeiro 15 (0)
2018–2019 → Fluminense (loan) 64 (5)
2020 Fluminense 22 (2)
2020–2022 Buriram United 11 (0)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 6 May 2022

Club career

Fluminense

Digão played for Fluminense between 2009 and 2013.[3] He made his debut for the club in a draw against Náutico.[3] He started that match and played the whole 90 minutes.[4] In his first season with the club, he featured eight times in league matches but did not score a goal.[3] His first match for the 2010 season was against Ceará.[3] However, Fluminense lost it by a single goal.[5] He played further three times for the club in league, against Atlético Goianiense, Atlético Mineiro and Vitória.[3] He played ten times for the club in the 2011 season, without scoring a goal.[3] During that season, he was ruled out of action for three months for sustaining an injury.[6] On 2 November 2011, he signed a contract extension, keeping him at the club till December 2013.[6]

In the 2012 season, Digão started fourteen matches and played a total of seventeen league matches, scoring two goals.[3] These goals were scored against Figueirense[7] and Grêmio.[3] On the continental level, he played three matches in the Copa Libertadores, which included two matches against Boca Juniors and the third against Arsenal de Sarandi.[3] On 2 June 2013, he scored a brace against Criciúma.[8] In the 2013 season, he played the whole 90 minutes of twelve league matches and also featured four times for the side in Copa Libertadores.[3] On 5 June 2013, he renewed his contract with Fluminense, keeping him at the club till December 2015.[9]

Al-Hilal

In December 2013, Digão signed for Saudi Arabian club Al-Hilal for £ 6.5 million, joining former Brazilian teammate Thiago Neves.[10] He made his debut against Al Ahli.[3] In his debut season with the Saudi club, he played eight league matches.[3] In the Asian Champions League, he played fourteen times.[3] His team reached the final but lost 1–0 to Australian club Western Sydney Wanderers in the first leg.[11] In the second leg, the clubs drew as the Australian club was crowned winner.[12]

Return to Brazil with Cruzeiro

In July 2017, Digão was signed by Brazilian giants Cruzeiro, once again joining his former teammate Thiago Neves, who played a part in the negotiations, along with former teammates Dedé and Rafael Sóbis, who were also part of Cruzeiro's squad. Digão signed a three-year deal with the Brazilian team. This marked the defense-man return to the Brazilian Serie A after over four years playing for Middle Eastern clubs.

Club statistics
As of match played on 24 May 2016
Club Season League National Cup Continental Other Total
DivisionAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoals
Fluminense 2009[3] Série A 80005[lower-alpha 1]02[lower-alpha 2]0150
2010[3] Série A 4030—4[lower-alpha 2]0110
2011[3] Série A 100003[lower-alpha 3]03[lower-alpha 2]0160
2012[3] Série A 172003[lower-alpha 3]08[lower-alpha 2]0282
2013[3] Série A 122004[lower-alpha 3]09[lower-alpha 2]0252
Total 51430150260954
Al-Hilal 2013–14[3] Saudi Pro League 802014[lower-alpha 4]02[lower-alpha 5]0260
2014–15[3] Saudi Pro League 231409[lower-alpha 4]14[lower-alpha 5]2404
2015–16[3] Saudi Pro League 140205[lower-alpha 4]01[lower-alpha 5]0220
Total 4518028172884
Career total 96511043133218311
  1. Appearances in Copa Sudamericana
  2. Appearances in Campeonato Carioca
  3. Appearances in Copa Libertadores
  4. Appearances in AFC Champions League
  5. Appearances in Saudi Champions Cup

Honours

Club
Fluminense
Al-Hilal
Buriram United

References
  1. "Futebol - Elenco Profissional" (in Portuguese). Fluminense Football Club. Archived from the original on 6 May 2009. Retrieved 2009-06-08.
  2. "Digão Facts". The Guardian. Archived from the original on 26 July 2012. Retrieved 2009-12-11.
  3. "Soccerway profile". Soccerway. Retrieved 26 March 2015.
  4. "Nautico vs Fluminense". Soccerway. Retrieved 26 March 2015.
  5. "Ceara vs Fluminense". Soccerway. Retrieved 26 March 2015.
  6. "Fluminense renova o contrato de zagueiro Digão até dezembro de 2013" (in Portuguese). Globo Esporte. Retrieved 26 March 2015.
  7. "Figueirense vs Fluminense" (in Portuguese). Globo Esporte. Retrieved 26 March 2015.
  8. "Fluminense vs Cricuma" (in Portuguese). Globo Esporte. Retrieved 26 March 2015.
  9. "Digão renova contrato com o Fluminense" (in Portuguese). Netflu. Retrieved 26 March 2015.
  10. "Fluminense acerta a venda de Digão para o Al Hilal por R$ 6,5 milhões" (in Portuguese). Globo Esporte. Retrieved 26 March 2015.
  11. "Western Sydney Wanderers grab 1-0 Asian Champions League final advantage over Al-Hilal in first leg". ABC. Retrieved 26 March 2015.
  12. "Wanderers make history with ACL win". Football Australia. Retrieved 26 March 2015.
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