Zeca (footballer, born 1994)

José Carlos Cracco Neto (born 16 May 1994), known as Zeca, is a Brazilian professional footballer who plays as a right or left back for Vitória. Zeca helped Brazil win a gold medal at the 2016 Summer Olympics, starting all 6 games of the tournament and playing 554 of a possible 570 minutes.[1]

Zeca
Zeca with Brazil at the 2016 Olympics
Personal information
Full name José Carlos Cracco Neto
Date of birth (1994-05-16) 16 May 1994
Place of birth Paranavaí, Brazil
Height 1.70 m (5 ft 7 in)
Position(s) Full back
Team information
Current team
Vitória
Number 2
Youth career
EF São Carlos
2006–2007 Santos
2007–2009 América-SP
2009–2014 Santos
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2014–2018 Santos 115 (4)
2018–2021 Internacional 48 (0)
2020–2021Bahia (loan) 11 (1)
2021 Vasco da Gama 40 (1)
2022 Houston Dynamo 20 (0)
2023– Vitória 5 (0)
International career
2015–2016 Brazil U23 9 (0)
Medal record
Olympic Games
Gold medal – first place2016 Rio de JaneiroTeam
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 17 February 2023
‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 23 August 2016

Club career

Santos

Born in Paranavaí, Paraná, Zeca joined Santos' youth setup in 2006, aged 11.[2] In 2007, Zeca joined the youth setup of América-SP.[3] He returned to Santos in 2009 at the age of 15.[3] On 19 February 2014 he renewed his link with Peixe until 2018.[4]

On 9 March 2014 Zeca made his first-team debut, coming on as a late substitute for fellow youth graduate Emerson Palmieri in a 4–1 home win over Oeste in a Campeonato Paulista match.[5][6] He made his Série A debut on 11 May, playing the entire second half in a 2–0 away win against Figueirense.[7][6] Zeca ended his first season with the first team with 15 Série A matches, as Santos finished 9th in the table. He also made 2 appearances in the Copa do Brasil, helping Santos reach the semifinals, along with 1 appearance in the Campeonato Paulista.[6]

At the start of the 2015 campaign, Zeca was rarely used by managers Enderson Moreira and Marcelo Fernandes, playing just 4 times across all competitions under them.[8] He was nearly loaned to the Columbus Crew of MLS in July, but newly appointed manager Dorival Júnior convinced Zeca to stay, giving him a chance in the first team.[9][10][11] Zeca ended the season with 22 appearances and 4 assists in Série A play, helping the Peixe finish 7th.[12][8] He made 10 appearances in the Copa do Brasil as Santos reached the final, where they lost to Palmeiras 4–3 on penalties.[8] Zeca made 3 appearances in the 2015 Campeonato Paulista to help Santos win their 21st state league title.[8]

Zeca in action for Santos in 2016

On 31 March 2016 Zeca scored his first professional goal, netting his team's first in a 4–1 Paulistão home routing of Ferroviária.[13][14] His first goal in the Brasileirão came on 12 June, the first of a 2–0 win at Santa Cruz.[15][14] In Série A play, Zeca scored 3 goals from 31 appearances as Santos finished runners-up, 9 points off first place Palmeiras.[14][16] In the 2016 Campeonato Paulista, he made 18 appearances and scored 1 goal to help the Peixe defend their title.[14] His strong performances during the tournament saw him named to the Paulistão Team of the Year.[17] He also made 4 Copa do Brasil appearances during the season.[14]

On 18 November 2016, after establishing himself as an undisputed starter, Zeca extended his contract until December 2020.[18][10]

He made his Copa Libertadores debut on 9 March 2017, starting in a 1–1 away draw against Sporting Cristal.[19][20] In April Zeca had surgery on his left meniscus, causing him to miss over a month.[21][22] On 28 May, in his 3rd game back from injury, he was subbed off early in the second half of a 1–0 loss to Cruzeiro due to swelling in his left knee and pain in his left calf.[21][22][23] On 3 August he returned after missing 2 months, coming on as a substitute in a 3–2 win over Flamengo.[20] Zeca ended the 2017 season with 14 appearances and 1 assist in Brasileirão play to help Santos finish 3rd. He made 11 appearances in the Campeonato Paulista and 6 in Copa Libertadores, helping the Peixe reach the quarterfinals in both competitions.[20]

On 26 October 2017, after altercations with Santos supporters at São Paulo–Congonhas Airport and threatening graffiti was painted on the walls of the Vila Belmiro,[24] Zeca took a legal action against Santos by alleging a delay of payments.[25] He would not make another appearance for Santos during the 2017 season. Despite being granted the right to represent another club on 1 December, Santos appealed to stop the departure of the player on a free transfer.[26]

Internacional

On 23 April 2018, Zeca signed with Sport Club Internacional as part of a swap deal that saw Eduardo Sasha's loan to Santos made permanent. Zeca signed a contract with Internacional until 30 June 2022, with Santos maintaining 50% of his rights and Internacional keeping 50% of Sasha's rights.[27][28][29] On 12 May, Zeca made his Internacional debut, starting as a central midfielder in a 0–0 draw against bitter rivals Grêmio.[30] During his first season in Porto Alegre, Zeca made 19 appearances and had 1 assist to help Internacional finish 3rd in the Série A table.[30]

During the 2019 season, Zeca played in 20 Série A matches as Internacional finished 7th in the standings. In the Campeonato Gaúcho, he made 9 appearances to help Inter reach the final, where they fell to Grêmio in a penalty shoot-out. In the Copa Libertadores, Zeca made 6 appearances as Inter reached the quarterfinals. He appeared in 2 of Internacional's Copa do Brasil matches, helping them reach the final, where they lost to Athletico Paranaense 3–1 on aggregate.[31]

Loan to Bahia

On 15 January 2020, Zeca was loaned to Série A club Bahia for the 2020 season as part of a deal that saw fellow full-back Moisés go on loan in the opposite direction.[32][33] He made his Bahia debut on 19 February, coming off the bench in a 2–0 win over CSA in a Copa do Nordeste match.[34] On 16 November he scored his first goal for Bahia to give Tricolor a 2–1 win against Coritiba in a Série A match.[34] Zeca ended the season with 1 goal from 11 Série A matches as Bahia finished 14th in the table. In the Campeonato Baiano, Zeca made 5 appearances to help Bahia reach the final, where they won their 49th state league title after defeating Alagoinhas Atlético Clube on penalties. He made 2 appearances in the Copa do Nordeste as Tricolor reached the final, where they lost to Ceará 4–1 on aggregate.[34]

On 9 March 2021, Zeca reached an agreement with Internacional to have his contract terminated.[35]

Vasco da Gama

On 9 March 2021, Zeca signed with Série B side Vasco da Gama on a contract running through the 2021 season plus a team option for 2022[36][37] Zeca made his Vasco debut on 18 March, playing the full match in a 1–1 draw against Caldense in a Copa do Brasil match.[38] He scored his first goal for the club on 27 March in a 2–2 draw with Madureira in a Campeonato Carioca match.[38] Zeca made 29 appearances and had 3 assists in Série B play as Vasco finished 10th.[39] He made 11 appearances, scored 1 goal, and had 1 assist in the Campeonato Carioca, helping Vasco win the Taça Rio.[40] He also made 6 appearances in the Copa da Brasil as Vasco da Gama reached the round of 16.[40]

On 6 December 2021, Vasco da Gama declined Zeca's contract option for 2022.[41]

Houston Dynamo

On 10 February 2022, Zeca signed with Major League Soccer club Houston Dynamo.[42] He made his Dynamo debut on 5 March, coming off the bench in a 1–0 loss at Sporting Kansas City.[43] He ended the regular season with 20 appearances, 12 starts, and 1 assist as the Dynamo finished 13th in the Western Conference, missing out on the playoffs.[43] He also made an appearance in the Open Cup.[1] Following the season, Houston declined Zeca's contract option.[44]

Match fixing investigation

On 10 May 2023, a Public Ministry of Goiás spreadsheet and text messages obtained by O Globo suggested that Colorado Rapids player Max Alves had connected Zeca with an organization in 2022 that would later be investigated in the 2023 Brazilian football match-fixing scandal by prosecutors in Goiás state, Brazil.[45][46] According to the O Globo report, on 8 October 2022 Zeca was supposed to take part in match fixing in a Dynamo match against LA Galaxy for the organization.[45][46] Zeca did not play in the match,[47] and was not named in the official Goiás investigation.[46]

Vitória

On 20 January 2023, Zeca signed with Série B side Esporte Clube Vitória.[48][49] He made his debut for Vitória on 21 January, scoring a goal in a 1–1 draw against Santa Cruz in a Copa do Nordeste match.[50]

International career

On 29 June 2016, Zeca was named to the 18 player squad for the 2016 Olympics by manager Rogério Micale.[51] On 20 August, Zeca played 120 minutes in the gold medal match as Brazil beat Germany 5–4 on penalties. He started all 6 games of the tournament and played 554 of a possible 570 minutes.[52]

Career statistics

As of 17 February 2023[53][54][55][56]
Club Season League State League[lower-alpha 1] Cup[lower-alpha 2] Continental Other Total
DivisionAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoals
Santos2014Série A 1501020180
2015 22030100350
2016 31318140534
2017 140110006[lower-alpha 3]0310
Total 823331160601374
Internacional2018Série A 1900000190
2019 20090206[lower-alpha 3]0370
total 390902060560
Bahia (loan)2020Série A 11150001[lower-alpha 4]02[lower-alpha 5]0191
Vasco da Gama2021Série B 29011160461
Houston Dynamo2022MLS 20010210
Vitória2023Série B 0050003[lower-alpha 5]181
Career total 1814632250130512877

Honours

Santos

Bahia

Vasco da Gama

Brazil U23

Individual

References

  1. "Brazil - Zeca - Profile with news, career statistics and history - Soccerway". int.soccerway.com. Retrieved 2022-03-04.
  2. "Paranavaiense está na categoria juniores do Santos" [Paranavaí-born is in Santos' juniores category] (in Portuguese). Diário do Noroeste. 10 April 2011. Archived from the original on 10 March 2014. Retrieved 9 March 2014.
  3. Botta, Emilio (17 May 2018). "América-SP torce por vendas de Luan, Lucas Lima e Zeca para evitar falência". Globo Esporte (in Portuguese). Retrieved 4 March 2022.
  4. "Santos FC renova com os laterais Zé Carlos e Daniel Guedes" [Santos FC renews with full-backs Zé Carlos and Daniel Guedes] (in Portuguese). Santos FC. 19 February 2014. Archived from the original on 10 March 2014. Retrieved 9 March 2014.
  5. "Pelo alto, Santos goleia outra vez na Vila Belmiro e complica o Oeste" [From above, Santos thrashes again in Vila Belmiro and complicates Oeste] (in Portuguese). Globo Esporte. 9 March 2014. Retrieved 9 March 2014.
  6. "Zeca-Jogos Realizados-Resumo da Temporada-2014". oGol (in Portuguese). Retrieved 4 March 2022.
  7. "Sem Damião, Santos desencanta e vence o Figueirense em Londrina" [Without Damião, Santos disenchants and defeats Figueirense in Londrina] (in Portuguese). Globo Esporte. 11 May 2014. Retrieved 19 January 2015.
  8. "Zeca-Jogos Realizados-Resumo da Temporada-2015". oGol (in Portuguese). Retrieved 4 March 2022.
  9. "Lateral do Santos acerta com Columbus Crew e espera aval de Modesto para ser anunciado" [Santos' full back signs with Columbus Crew and waits for the green light of Modesto to be announced] (in Portuguese). ESPN Brasil. 10 July 2015. Retrieved 6 December 2015.
  10. "Zeca renova com o Santos e assina contrato até 2020". Gazeta Esportiva. (in Portuguese). 18 November 2016. Retrieved 4 March 2022.
  11. Giufrida, Bruno; Cury, Renato (10 July 2015). ""Tranquilo" e fã de churrasco, Zeca se firma no Santos e elogia Dorival Júnior" ["Peaceful" and fan of barbecue, Zeca stands at Santos and commends Dorival Júnior] (in Portuguese). Globo Esporte. Retrieved 6 December 2015.
  12. "Zeca 2015 Match Logs". FBref.com. Retrieved 2022-03-04.
  13. "Com Lucas Lima na etapa final, Santos vira sobre a Ferroviária e se classifica" [With Lucas Lima in the last half, Santos complete comeback over Ferroviária and get through the following stage] (in Portuguese). Globo Esporte. 31 March 2016. Retrieved 1 April 2016.
  14. "Zeca-Jogos Realizados-Resumo da Temporada-2016". oGol (in Portuguese). Retrieved 4 March 2022.
  15. "Santos vence Santa Cruz, quebra jejum de quase um ano e dá salto na classificação" [Santos defeat Santa Cruz, end a drought from almost a year and jump in the table] (in Portuguese). Globo Esporte. 12 June 2016. Retrieved 18 November 2016.
  16. "2016 Série A Stats". FBref.com. Retrieved 2022-03-04.
  17. "Santos domina seleção do Paulistão; Audax emplaca dois e mais o técnico" [Santos dominate the Paulistão team of the year; Audax include two and the manager] (in Portuguese). Globo Esporte. 9 May 2016. Retrieved 9 May 2016.
  18. "Zeca renova contrato com o Santos FC até 31 de dezembro de 2020" [Zeca renews contract with Santos FC until 31 December 2020] (in Portuguese). Santos FC. 18 November 2016. Retrieved 18 November 2016.
  19. "Santos empata na estreia da Libertadores e mantém pressão em Dorival" [Santos draw in Libertadores' debut and keep pressure in Dorival] (in Portuguese). UOL Esporte. 9 March 2017. Retrieved 10 March 2017.
  20. "Zeca-Jogos Realizados-Resumo da Temporada-2017". oGol (in Portuguese). Retrieved 7 March 2022.
  21. Anjos, Vitor (15 August 2017). "De folga no Santos, Zeca aproveita para retirar passaporte na Itália". Gazeta Esportiva (in Portuguese). Retrieved 7 March 2022.
  22. "Zeca explica tempo fora no Santos e se vê preparado para assumir lateral". ESPN Brasil (in Portuguese). 4 August 2017. Retrieved 7 March 2022.
  23. Musetti, Lucas (28 May 2017). "Com dores na panturrilha, Zeca preocupa o Santos e pode virar desfalque". Globo Esporte (in Portuguese). Retrieved 7 March 2022.
  24. "Tensão no Santos: torcedores tentam agredir Lucas Lima e Zeca em desembarque" [Tension at Santos: supporters try to assault Lucas Lima and Zeca in landing] (in Portuguese). Goal.com. 20 October 2017. Retrieved 17 December 2017.
  25. "Zeca se irrita com o Santos e vai à Justiça para deixar o clube" [Zeca gets annoyed with Santos and goes to the Court to leave the club] (in Portuguese). ESPN Brasil. 26 October 2017. Retrieved 17 December 2017.
  26. "Caso Zeca: Santos entra com recurso na Justiça para cobrar multa rescisória" [Case Zeca: Santos appeal in the Justice to charge the termination fine] (in Portuguese). Globo Esporte. 4 December 2017. Retrieved 17 December 2017.
  27. "Inter contrata lateral Zeca" [Inter sign full-back Zeca] (in Portuguese). SC Internacional. 23 April 2018. Retrieved 23 April 2018.
  28. "Inter oficializa contratação do lateral Zeca por quatro anos". Globo Esporte (in Portuguese). 23 April 2018. Retrieved 7 March 2022.
  29. "Inter oficializa contratação de Zeca". oGol (in Portuguese). 23 April 2018. Retrieved 7 March 2022.
  30. "Zeca-Jogos Realizados-Resumo da Temporada-2018". oGol (in Portuguese).
  31. "Zeca-Jogos Realizados-Resumo da Temporada-2019". oGol (in Portuguese). Retrieved 7 March 2022.
  32. "Bahia oficializa troca entre Moisés e Zeca com o Internacional". A Tarde (in Brazilian Portuguese). 15 January 2020. Retrieved 3 March 2022.
  33. "Zeca chega ao Bahia após troca com o Inter". oGol (in Portuguese). 15 January 2020. Retrieved 3 March 2022.
  34. "Zeca-Jogos Realizados-Resumo da Temporada-2020". oGol (in Portuguese). Retrieved 7 March 2022.
  35. "Zeca rescinde com o Inter e é aguardado no Rio para assinar com o Vasco". oGol (in Portuguese). 9 March 2021. Retrieved 3 March 2022.
  36. "Vasco acerta a contratação do campeão olímpico Zeca – Club de Regatas Vasco da Gama" [Vasco signs Olympic champion Zeca]. vasco.com.br. March 9, 2021. Retrieved 2021-03-10.
  37. "Vasco anuncia contratação de Zeca". oGol. 9 March 2021. Retrieved 3 March 2022.
  38. "Brazil - Zeca - Matches - Soccerway". int.soccerway.com. Retrieved 2022-03-03.
  39. "Zeca Stats - All Competitions". FBref.com. Retrieved 2022-03-03.
  40. "Zeca-Jogos Realizados-Resumo da Temporada-2021". oGOl (in Portuguese). Retrieved 3 March 2022.
  41. "Zeca não terá contrato renovado para 2022 – Club de Regatas Vasco da Gama". vasco.com.br. Retrieved 2022-03-03.
  42. "Houston Dynamo sign Brazilian Olympic Gold Medalist Zeca". Houston Dynamo FC. 10 February 2022. Retrieved 3 March 2022.
  43. "Zeca 2022 Match Logs". FBref.com. Retrieved 2022-03-07.
  44. "Dynamo decline contract options on three players and expand open roster spots to 11". Houston Dynamo FC. 16 November 2022. Retrieved 17 February 2023.
  45. "Source: Rapids suspend Alves in gambling probe". ESPN. 11 May 2023. Retrieved 12 May 2023.
  46. Soares, Rafael; Malek, Laís (10 May 2023). "Quadrilha investigada pelo MP cita manipulação em jogos até da MLS, liga dos Estados Unidos" [Gang investigated by the MP cites manipulation in games even in the MLS, league of the United States]. O Globo (in Brazilian Portuguese). Retrieved 11 May 2023.
  47. "HOUvLA 10-09-2022". Houston Dynamo FC. 9 October 2022. Retrieved 11 May 2023.
  48. @ECVitoria (January 20, 2023). "🖊 Novos contratados! Já no BID e relacionados para a partida de amanhã, o lateral campeão olímpico Zeca e o atacante uruguaio Nicolas Dibble são os novos reforços do colossal para a temporada 2023. Pra cima, rapaziada! 🔴⚫️" (Tweet) via Twitter.
  49. "Vitória anuncia campeão olímpico para disputa da Série B". oGol (in Portuguese). 21 January 2023. Retrieved 17 February 2023.
  50. "Zeca-Jogos Realizados-Resumo da Temporada-2023". oGol (in Portuguese). Retrieved 17 February 2023.
  51. "Rio 2016: Neymar and Douglas Costa in Brazil Olympic squad". BBC. 29 June 2016. Retrieved 7 March 2022.
  52. "Zeca-RIO JANEIRO 2016". oGol (in Portuguese). Retrieved 7 March 2022.
  53. Zeca at Soccerway. Retrieved 19 January 2015.
  54. "Zeca Stats". FBref.com. Retrieved 2022-03-03.
  55. "Zeca :: José Carlos Cracco Neto". oGol (in Portuguese). Retrieved 3 March 2022.
  56. "Zeca". Major League Soccer. Retrieved 3 March 2022.
  57. "Veja os ganhadores da edição 2016 do Troféu Mesa Redonda - Gazeta Esportiva". www.gazetaesportiva.com. Retrieved 2023-09-09.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.