Alexandre Pato

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Alexandre Pato
Personal information
Full name Alexandre Rodrigues da Silva
Date of birth September 2, 1989 (1989-09-02) (age 19)
Place of birth    Pato Branco, Brazil
Height 1.79 m (5 ft 10+12 in)[1]
Playing position Striker
Club information
Current club Milan
Number 7
Youth clubs
2000–2006 Internacional
Senior clubs1
Years Club App (Gls)*
2006–2007
2007–
Internacional
Milan
010 0(6)
035 (15)   
National team2
2008– Brazil 001 0(1)

1 Senior club appearances and goals
counted for the domestic league only and
correct as of December 21, 2008.
2 National team caps and goals correct
as of June 6, 2008.
* Appearances (Goals)

Olympic medal record
Competitor for  Brazil
Men's Football
Bronze 2008 Beijing Team Competition
This is a Portuguese name; the first family name is Rodrigues and the second is da Silva.

Alexandre Rodrigues da Silva (born September 2, 1989, in Pato Branco, Paraná), better known as Alexandre Pato, is a Brazilian striker currently playing for Italian club A.C. Milan.

Contents

Early life

Alexandre started playing futsal at the age of 4. His ability soon became known all around the south Brazilian state of Paraná. After being praised by many of his managers, the teenager went to Porto Alegre, Rio Grande do Sul, to try out for Sport Club Internacional. In 2001, at the age of 11, he moved there and started sharing housing with 83 other teenagers that, much like him, wanted to make a name for themselves in the Internacional first team.

In 2000, when Alexandre was 10 years old, x-rays from a broken bone revealed that he had a tumor in his arm. The doctors realized that the tumor would become cancerous in two months if not removed. Alexandre's family could not afford the surgery to remove the tumor, but the doctor, Paulo Roberto Mussi, was a family friend, and operated for free. This event was particularly significant because it occurred in a very crucial year when Alexandre was working towards a professional career with Internacional.[2]

He adopted the nickname Alexandre Pato ("Alex the Duck"), after the city where he was born.

Club career

Internacional

Pato began his playing career at Sport Club Internacional in Porto Alegre, where he played for both the youth and senior teams between 2001 and 2007. On his first team debut, at the age of 17, Pato helped Internacional to a 4-1 win over Palmeiras on November 26, 2006. He had created three of the goals and scored the other goal.

Pato scored Internacional's second goal of the 2006 FIFA Club World Cup on December 13 in the semi-final game against Al-Ahly Cairo, helping the team win 2–1 and a spot in the final. With this goal, Pato took Pelé's record as youngest scorer in the history of official FIFA competitions (17 years and 102 days, against Pelé's 17 years and 239 in the 1958 FIFA World Cup against Wales). He was substituted in the final of the competition, before team-mate Adriano Gabiru scored the winner, ensuring the title for Internacional.

Pato was linked to several high profile clubs including Benfica,[3] Juventus, Inter,[4] Chelsea[5] and Arsenal.[6], and AC Milan.

Milan

Incumbent European champions A.C. Milan officially confirmed the signing of Pato on August 2, 2007.[7] The transfer fee paid amounts to the minimum fee clause in Pato's contract with SC Internacional for €22 million.

Due to Italian football regulations regarding non-EU minors, Pato was unable to play official matches for Milan until January 3, 2008, when the Italian transfer window and registration reopened.[8] However, AC Milan was allowed to include the player in friendlies and training beginning September 3, 2007, one day after his 18th birthday. Pato made his non-competitive debut in a 2–2 draw against Dynamo Kiev on September 7, 2007 and scored a header. On January 4, 2008, Pato's transfer to Milan became official.[9]

Pato scored his first Milan goal in his Serie A debut against Napoli in a 5–2 home victory on January 13, 2008. He scored his first brace for Milan in a 2–0 victory over Genoa in San Siro on January 27, 2008.

International career

He helped Brazil win the 2007 South American Youth Championship, which qualified the country for the 2007 FIFA U-20 World Cup, and has been selected by Dunga for the 2008 Summer Olympics.[10] He scored his first goal for the senior team on his debut against Sweden at the Emirates Stadium on March 26, 2008. Pato beat Pele's record of scoring a goal within seconds of his debut.

Career statistics

Club

Club Season Domestic
League
Domestic
Cups
Continental
Competitions1
Other
Tournaments2
Total
Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals
Internacional
2006
1
1
-
-
-
-
2
1
3
2
2007
9
5
-
-
7
4
9
3
25
12
Total 10 6 - - 7 4 11 4 28 14
Milan
2007-08
18
9
-
-
2
0
-
-
20
9
2008-09
17
6
-
-
5
2
-
-
22
8
Total 35 15 - - 7 2 - - 42 17
Career Total 45 21 - - 14 6 11 4 70 31

Updated on 21 December 2008.

1Continental Competitions include the Copa Libertadores, Recopa Sudamericana, UEFA Champions League and UEFA Cup
2Other Tournaments include the FIFA Club World Cup and Campeonato Gaúcho

International goal

# Date Venue Opponent Score Result Competition
1. March 26, 2008 London, England  Sweden 0–1 Win Friendly

Career honours

Internacional

Brazilian national football team

Individual

References

Publications

Citations

  1. ^ "A.C. Milan FC profile". A.C Milan (2008-07-16). Retrieved on 2008-07-16.
  2. ^ (Portuguese) Alexandre Pato superou tumor na infância, Globo Esporte.com, January 17, 2007
  3. ^ "Benfica target “next Ronaldo”". portuGOAL.net (May 24, 2007). Retrieved on May 24, 2007.
  4. ^ "Pato eyes Italian switch". Channel4.com (January 26, 2007). Retrieved on May 13, 2007.
  5. ^ "Sunday's football gossip". BBC Sport Online (December 24, 2006). Retrieved on May 13, 2007.
  6. ^ "Hands off the Duck, warns Inter coach Braga". Reuters / The Guardian (December 12, 2006). Retrieved on May 12, 2007.
  7. ^ "Alexandre Pato to Milan!". A.C. Milan (August 2, 2007). Retrieved on August 2, 2007.
  8. ^ "Pato ducks in at the San Siro". uefa.com (August 3, 2007). Retrieved on August 3, 2007.
  9. ^ "Lega: Pato contract registered". A.C. Milan (January 4, 2008). Retrieved on January 4, 2008.
  10. ^ "Dunga convoca 22 jogadores para Seleção Olímpica" (in Portuguese). Confederação Brasileira de Futebol (2007-11-26). Retrieved on 2007-11-28.

External links