Emerson Moisés Costa
Encyclopedia
Emerson Moisés Costa simply Emerson, is a Brazil
ian former footballer who played as a defensive midfielder.
As well as in his country, he played professionally in Portugal
, England
, Spain
and Scotland
. He also received Portuguese citizenship
after he married his Portuguese wife
.
, but he soon moved to Coritiba Foot Ball Club
in search of first team football. In 1991, he began his extensive overseas spell, first with C.F. Os Belenenses in Portugal
.
After several impressive displays, Emerson secured a move to giants F.C. Porto. Under the management of former England
boss Bobby Robson
, he won successive league titles, appeared in the UEFA Champions League
, and won the 1996 Portuguese Player of the Year award.
By now Emerson's reputation had grown in stature and his performances had attracted interest from major Europe
an clubs. Eventually he chose to move to English Premiership club Middlesbrough
, completing a £
4 million move. It is alleged that the deal was done without manager Bryan Robson
's knowledge, the manager only finding out after it was unwittingly mentioned by the club's chief scout Ray Train. Emerson's cousin
Fábio also joined the Teesside
team, but played just one game in his 14-month spell.
However, things turned sour quickly with Emerson's former manager Bobby Robson, now at FC Barcelona
, expressing his interest in bringing the player to the Camp Nou
. This unsettled the midfielder, who by this time had already endured relegation to Division One, in addition to difficulties in adjusting to life on Teesside
. He travelled to Brazil for a break at the end of 1997, and once there threatened that he would not return to the club.
Eventually the dispute was resolved with a move to CD Tenerife
in January 1998, for around £4.25 million. Surprisingly, Middlesbrough chief executive Keith Lamb later stated that he had tried to re-sign the player after Tenerife were relegated. He remained with the Canary Islands
club until 2000 when he moved to Deportivo de La Coruña
, after the Galicians' 2000 La Liga
title. At Depor, he often partnered compatriot Mauro Silva
in his first year, but played sparingly in the following.
After further one-year stays with Atlético Madrid and Rangers
, where he became the first ever Brazilian to play for the Scottish
, scoring once against Panathinaikos FC
in the 2003–04 Champions League, Emerson moved to Greece
, joining Skoda Xanthi F.C. in the summer of 2005. After having stayed there only six months, he transferred to another team in the country, AEK Athens FC, in January 2006.
On 23 May 2007, Emerson was released by AEK to join 2007 Cyprus
champions, APOEL FC, from Nicosia
. However, in January of the following year, he returned to Brazil and ended his career playing for lowly Madureira Esporte Clube
, at the Rio de Janeiro State League
.
Deportivo
Brazil
Brazil , officially the Federative Republic of Brazil , is the largest country in South America. It is the world's fifth largest country, both by geographical area and by population with over 192 million people...
ian former footballer who played as a defensive midfielder.
As well as in his country, he played professionally in Portugal
Portugal
Portugal , officially the Portuguese Republic is a country situated in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. Portugal is the westernmost country of Europe, and is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the West and South and by Spain to the North and East. The Atlantic archipelagos of the...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
, Spain
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
and Scotland
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
. He also received Portuguese citizenship
Portuguese nationality law
Portuguese nationality law is the legal set of rules that regulate access to Portuguese citizenship, which is acquired mainly through descent from a Portuguese parent, naturalisation in Portugal or marriage to a Portuguese citizen....
after he married his Portuguese wife
Portuguese people
The Portuguese are a nation and ethnic group native to the country of Portugal, in the west of the Iberian peninsula of south-west Europe. Their language is Portuguese, and Roman Catholicism is the predominant religion....
.
Football career
Emerson's career began with Brazilian side Clube de Regatas do FlamengoClube de Regatas do Flamengo
Clube de Regatas do Flamengo , also known as Flamengo and familiarly as Mengão, is a Brazilian sports club based in the Flamengo bairro, Zona Sul, Rio de Janeiro, best known for its professional football team...
, but he soon moved to Coritiba Foot Ball Club
Coritiba Foot Ball Club
Coritiba Foot Ball Club, commonly known as Coritiba, is a Brazilian football team from Curitiba, Paraná. It's the state's oldest football team and the best classified in the CBF and FIFA classifications. Coritiba has been champion in Paraná State for 35 times, more times than the sum of all the...
in search of first team football. In 1991, he began his extensive overseas spell, first with C.F. Os Belenenses in Portugal
Portugal
Portugal , officially the Portuguese Republic is a country situated in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. Portugal is the westernmost country of Europe, and is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the West and South and by Spain to the North and East. The Atlantic archipelagos of the...
.
After several impressive displays, Emerson secured a move to giants F.C. Porto. Under the management of former England
England national football team
The England national football team represents England in association football and is controlled by the Football Association, the governing body for football in England. England is the joint oldest national football team in the world, alongside Scotland, whom they played in the world's first...
boss Bobby Robson
Bobby Robson
Sir Robert William "Bobby" Robson, CBE was an English footballer and manager, who coached seven European clubs and the England national team during his career....
, he won successive league titles, appeared in the UEFA Champions League
UEFA Champions League
The UEFA Champions League, known simply the Champions League and originally known as the European Champion Clubs' Cup or European Cup, is an annual international club football competition organised by the Union of European Football Associations since 1955 for the top football clubs in Europe. It...
, and won the 1996 Portuguese Player of the Year award.
By now Emerson's reputation had grown in stature and his performances had attracted interest from major Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
an clubs. Eventually he chose to move to English Premiership club Middlesbrough
Middlesbrough F.C.
Middlesbrough Football Club , also known as Boro, are an English football club based in Middlesbrough, who play in the Football League Championship. Formed in 1876, they have played at the Riverside Stadium since August 1995, their third ground since turning professional in 1889...
, completing a £
Pound sterling
The pound sterling , commonly called the pound, is the official currency of the United Kingdom, its Crown Dependencies and the British Overseas Territories of South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands, British Antarctic Territory and Tristan da Cunha. It is subdivided into 100 pence...
4 million move. It is alleged that the deal was done without manager Bryan Robson
Bryan Robson
Bryan Robson OBE is an English football manager and a former player. He is best known for playing in midfield for Manchester United, where he was the longest serving captain in club history. He was the manager of Sheffield United, being relieved of his first team duties at the club in February 2008...
's knowledge, the manager only finding out after it was unwittingly mentioned by the club's chief scout Ray Train. Emerson's cousin
Cousin
In kinship terminology, a cousin is a relative with whom one shares one or more common ancestors. The term is rarely used when referring to a relative in one's immediate family where there is a more specific term . The term "blood relative" can be used synonymously and establishes the existence of...
Fábio also joined the Teesside
Teesside
Teesside is the name given to the conurbation in the north east of England made up of the towns of Middlesbrough, Stockton-on-Tees, Redcar, Billingham and surrounding settlements near the River Tees. It was also the name of a local government district between 1968 and 1974—the County Borough of...
team, but played just one game in his 14-month spell.
However, things turned sour quickly with Emerson's former manager Bobby Robson, now at FC Barcelona
FC Barcelona
Futbol Club Barcelona , also known as Barcelona and familiarly as Barça, is a professional football club, based in Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain....
, expressing his interest in bringing the player to the Camp Nou
Camp Nou
Camp Nou , sometimes called "the Nou Camp" in English, is a football stadium in Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain. The stadium, located in the west of the city, has been the home of FC Barcelona since its construction in 1957....
. This unsettled the midfielder, who by this time had already endured relegation to Division One, in addition to difficulties in adjusting to life on Teesside
Teesside
Teesside is the name given to the conurbation in the north east of England made up of the towns of Middlesbrough, Stockton-on-Tees, Redcar, Billingham and surrounding settlements near the River Tees. It was also the name of a local government district between 1968 and 1974—the County Borough of...
. He travelled to Brazil for a break at the end of 1997, and once there threatened that he would not return to the club.
Eventually the dispute was resolved with a move to CD Tenerife
CD Tenerife
Club Deportivo Tenerife, S.A.D. is a Spanish football club based in Santa Cruz de Tenerife, in Tenerife . Founded in 1922, it currently plays in Segunda División B, holding home matches at Estadio Heliodoro Rodríguez López, with a 24,000-seat capacity.-History:Club Deportivo Tenerife was founded in...
in January 1998, for around £4.25 million. Surprisingly, Middlesbrough chief executive Keith Lamb later stated that he had tried to re-sign the player after Tenerife were relegated. He remained with the Canary Islands
Canary Islands
The Canary Islands , also known as the Canaries , is a Spanish archipelago located just off the northwest coast of mainland Africa, 100 km west of the border between Morocco and the Western Sahara. The Canaries are a Spanish autonomous community and an outermost region of the European Union...
club until 2000 when he moved to Deportivo de La Coruña
Deportivo de La Coruña
Real Club Deportivo de La Coruña is a professional football club based in the city of A Coruña, Galicia; founded in 1906 and currently playing in Segunda División...
, after the Galicians' 2000 La Liga
La Liga
The Primera División of the Liga Nacional de Fútbol Profesional , commonly known as La Liga or, for sponsorship reasons, Liga BBVA since 2008, is the top professional association football division of the Spanish football league system...
title. At Depor, he often partnered compatriot Mauro Silva
Mauro Silva
Mauro da Silva Gomes , simply Silva, is a retired Brazilian footballer who played as a defensive midfielder....
in his first year, but played sparingly in the following.
After further one-year stays with Atlético Madrid and Rangers
Rangers F.C.
Rangers Football Club are an association football club based in Glasgow, Scotland, who play in the Scottish Premier League. The club are nicknamed the Gers, Teddy Bears and the Light Blues, and the fans are known to each other as bluenoses...
, where he became the first ever Brazilian to play for the Scottish
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
, scoring once against Panathinaikos FC
Panathinaikos FC
Panathinaikos Football Club is a Greek professional football club based in Athens. Founded in 1908, they play in the Super League Greece and are one of the oldest and most successful clubs in Greek football history. They have won 20 Greek Championships and 17 Greek Cups.Panathinaikos is the most...
in the 2003–04 Champions League, Emerson moved to Greece
Greece
Greece , officially the Hellenic Republic , and historically Hellas or the Republic of Greece in English, is a country in southeastern Europe....
, joining Skoda Xanthi F.C. in the summer of 2005. After having stayed there only six months, he transferred to another team in the country, AEK Athens FC, in January 2006.
On 23 May 2007, Emerson was released by AEK to join 2007 Cyprus
Cyprus
Cyprus , officially the Republic of Cyprus , is a Eurasian island country, member of the European Union, in the Eastern Mediterranean, east of Greece, south of Turkey, west of Syria and north of Egypt. It is the third largest island in the Mediterranean Sea.The earliest known human activity on the...
champions, APOEL FC, from Nicosia
Nicosia
Nicosia from , known locally as Lefkosia , is the capital and largest city in Cyprus, as well as its main business center. Nicosia is the only divided capital in the world, with the southern and the northern portions divided by a Green Line...
. However, in January of the following year, he returned to Brazil and ended his career playing for lowly Madureira Esporte Clube
Madureira Esporte Clube
Madureira Esporte Clube, or Madureira as they are usually called, is a traditional Brazilian football team from Rio de Janeiro in Rio de Janeiro state, founded on August 8, 1914.-History:...
, at the Rio de Janeiro State League
Campeonato Carioca
The Campeonato Carioca, also known as Campeonato Estadual do Rio de Janeiro, is the football league of the state of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil and is one of the most prestigious national football tournaments...
.
Honours
Porto- Primeira Liga: 1994–95, 1995–96
- Supertaça Cândido de Oliveira: 1996
Deportivo
- Spanish CupCopa del ReyThe Copa del Rey is an annual football cup competition for Spanish football teams. Its full name is Campeonato de España – Copa de Su Majestad el Rey de Fútbol ....
: 2001–02