Iván Rocha
Encyclopedia
Iván Rocha Lima known as Rocha, is a retired Brazil
ian professional footballer, who played as a central defender.
. During his career, he played almost exclusively in Spain
; after a short spell with hometown's São Paulo Futebol Clube, the 23-year old joined Real Valladolid
, which he helped promote from Segunda División
in his debut year - having played in only 21 matches, the defender netted an impressive nine goals, second best in the squad with winger José Emilio Amavisca
.
After another year, Rocha signed with Atlético Madrid but appeared very rarely for the Colchoneros, also being loaned several times during his stint in Madrid
(Valladolid again, CD Logroñés
and RCD Mallorca
), but still only managing to appear very rarely, mainly due to consecutive injuries.
In 1998, Atlético released Rocha, and he played three more seasons in the country, one apiece with Deportivo Alavés
, CD Numancia
and Elche CF
, the latter in level two. After two years of inactivity, he returned to his country and appeared for modest União São João Esporte Clube
, retiring for good at 35.
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 professional footballer, who played as a central defender.
Football career
Rocha was born in São PauloSão Paulo
São Paulo is the largest city in Brazil, the largest city in the southern hemisphere and South America, and the world's seventh largest city by population. The metropolis is anchor to the São Paulo metropolitan area, ranked as the second-most populous metropolitan area in the Americas and among...
. During his career, he played almost exclusively in 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...
; after a short spell with hometown's São Paulo Futebol Clube, the 23-year old joined Real Valladolid
Real Valladolid
Real Valladolid Club de Fútbol, S.A.D. is a Spanish football club based in Valladolid, in the autonomous community of Castile and León, from where the nickname Pucela is derived....
, which he helped promote from Segunda División
Segunda División
The Segunda División is the lower tier of the two professional football leagues in Spain. From the season 2008-09 onwards, the name of the league is Liga Adelante.-History:...
in his debut year - having played in only 21 matches, the defender netted an impressive nine goals, second best in the squad with winger José Emilio Amavisca
José Emilio Amavisca
José Emilio Amavisca Gárate is a retired Spanish footballer who played mostly as a left winger.He was best known for his Real Madrid stint, but played for five other clubs, amassing 381 games and 57 goals in both major levels of Spanish football, over the course of 16 seasons.A Spanish...
.
After another year, Rocha signed with Atlético Madrid but appeared very rarely for the Colchoneros, also being loaned several times during his stint in Madrid
Madrid
Madrid is the capital and largest city of Spain. The population of the city is roughly 3.3 million and the entire population of the Madrid metropolitan area is calculated to be 6.271 million. It is the third largest city in the European Union, after London and Berlin, and its metropolitan...
(Valladolid again, CD Logroñés
CD Logroñés
Club Deportivo Logroñés, S.A.D. was a Spanish football team based in Logroño, in the autonomous community of La Rioja. Founded in 1940, it last played in Regional Preferente de La Rioja....
and RCD Mallorca
RCD Mallorca
Real Club Deportivo Mallorca is a Spanish football team based on Palma, Majorca, in the Balearic Islands. Founded on 5 March 1916, the team currently plays in the Spanish first division, holding home games at Son Moix....
), but still only managing to appear very rarely, mainly due to consecutive injuries.
In 1998, Atlético released Rocha, and he played three more seasons in the country, one apiece with Deportivo Alavés
Deportivo Alavés
Deportivo Alavés, S.A.D., usually abbreviated to Alavés, is a Spanish football club based in Vitoria-Gasteiz, in the Basque Country. Founded in 1921, it plays in Segunda División B, holding home matches at the 19,500-seater Estadio Mendizorrotza....
, CD Numancia
CD Numancia
Club Deportivo Numancia de Soria, S.A.D. is a Spanish football club based in Soria, in the autonomous community of Castile and León. Founded on 9 April 1945, it plays in Segunda División, holding home games at Nuevo Estadio Los Pajaritos, with a 10,200-seat capacity.Besides football it has other...
and Elche CF
Elche CF
Elche Club de Fútbol, S.A.D. is a Spanish football team based in Elche, Alicante, in the Valencian Community. Founded in 1923, it currently plays in the Spanish second division, holding home matches at Estadio Manuel Martínez Valero, with a capacity of 38,750 seats.-Recent seasons:-Season to...
, the latter in level two. After two years of inactivity, he returned to his country and appeared for modest União São João Esporte Clube
União São João Esporte Clube
União São João Esporte Clube, usually known as União São João is a Brazilian football club from Araras, São Paulo state.-History:On January 14, 1981 , the club was founded by Hermínio Ometto, who was the owner of Usina São João...
, retiring for good at 35.