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Luis Figo
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Luís Filipe Madeira Caeiro Figo born November 4, 1972 in Lisbon,
Portugal, is a Portuguese international footballer, who plays as
a midfielder and winger, currently for Inter Milan. Figo, a
devout Catholic, was the 2000 European Footballer of the Year
and 2001 FIFA World Player of the Year, known for his
exceptional trickery and dribbling skills at either wing (though
he predominantly plays on the right). He was one of the very few
footballers to have played for the Spanish rival clubs FC
Barcelona and Real Madrid.
Luís Figo started his career at Sporting Lisbon, a club which
developed many other great Portuguese players. He won his first
senior international cap in 1991; prior to that, he won the
Under-20 World Championships and Under-16 European Championships
with Portugal junior sides, a significant part of the nation's
so called 'Golden Generation' in football, alongside compatriot,
Rui Costa. In 1995, Figo looked poised to join one of the big
clubs of Europe, but a dispute between Italian clubs Juventus
and Parma, Figo having signed contracts with both clubs,
resulted in an Italian 2-year transfer ban on Figo, effectively
stopping any moves to Italy. However, the situation was
eventually resolved for Figo, with a move to Spanish club FC
Barcelona, under coach Johan Cruyff, and within four years he
became a fan-favourite, captain and symbol of the Catalan side.
Already a great winger at the beginning of his career, Figo
eventually became one of the best players in the world and, in
the eyes of many, the best winger of his generation. His
dazzling dribbling and the amazing amount of assists (Figo
states that he enjoys assisting as much as scoring) assured him
success and fame all over the world. Figo is recognized for his
versatility throughout the pitch.
In 2000 his transfer to Barcelona's arch-rival, Real Madrid, for
a record-breaking 56 million dollars only intensified the great
animosity between the two clubs. The move was very hurtful to
Barcelona supporters especially after he spent the summer
swearing he wouldn't transfer to Madrid. He went from being one
of the most cherished players in Catalonia to being one of the
most hated ones. There was a short-lived website devoted to
insult "judas Figo", which shows how much the fans were hurt. He
missed his highly anticipated first return to the Nou Camp due
to injury; in 2002, Barcelona's ground was banned after objects
were thrown at Figo, while massive chants calling him Pesetero (which
can be roughly translated to mercenary) echoed in the stadium;
and finally, during the final match of Euro 2004 between Greece
and Portugal, a Barça fan known as Jimmy Jump ran across the
field and threw a FC Barcelona flag at Figo in an apparent act
of defiance.
Despite the niggling detractors and all the critics' cries that
he was a vastly 'overrated' player, Figo played out some of the
best attacking football ever seen in both an individual and even
in his Real Madrid team. It was not hard to see why though,
given that Figo was one of the linchpins at the heart of an ever
increasing star studded squad that included Zinedine Zidane,
Roberto Carlos, Ronaldo, Steve McManaman, Raul Gonzalez, and
dubbed the 'Greatest Club in the World' first, and then,
officially crowned as the 'Club of the Century' by FIFA in the
year he joined. Alongside his equally illustrious team mates,
Real Madrid with Figo at the core swept the titles for the next
three years under coach Vicente Del Bosque.
On August 18, 2004, Figo announced that he would "take a break"
from international football. In April 2005 he announced to be
ready to return, as he was sidelined in Real Madrid, and the
next month Luiz Felipe Scolari announced he would talk to him
about his return. He agreed to return on 13 May and resumed his
international career in the match between Portugal and Slovakia
on June 4. This received mixed feelings from Portuguese fans:
some see his return as fixing something that should not have
happened, others are fearful of the "concessions" Scolari made
to bring him back.
Real Madrid coach Vanderlei Luxemburgo had a falling-out with
Figo after he relegated the Portugal international to the bench
for the second half of the 2004-2005 Primera Liga season. It was
widely believed that Figo would leave Los Merengues for first-team
football elsewhere. During the off-season, he was linked with a
move to the English Premiership with Liverpool or to Serie A's
Inter Milan. On August 5, 2005, Figo moved to Inter on a free
transfer and a two-year deal worth €7 million.
Luís Figo is nowadays one of the main Portuguese symbols and
ambassadors. Many Portuguese travelling outside southern Europe
get "Oh! Figo! Figo!" as a reply, when saying they are
Portuguese.
Figo and his wife, the Swedish super-model Helen SvedinHe is
married to Swedish model Helen Svedin. They have three daughters
named Daniela, Martina and Stella. |
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