Fuente: © AC Milan
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AC MILAN: SAMBODROMO DO MILAN

Ronaldinho is just the last one of a long lineage of Brazilian champions who have made Milan great with their joy and their irresistible technique. Milan, more than ever, is now dancing the “Samba".

/noticias.info/ MILAN - Milan and Brazil, a feeling which has far away roots, but which consolidates under president Berlusconi, who is in love of the technical, quick and spectacular game. From the Dutch to the Brazilians, because no one better than them knows how to show the beautiful, clean and correct football.

The first Brazilians at Milan, arrived in 1935, and they had names of clear Italian origins: Vincente Arnoni and Eliseo Gabardo. Some years later, in 1958, the Rossoneri’s club found an authentic Brazilian genius who made Milan great: Jose Joao Altafini, know as “Mazola", who arrived from Palmeiras to become one of the greatest strikers in the Italian league. He arrived in Milan with blonde hair and the always smiling face, fresh winner of the “Rimet” cup with Didi, Vava and Pele. Technical, quick and exceptional opportunist he soon become San Siro's idol. In his first season he scored 32 goals between the league and the Coppa Italia. In the following season up to 1964 he scored 129 goals.

1963 is the year of Amarildo, world champion in Chile in 1962. His first season was characterized with 16 goals and he would leave Milan in 1967 with a total of 32 goals.

Towards the end of the 1960s, another Brazilian player imposed himself with the Milan shirt: Angelo Benedicto Sormani. A winger who in today’s modern game he would do very well, transformed by Nereo Rocco in a goal and assist machine. He scored in the final of the Champions Cup won by Ajax in 1969, he won the Scudetto, Cup Winners Cup and Intercontinental Cup, an authentic “Craque”.

Following the closure of the borders, Milan returned to breathe the Brazilian air in 1997. The defender Andre Cruz and especially Leonardo , Nascimento d’Araujo arrived. Attacking midfielder with the crystalline class, Leo finds it difficult to impose himself in the first season, but between 1997 and 1998 he explodes, awarding Milan the Scudetto with 12 decisive goals. He’s a third added forward or attacking midfielder, Leonardo also awards the San Siro crowd with great football, scores a brace in the derby game of March 13th 1999 and designs trajectories from set-pieces which cannot be caught. The fans and the club fall in love with him, but his extraordinary talent is stopped, with the passing of time, due to various muscular problems. He salutes Milan at the end of the 2000/01 season, to return back home, but his attachment to Milan is too strong to end there, and in fact Leo returns in the 2002/03 season and wins the Champions League and Coppa Italia before becoming a manager.

In these years arrive also two defenders: Julio Cesar and Roque Junior. The real great pacesetter of the new “Brazilian Milan” is called Serginho, considered a real great alternative to Roberto Carlos. He arrived in 1999 bringing a lot of joy, velocity and goals to the Inter rivals.

The real great purchase is called Rivaldo. He arrived in the summer of 2002 from Barcelona and is the protagonist of the Brazilian’s world cup success. He starts off very well and enchants with Rui Costa. Scores important goals but in the long distance he slows down, also paying for the fact of acclimatization and family problems. He still becomes an idol for the Rossoneri fans and in 2003 he passes the sceptre to Ricky Kaka, who arrived in Milan with another Brazilian. Cafu. The rest is recent history, made up of achievements and trophies won thanks to the Brazilians Dida, Serginho, Cafu and Kaka. With them other players had alternate success like Ricardo Oliveira, Emerson and Ronaldo. The new pacesetter of the team is Pato, the reign is always that of Kaka, the future could also now be that of Ronaldinho. Little to say: enjoyment at the highest Rossoneri’s level. notas_de_prensa_archivo