Personal Information
Date of Birth | January 30, 1975 |
Juninho Pernambucano: A Brief Biography
Antônio Augusto Ribeiro Reis Jr. commonly known as Juninho or Juninho Pernambucano, is a Brazilian footballer and dead-ball specialist, currently playing as a midfielder for Major League Soccer club New York Red Bulls. He is considered the greatest free kick specialist of all time. Juninho led Olympique Lyonnais to 7 consecutive Ligue 1 titles before leaving the club in 2009 while scoring 100 goals in 344 official games for Lyon, and six goals in 40 games for theBrazilian national team. He retired from international football after the 2006 World Cup. Juninho started his career at Sport and quickly established himself as a rising star in Brazilian football. After winning two regional titles with Sport, he moved to Vasco da Gama in 1995, and won several trophies with the club, including the Brazilian Championship in 1997 and 2000, the Copa Libertadores in 1998, the Copa Mercosur in 2000, as well as the 2000Brazilian Silver Ball award. In 2001, Juninho moved abroad to play for French club Olympique Lyonnais. On 17 June 2009, Juninho signed a two-year contract with Qatari club Al-Gharafa for a fee of €2.5 million. In his first season with Al-Gharafa, Juninho captained the team to their seventh league title and wins in the Qatari Stars Cup and Qatar Crown Prince Cup, completing the treble. He finished the season with Player of the Year honours from the Qatar Football Association. On 27 April 2011, Juninho rejoined his former club Vasco da Gama. He played his 300th game against São Paulo. On 17 December 2012, Juninho signed for Major League Soccer team New York Red Bulls.