 | |||
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Antônio Naelson Matias | ||
| Date of birth | May 23, 1976 | ||
| Place of birth | Itajá, Rio Grande do Norte, Brazil | ||
| Height | 1.63 m (5 ft 4 in) | ||
| Playing position | Attacking Midfielder, Central Midfielder | ||
| Club information | |||
| Current club | Toluca | ||
| Number | 10 | ||
| Youth career | |||
| 1985–1993 | América-RN | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps† | (Gls)† |
| 1993–1998 | Saltillo Soccer | 35 | (1) |
| 1998–1999 | Monterrey | 17 | (1) |
| 1999– | Toluca | 500 | (61) |
| National team‡ | |||
| 2004– | Mexico | 56 | (6) |
| * Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 17 August 2013.
† Appearances (Goals).
‡ National team caps and goals correct as of 12 October 2011 | |||
Antônio Naelson Matias (born May 23, 1976), also known simply as Zinha,[1] Sinha or "Siña", is a Mexican football midfielder, who plays for Club Toluca in the Liga MX and the Mexico national team.
Biography
Zinha was born in Itajá, a city located in the northwest of the Brazilian state of Rio Grande do Norte. He began his career playing for Rio Grande do Norte's capital city team América FC.
Zinha measures 163 cm (5 ft 4 in) and weighs 67 kg (147 lb).
Zinha arrived in 1998 to Mexico, when he joined CF Monterrey. On 1999, he moved to Toluca, where he was given a leap of faith. he has played in Toluca ever since and it is considered one of the most emblematic players in the team's history. Sinha is widely known for his dribbling skills, his accurate passing and his intelligence on the pitch as well as his leadership and long distance shot. Despite his age, he is still considered as one of the most talented players in Mexico up to date
International career
He was part of the Mexican 2004 Olympic football team, who exited in the first round, having finished third in group A, below group winners Mali and South Korea.
He has also been called up to play for Mexico, although he is a Brazilian-born player, he became anaturalized Mexican citizen, after settling in Mexico for several years. During the 2006 FIFA World Cup inGermany, Zinha became the first foreign-born player to score a goal for Mexico in a World Cup tournament, scoring against Iran. He was called up to play again for Mexico, thus making him the first naturalized to be called up by Hugo Sánchez.
In 2005, he played in the Confederations Cup scoring a goal against Japan that helped Mexico win the match. Mexico finished in fourth place in the tournament. He was also called up for the national team to play in the Gold Cup. On May 23, 2010 Zinha won his 5th championship on his birthday, but missed a penalty on the penalty-shootout.
During the 2011 CONCACAF Gold Cup, Zinha, and four other members of the Mexican National Team, tested positive for the banned substance of Clenbuterol and were withdrawn from the team's tournament squad.[2]However, all players were exonerated as FIFA determined that the accused had accidentally ingested the banned substance through contaminated meat that had been served during a pre-tournament training camp.[3]
However, World Anti-Doping Agency appealed to the Court of Arbitration for Sport to request a ban.[4] But on 12 October 2011 WADA withdrew this request after the full file was available for them.[5]
On July 7, 2013, Zinha announced his retirement from football within a year from the announcement. On October 30, 2013 came out of retirement after being called up by Miguel Herrera.
