The Brazilian Connection

Brazil is the biggest country in South-America and it is famous for its vibrant culture, Amazon forests, Rio Carnival, Christ the Redeemer statue, coffee, samba and bossa nova, capoeira, Ipanema beach and much more but not least for its football.

Brazil have won the World Cup a record five times (1958, 1962, 1970, 1994 and 2002) and are the only nation to have taken part in every edition. The Verde-Amarela have also won the Copa América 9 times, the Confederations Cup 7 times.

In Brazil the most winning clubs are Palmeiras (23 total titles), Flamengo (18), São Paulo (20), Santos (17), Cruzeiro (17), Corinthians (15), Grêmio (14), Internacional (10), Atlético de Mineiro (10), Vasco da Gama (7), Fluminense (7), Botafogo (5).

Brazil have had hundreds of wonderful players, including Ademir, Djalma Santos, Jairzinho, Tostão, Zico, Sócrates, Cláudio Taffarel, Careca, Alemão, Bebeto, Romário, Robinho, Cafu, Rivaldo, Roberto Carlos, Ronaldo, Kakà, Ronaldinho, Neymar up to Alisson and Vinicius Junior just to name a few.

They have also had arguably the best ever, Pelé.

Many have played in Serie A and some for Lazio, especially in the 1930's and in the last twenty years.

1930's

Lazio 1931-32, Source Wikipedia

Lazio had so many Brazilians in the 1930's that they started to be called "Brasilazio".

Joāo Fantoni I - forward, arrived from Palestra Itália in 1930 and played from 1930 to 1935. He made 113 league appearances and scored 38 goals (including 2 in derbies). He then returned to Palestra Italia.

A good forward and reasonably prolific with 38 goals.

Octavio Fantoni II - midfielder, Joāo's cousin he too arrived from Palestra Itália in 1930 and played until 1935. He made 108 league appearances and scored 5 goals. He also had Italian citizenship and won 1 cap for Italy.

He died of a nose infection, on February 8 1935, while still playing for Lazio.

José Castelli - midfielder, he arrived from Corinthians in 1931 and played until 1934. He made 48 league appearances and scored 7 goals (including 1 in 2-1 winning derby). He then returned to Corinthians. He earned 1 cap for Brazil. He was nicknamed Ratto.

Enzio Serafini - defender/midfielder, he arrived from Palestra Itália in 1931 and played until 1935. He made 95 league appearances with 1 goal. He then returned to Palestra Itália. He won 5 caps for Brazil with 1 goal.

A deeply religious person and highly professional, he was a pillar of Lazio's team for four seasons.

Alejandro Demaría - forward, he arrived from Corinthians in 1931 and played until 1935. He made 102 league appearances and scored 29 goals (4 in derbies including a hat-trick). He then returned to Corinthians. He won 4 caps for Brazil with 3 goals.

He was nicknamed "Trippa di Ferro". One of the better Brazilians to have played for Lazio, he was a physical forward for the times at 1.90.

Armando Del Debbio - defender, he arrived from Corinthians in 1931 and played until 1935. He made 88 league appearances and scored 2 goals. He then returned to Corinthians. He earned 3 caps for Brazil with 1 goal.

Pedro Rizzetti - defender/midfielder, he arrived from Palestra Itália in 1931 and played until 1934. He made 47 league appearances. He then retired. He earned 1 cap for Brazil.

André Tedesco - forward, he arrived from Santos in 1931 and only played one season. He made 6 league appearances with 1 goal. He then returned to Brazil and joined Corinthians.

Anfilogino "Filó" Guarisi - forward, he arrived from Corinthians in 1931 and played until 1936 and again briefly in 1938. He made 137 total league appearances with 43 goals. He played 4 times for Brazil with 1 goal but then obtained Italian citizenship.  With the Verde-Amarela he obtained a runner-up medal at the 1925 Copa América while for the Azzurri he played 6 times with 1 goal and won the World Cup in 1934.

He is considered one of Lazio's all-time greats. He was exceptionally quick and also skilful, he helped set up plenty of goals for the Fantoni's but also for Silvio Piola from 1934-36.

Leonízio Fantoni III - forward, Joāo's brother, he arrived from Palestra Itália  in 1932 and played until 1935. He made 25 league appearances and scored 9 goals. He earned 5 caps for Brazil with 1 goal and won a bronze medal at the 1938 World Cup in France. He then became a coach with Cruzeiro and Santos.

A big forward (1.88 and 82 kilos) he was not always a starter but was relatively prolific.

Duilio Salatin - midfielder, arrived from Palestra Itália in December 1932 but due to bureaucratic problems only started playing in 1933-34, making 12 league appearances with 1 goal. He then returned to Brazil to Ordem e Progresso.

Benedicto Zacconi - defender and forward, he arrived from Torino (previously Botafogo and Fluminense) in 1935 and played until 1939. He made 110 league appearances and scored 4 goals (including one in Lazio’s first derby win in Testaccio, 2-0). He then retired and returned to Brazil. He played 3 times for Brazil and scored 1 goal.

A versatile player he could play up front but was more often fielded at the back. He finished 2nd in Serie A in 1936-37. He will also be remembered for his goal in Lazio's first ever away "Stracittadina" victory.

1940's

Orlando Fantoni IV- forward Joao and Leonido's brother, he arrived from Palmeiras in 1947 and played only one season, making 8 league appearances with 2 goals. He then returned to Brazil and Cruzeiro.

After retiring he had a successful coaching career in Brazil.

1950's

Source Lazio Wiki

Humberto Tozzi - forward, he arrived in 1956 from Palmeiras and stayed until 1960. He made 103 total appearances and scored 45 goals. He won a Coppa Italia with Lazio in 1958. He then returned to Palmeiras. He won 7 caps for Brazil and scored 1 goal plus 3 games for the Olympic team with 2 goals.

A brilliant but undisciplined and moody player who would turn on and off during games. When he was focused he was one of the best strikers in Serie A.

1970's

Sergio Clerici - forward, he arrived from Bologna in 1977 (previously Lecco, Bologna, Atalanta, Verona, Fiorentina and Napoli). He stayed one season and played a total of 16 games with 2 goals (1 in A, the winner in a 1-0 against Inter).

He was the last foreigner to play in Italy before the "borders" were re-opened in 1980-81.

1980's

Joāo Batista - midfielder, he arrived in 1983 from Palmeiras and stayed until 1985. He played 43 league games and scored 2 goals. With Lazio relegated he then left for Avellino. In 1986 he joined Belenenses in Portugal and in 1988 returned to Brazil and played a season for Avaí. He earned 38 caps for Brazil and 18 for the Olympic team with 1 goal. He won bronze at the 1978 World Cup and at the 1979 Copa América.

He was a big name but arrived at Lazio in difficult times and struggled to stand out.

Amarildo - forward, he arrived from Celta Vigo in 1989 and only stayed one season.  He played 29 league games and scored 8 goals (including 2 in 3-0 win against Maradona's Napoli). He then played for Cesena, Torino, Famalicão (Portugal), Logroñés before returning to Brazil in 1995 (União São Joāo, São Paulo, Bahia, Ribeirão).

He was an Athlete of Christ and used to give his markers a bible.

2000's to Present Day

César - defender/midfielder, he arrived from São Caetano in 2001 and stayed until 2006. He played a total of 119 games and scored 18 goals (including 1 in 3-1 winning derby). He won a Coppa Italia at Lazio in 2004. He left for Inter briefly, then Corinthians and Livorno on loan, Inter again, Bologna and Pescina VG. He won 2 caps for Brazil.

Affectionately known as Cesaretto he started as a left full-back but evolved into a talented midfielder.

Emílson Cribari - defender, he arrived from Udinese in 2005 (previously 5 years with Empoli) and stayed until 2010. He played a total of 141 games with 1 goal. He won a Coppa Italia and Supercoppa in 2009 with Lazio. He left for Siena, then Napoli, Cruzeiro and Rangers Glasgow.

A solid central defender, he formed a good partnership with Sebastiano Siviglia.

Francelino Matuzalém - midfielder, he arrived from Real Saragozza in 2008 (previously Vitoria, Bellinzona, Napoli, Piacenza, Brescia, Shakhtar Donetsk) and stayed until January 2013. He made 93 total appearances and scored 4 goals. He won a Coppa Italia and a Supercoppa in 2009. He left for Genoa, then Bologna, Verona, Miami FC and Monterosi.

A solid, hard tackling and experienced central midfielder but also prone to injury.

André Dias - defender, he arrived from São Paulo in 2010 and stayed four seasons. He played a total of 131 games and scored 6 goals. He won a Coppa Italia in 2013 with Lazio, the historic derby final win over Roma.  He then retired in 2014.

A quality central defender, he set up a good partnership with Giuseppe Biava. One of Lazio’s best Brazilian defenders.

Source Lazio Wiki

Hernanes - midfielder, he arrived from São Paulo in 2010 and stayed until January 2014. He played a total of 156 games with 41 goals. He won the historic Coppa Italia in 2013 against Roma, playing 85 minutes. He left for Inter, then Juventus, Hebei FC (China), São Paulo, Hebei FC again, Săo Paulo and Sport Recife. He earned 28 caps for Brazil with 2 goals and played 7 times for the Olympic team with 1 goal. With Brazil he won a Confederations Cup in 2015 and an Olympic silver medal at Beijing 2008.

He was an extremely talented attacking midfielder who could use both his feet and had excellent shooting abilities.

Ederson - midfielder, he arrived from Olympique Lyonnais in 2012 (previously Internacional, Juventude and Nice) and stayed until 2016. He played a total of 50 games with 5 goals. He won the historic Coppa Italia in 2013 defeating Roma in the final He then left for Flamengo. He won 1 cap for Brazil.

He had his moments at Lazio but was often injured.

Felipe Anderson - midfielder/forward, he arrived from Săo Paulo in 2013. He had two spells at Lazio, 2013-18 and 2021-24. He played a total of 326 games and scored 58 goals. He won a Supercoppa in 2017. In between his Lazio stints he played for West-Ham United and Porto. He now plays for Palmeiras. He has earned 2 caps for Brazil and has played 16 times for the Olympic team with 3 goals. He won an Olympic gold medal at Rio de Janeiro 2016.

An exceptionally talented player, on a good day he was unplayable and scored some memorable goals. He was one of the more popular Brazilians to have played for Lazio.

Mauricio - defender, he arrived from Sporting Lisbon in 2015 (previously Palmeiras, Grêmio, Portuguesa, Vítoria, Joinville and Sport Recife) and had two spells at Lazio (with loan to Spartak Moscow in between), Jan 2015-16 and 2017-Feb 2018. He played a total of 56 games and won a Supercoppa in 2017. He left for Legia Warsaw then Johor Darul Ta'zim (Malaysia). He was not a great success at Lazio.

Wallace - defender, he arrived from Braga (via Monaco) in 2016 and stayed until 2019. He played a total of 67 games and scored 2 goals. He won a Coppa Italia in 2019 and Supercoppa in 2017. He returned to Braga, then Malatyaspor, Wuhan San Zhen and Ittihad Kalba (UAE).

An imposing defender he alternated good games to ones with lapses in concentration (as in one infamous derby).

Luiz Felipe - defender, he arrived from Salernitana (where he was on loan from Ituano) in 2017 and stayed until 2022. He played a total of 144 games with 2 goals and won a Coppa Italia (2019) and the Supercoppa twice (2017, 2019). He left for Betis Seville, then Al-Ittihad and Olympique Marseille. He has dual nationality and played for Brazil U20s and the Olympic team but also earned 1 cap for Italy.

A technical and dynamic central defender he started well at Lazio but then became more inconsistent and paired with contractual issues was let go.

Official SS Lazio photo

Lucas Leiva - midfielder, he arrived from Liverpool in 2017 (previously Grêmio) and stayed until 2022. He played a total of 198 games with 4 goals a Coppa Italia (2019) and the Supercoppa twice (2017, 2019). He then returned to Gremio briefly before retiring. He won 24 caps for Brazil and played 7 times for the Olympic team winning a bronze at Beijing 2008.

A great signing for Lazio he was a superb player, strong, intelligent and charismatic. One of Lazio’s best ever value for money signings.

Luan David Capanni - midfielder/ forward, he arrived from Flamengo at 18 in 2018. He played for the U19s in 2018-19 but also made 1 appearance in Serie A. He then joined Milan's youth setup and has since played for Racing Santander, Viterbese, Grosseto, Estrela de Amadora, Arka Gdynia (Poland) and Latina.

André Anderson - midfielder, he arrived from Santos youth academy in 2018. He has had three spells at Lazio (alternated with loans to Salernitana and São Paulo), 2019-20, 2021-22, 2023-present day. He has played a total of 11 games and won a Supercoppa in 2019. He has dual nationality and has played both for Brazil U18s and Italy U20s.

He has never broken into the first team at Lazio.

Rômulo - midfielder, he arrived on loan from Genoa in January 2019 (previous clubs include Juventude, Chapecoense, Cruzeiro, Atlético PR, Fiorentina, Verona and Juventus) and stayed until June. He played a total of 13 games and won a Coppa Italia. He went back to Genoa then Brescia on loan before returning to Brazil, Cruzeiro and Athletic.

A versatile player, he settled in well at Lazio but was a little surprisingly not kept on.

Andreas Pereira - midfielder, he arrived from Manchester United on loan in 2020 (previously also Granada and Valencia) and stayed one season. He played a total of 30 games with 1 goal. He left for Flamengo on loan and then signed for his current club Fulham in 2022. He has won 9 caps for Brazil and scored 2 goals.

He showed some flashes of his undoubtable class at Lazio but not often enough to stay on.

Marcos Antonio - midfielder, he arrived from Shakhtar Donetsk in 2022 and stayed one season. He played a total of 22 games with 1 goal. He was then loaned to PAOK in Greece and São Paulo.

A diminutive playmaker he had a few good games