Brazilian football is one of the references when it comes to the creation of number 10 shirts, who lead their teams as true maestros.
Just like the most beloved sport in the world, cinema also offers awards to the best of its season, and the grand celebration of the Seventh Art is the Oscars. The 2024 edition takes place this Sunday (10) in the United States, and one of the films nominated for Best Picture is “Maestro”.
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Maestro
Maestro is directed by Bradley Cooper (The Hangover, A Star Is Born). The film is a biographical drama about composer, musician, and pianist Leonard Bernstein, responsible for composing the soundtracks of acclaimed Broadway musicals such as West Side Story, Peter Pan, and Candide.
The production is available on Netflix, a streaming platform.
Like Leonard Bernstein, many maestros shone on the football fields of Brazilian football, and thinking about this, Sambafoot recalls five midfielders who were true maestros with the ball at their feet.
Djalminha
We open our list with Djalminha, one of the best players of his generation. The midfielder shone with the shirts of Flamengo, Palmeiras, and Guarani in Brazilian football, but it was with Deportivo La Coruña – from Spain – that he became a legend and came very close to competing in the 2002 World Cup. Close to making the final list, the midfielder headbutted coach Javier Irureta during a training session and had his name cut from possible selections by coach Luiz Felipe Scolari.
Gerson
The ‘Golden Left Foot’ is another player with a predominant left foot who became a legend. Gerson played only for big teams – Flamengo, Botafogo, São Paulo, and Fluminense – and is remembered to this day for his perfect passes, as well as being a starter in the semi-finals and finals of the 1970 World Cup when the Brazilian national team became world champions.
Socrates
Dr. Socrates is one of the most remembered names in Brazilian football history and one of the great maestros when it comes to shining with backheel passes and game control. A huge name at Botafogo-SP and especially at Corinthians, where he shone on and off the field, Socrates played almost 300 matches for Timão and although he did not win Brazilian championships, he was part of the squads that won the Paulista Championships in 1979, 1982, and 1983.
For the Brazilian national team, the midfielder did not have major titles, but he was a key player in the 1982 World Cup when the team led by Telê Santana enchanted the world.
Alex
The quality of the left-footed player is indisputable, and another star with a left foot is Alex, a great idol of Coritiba, Cruzeiro, and Palmeiras. The midfielder was one of the main athletes of his generation and became a legend at Fenerbahçe in Turkey.
Alex is mentioned by many as one of the most underrated athletes in Brazilian football history for never having played in a World Cup despite his great performances during the 2002 and 2006 tournament cycles.
Paulo Henrique Ganso
We conclude the list with the youngest of all. Paulo Henrique Ganso enchanted Brazil in the early 2010s. Revealed by Santos alongside Neymar, the midfielder suffered from serious knee injuries from his early days as a player in the youth categories but has achieved important victories.
In addition to Santos, Ganso played for São Paulo in Brazilian football before moving to Europe and returned to Brazil in 2019 to play for Fluminense. In national territory, the midfielder boasts significant titles such as two Libertadores Cups, a Copa Sudamericana, and a Copa do Brasil.
