by João Nuno Coelho
Translated from O Público, 05.09.2008
He is the last great artist of the new generation to abandon Portuguese football. Ricardo Quaresma was one of the few reasons to go and watch football in Portugal in the most recent years. The numbers of his last two seasons at FC porto are impressive. Fourteen goals and 24 goal assists transformed him into the most influential player of his team, with a direct participation on a third of FC Porto's goals in the Portuguese League. His importance at the three times champions was such that sometimes there was many references to Quaresma-addiction and almost always rightly so.
The Mustang (as he is always known) took on his shoulders the responsibility of making the difference: he was the one that had more shots and more crosses, more goal assists, more corners and more free kicks (both in Porto as well as in the whole League). He was also the only portista to score from a free kick in the last two editions of the Portuguese League; the player that was more fouled and that provoked more yellow cards at the opposition. But beyond the numbers, Quaresma excited the crowds of many Portuguese stadiums, with other kinds of "numbers": dazzling dribbles, teleguided crosses, "trivela" shots, monumental goals - including some for the National Team.
In spite of his performance, he always divided opinions and was even strongly jeered by FC Porto's supporters during the last season. Perhaps because Quaresma is not a normal player. He doesn't read the game, he feels it. He doesn't think football, he hints it. His football is wild, the years go by but it remains in pure state, raw, closer to the streets than to the stadiums. That is why he is called Mustang. He is almost always incapable of changing his form of playing regarding the way or the opponent that he faces. He plays too much for the crowds whom not always like what they see, as he has the tendency for ecesses of individualism thus often losing the ball. He seems sometimes to be the only player of an imaginary fourth team on the pitch: Quaresma FC. Many coaches rejected him: Rijkaard didn't like him at Barcelona. Scolari never gave him a real chance at the Selecção. Sacchi thinks he is a common player. His arrival to Italy holds an enormous question: will Mourinho manage to win the challenge of "taming" the Mustang, without putting out the fire of one of the greatest talents of world football? For Quaresma, the challenge is even greater: to prove that he really can be amongst the best.
DATA OF RICARDO QUARESMA ON THE 2006/07 AND 2007/08 SEASONS
(average per game) AND HIS IMPORTANCE AT FC PORTO
2006/07 (between brackets, the percentage on the team total)
Games...................... 27
Games as a starter..... 26
Goals........................ 6 (9,2 %)
Free kick Goals........... 1 (100%)
Assists.................... 16 (35%)
Shots..................... 3,7 (21,8%)
Dangerous shots...... 1,7 (22%)
Dangerous passes.... 1,7 (10,8%)
Crosses.................. 5,8 (32%)
Free kicks............... 5,7 (68%)
Corners.................. 4,7 (83%)
Fouls suffered............ 3 (15,4%)
2007/08 (between brackets, the percentage on the team total)
Games.......................... 26
Games as a starter......... 26
Goals............................. 8 (13,3 %)
Free kick Goals................ 2 (100%)
Assists........................... 8 (21%)
Shots.......................... 4,9 (30,4%)
Dangerous shots............ 1,3 (23,7%)
Dangerous passes.......... 2,2 (19,1%)
Crosses....................... 4,9 (26,2%)
Free kicks.................... 4,6 (78%)
Corners....................... 5,1 (90,2%)
Fouls suffered................3,6 (21,4%)
MOST VALUABLE PLAYERS OF THE BIG TEAMS IN PORTUGAL
(goals and assists)
2006/07
1 Quaresma (FC Porto)...06G 16A 22T 65TG
2 Liedson (Sporting)......15G 03A 18T 54TG
3 Simão (Benfica).........11G 06A 17T 55TG
4 Miccoli (Benfica).......11G 03A 14T 55TG
5 Lucho (FC Porto).....10G 02A 12T 65TG
MOST VALUABLE PLAYERS OF THE BIG TEAMS IN PORTUGAL
(goals and assists)
2007/08
1 Lisandro (FC Porto)......24G 01A 25T 60TG
2 Quaresma (FC Porto)...08G 08A 16T 60TG
3 Cardozo (Benfica).......13G 01A 14T 45TG
4 Liedson (Sporting)......11G 04A 15T 46TG
5 Lucho (FC Porto).......03G 10A 13T 60TG
G - Goals; A - Assists; T - Total of Goals+Ass
