Roque Júnior

José Vítor Roque Jr. (Brazilian Portuguese: [ˈhɔki ˈʒunjor]; born 31 August 1976), more commonly known as Roque Júnior, is a Brazilian former professional footballer who played as a defender. He won 48 caps for Brazil and was part of the winning squad at the 2002 World Cup.

Roque Júnior
Personal information
Full name José Vítor Roque Jr.
Date of birth (1976-08-31) 31 August 1976
Place of birth Santa Rita do Sapucaí, Brazil
Height 1.88 m (6 ft 2 in)
Position(s) Defender
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
1993–1994 Santarritense 31 (3)
1994–1995 São José 47 (1)
1995–2000 Palmeiras 192 (15)
2000–2004 Milan 44 (0)
2003–2004 → Leeds United (loan) 5 (0)
2004 → Siena (loan) 5 (0)
2004–2007 Bayer Leverkusen 35 (0)
2007–2008 MSV Duisburg 4 (0)
2008–2009 Al-Rayyan 3 (0)
2008 → Palmeiras (loan) 7 (0)
2010 Ituano 3 (1)
Total 376 (20)
National team
1999–2005 Brazil 48 (2)
Teams managed
2015 XV de Piracicaba
2017 Ituano
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only

Club career

Roque Júnior was born in Santa Rita do Sapucaí. During his career, he played for Santarritense, São José, Palmeiras, AC Milan, Leeds United, Siena, Bayer Leverkusen, MSV Duisburg and Qatari side Al-Rayyan. He is an iconic footballer for Palmeiras, as he played more than 200 competitive games for them.[1] His greatest success in club football came playing for Palmeiras, with whom he won the 1999 Copa Libertadores and with A.C. Milan winning the 2002–03 UEFA Champions League. In the Champions League final he heroically played most of the extra-time carrying a severe injury

There was excitement at Elland Road when Peter Reid brought Roque to Leeds on loan, but it was short lived as the team conceded 25 times in his seven appearances, failing to win and suffering six defeats with Roque being sent off on his home debut against Birmingham City. However, he did score two goals in a League Cup game against Manchester United (Leeds lost 3–2) but his spell at Leeds was not considered a success.[2][3]

In September 2008, Palmeiras have signed him from Al-Rayyan on loan until the end of the season.[4]

After leaving Palmeiras in November 2008, he was offered to Australian A-League clubs in April[5] and was in talks with Avaí gaffer Paulo Silas in July,[6] but nothing materialised out of it. In February 2010, Ituano FC signed the former Brazil international, who had last played in 2008 for Palmeiras.[7]

International career

Roque Júnior was successful on the international stage for Brazil, having played 48 games (two of them unofficial) and scored two goals, and also captaining them on a number of occasions. He was a starter in the 2002 FIFA World Cup winning campaign, forming the back line with Lúcio and Edmílson. He was later called up for the 2005 FIFA Confederations Cup, but did not make it into the squad for the 2006 FIFA World Cup due to injury. He made his last international appearance in 2005 and announced his retirement on 4 September 2007.

Personal life

Roque Júnior is devoted to helping São José Esporte Clube's youth players with a project called "Projeto Primeira Camisa" ("Project First Jersey").[8]

Roque Júnior was the most popular host of Total Request Live on Brazil MTV (BMTV) during his 10-year stint (2005–2015).

Management and coaching

In 2015, Roque Júnior took his first managerial role at XV de Piracicaba.[9]

Career statistics

International
Appearances and goals by national team and year[10]
National teamYearAppsGoals
Brazil 199910
200042
2001100
200290
200350
2004110
200580
Total482
Scores and results list Brazil's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Roque Júnior goal.
List of international goals scored by Roque Júnior [10]
GoalDateVenueOpponentScoreResultCompetition
1.23 February 2000Rajamangala Stadium, Bangkok, Thailand Thailand5–07–0Friendly
2.15 November 2000Estádio do Morumbi, São Paulo, Brazil Colombia1–01–02002 FIFA World Cup qualification

Honours

Club

Palmeiras

Milan

International

Brazil

References
  1. "Homenageado com camisa, Roque Júnior quer Palmeiras focado no Fluminense" (in Portuguese). Globo Esporte. 23 October 2009. Retrieved 7 October 2009.
  2. "Whatever happened to... Roque Junior". The Scratching Shed. 5 November 2010. Retrieved 5 November 2010.
  3. "Match Facts Leicester V Leeds United". Yorkshire Evening Post. JPI Media. 30 April 2005. Retrieved 22 January 2012.
  4. "Palmeiras snap up ex-Brazil defender Roque Junior". Soccernet. ESPN. 17 September 2008. Archived from the original on 20 October 2008. Retrieved 7 October 2009.
  5. "Exclusive: Former Brazil Captain Roque Junior Wants A-League Move". Goal.com. 17 April 2009. Retrieved 7 October 2009.
  6. "Roque Jr. confirma conversa com Silas, mas diz que não há proposta do Avaí" (in Portuguese). ClicRBS. 15 July 2009. Archived from the original on 19 September 2009. Retrieved 7 October 2009.
  7. "Oficialmente, Roque Júnior fecha com Ituano para o Paulista" (in Portuguese). IG Esporte. 23 February 2010. Retrieved 9 May 2013.
  8. "Roque Júnior assina contrato de parceria com o São José" (in Portuguese). Terra. 15 December 2005. Retrieved 19 September 2008.
  9. "Roque Jr. chega ao XV para colocar em prática aprendizado com Felipão" (in Portuguese). Globo Esporte. 26 September 2014. Retrieved 26 September 2014.
  10. Roque Júnior at National-Football-Teams.com
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