Aílton (footballer, born 1973) facts for kids
Aílton at practice with MSV Duisburg in 2007
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| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Aílton Gonçalves da Silva | ||
| Date of birth | 19 July 1973 | ||
| Place of birth | Mogeiro, Brazil | ||
| Height | 1.77 m (5 ft 10 in) | ||
| Position(s) | Striker | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 1993–1994 | Ypiranga | 12 | (2) |
| 1994–1995 | Internacional | 21 | (4) |
| 1994–1995 | → Mogi Mirim (loan) | 28 | (8) |
| 1995–1996 | Santa Cruz | 21 | (7) |
| 1996–1997 | Guarani | 43 | (20) |
| 1997–1998 | UANL | 23 | (5) |
| 1998–2004 | Werder Bremen | 169 | (88) |
| 2004–2005 | Schalke 04 | 29 | (14) |
| 2005–2006 | Beşiktaş | 14 | (5) |
| 2006 | → Hamburger SV (loan) | 13 | (3) |
| 2006–2007 | Red Star Belgrade | 13 | (4) |
| 2007 | → Grasshoppers (loan) | 13 | (8) |
| 2007–2008 | MSV Duisburg | 8 | (1) |
| 2008–2009 | Metalurh Donetsk | 2 | (1) |
| 2008–2009 | → SCR Altach (loan) | 12 | (7) |
| 2009 | Campinense | 1 | (1) |
| 2009 | Chongqing Lifan | 5 | (0) |
| 2010 | KFC Uerdingen 05 | 13 | (4) |
| 2010–2011 | FC Oberneuland | 12 | (3) |
| 2011 | Rio Branco-SP | 4 | (1) |
| 2012–2013 | Hassia Bingen | 21 | (19) |
| Total | 476 | (205) | |
| *Club domestic league appearances and goals | |||
Aílton Gonçalves da Silva (born on July 19, 1973) is a former professional footballer from Brazil. He was known as a striker, which means he played in the front of the team to score goals. People also called him Kugelblitz, which means "Ball lightning" in German. This nickname came from his strong build and how fast he could run.
Aílton played for many different football clubs throughout his career. He started in Brazil, then played in Mexico, and spent a lot of time in Germany. He is one of only a few foreign players to score more than 100 goals in the Bundesliga, which is Germany's top football league.
Contents
Aílton's Football Journey
Aílton began his football career in his home country, Brazil. He played for several teams there, including Mogi Mirim Esporte Clube, Santa Cruz, and Guarani. After playing in Brazil, he moved to Mexico to join Tigres UANL.
Playing in Germany: Werder Bremen
In 1998, Aílton moved to Germany and joined Werder Bremen. His first season was a bit tough, as he only scored two goals in the league. However, he quickly improved and became a very important player for the team.
Werder Bremen won the DFB-Pokal (German Cup) in 1999. Aílton didn't play in that final, but he helped the team get there. In the following seasons, he scored many goals:
- 12 goals in 1999–2000
- 14 goals in 2000–01
- 16 goals in 2001–02
- 16 goals in 2002–03
His best season was 2003–04, when he scored an amazing 28 goals. That year, Werder Bremen won both the Bundesliga (the league championship) and the German Cup. This was a huge achievement! Because of his great performance, Aílton was named the Footballer of the Year (Germany) in 2004. He was the first foreign player ever to win this award.
Moving to Schalke 04
After his success at Werder Bremen, Aílton moved to another big German club, Schalke 04, for the 2004–05 season. He continued to score goals for Schalke, showing his talent.
International Team Offer
In March 2004, the Qatar Football Association tried to get Aílton to play for their national team. They offered him Qatari citizenship and a lot of money. However, FIFA, the world's football governing body, stepped in and stopped the move. They then made rules stricter about which players could play for different national teams.
Aílton's Later Career
In July 2005, Aílton moved to Beşiktaş in Turkey. He had some challenges there and didn't score as many goals as fans hoped. He later went on loan to Hamburger SV in Germany in January 2006. Unfortunately, he broke his jaw early in his time there, which kept him from playing for a while.
After returning from injury, he scored three goals for Hamburg. However, Hamburg decided not to buy him permanently. Aílton then moved to Red Star Belgrade in Serbia in August 2006. During the winter break of the 2006–07 season, he was loaned to Grasshopper Club Zürich in Switzerland, where he scored eight goals.
He then joined MSV Duisburg in Germany in July 2007. His time there was short, and he later played for clubs in Ukraine and Austria. In 2009, he returned to Brazil to play for Campinense and then moved to China to play for Chongqing Lifan.
Aílton finished his career playing in lower leagues for teams like KFC Uerdingen 05, FC Oberneuland, Rio Branco-SP, and Hassia Bingen. In 2012, he scored two goals in his first game for Hassia Bingen, helping the club attract a record number of fans for that match.
Aílton's Life Outside Football
Aílton is married to Rosseli Judith Rodriguez, who is from Mexico. They have four children together. In January 2012, Aílton appeared on the German TV show Ich bin ein Star – Holt mich hier raus!, which is similar to the show I'm a Celebrity...Get Me Out of Here!.
Career Statistics
| Club | Season | League | National cup | Continental | Other | Total | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Guarani FC | 1996 | Série A | 23 | 13 | – | – | – | 23 | 13 | |||
| 1997 | 20 | 7 | – | – | – | 20 | 7 | |||||
| Total | 43 | 20 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 43 | 20 | ||
| Tigres UANL | 1998 | Mexican Primera División | 16 | 5 | – | – | – | 16 | 5 | |||
| Werder Bremen | 1998–99 | Bundesliga | 12 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | – | 13 | 2 | |
| 1999–2000 | 29 | 12 | 5 | 3 | 9 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 45 | 16 | ||
| 2000–01 | 31 | 14 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 3 | – | 35 | 17 | |||
| 2001–02 | 33 | 16 | 2 | 2 | – | 2 | 2 | 37 | 20 | |||
| 2002–03 | 31 | 16 | 5 | 1 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 41 | 17 | ||
| 2003–04 | 33 | 28 | 6 | 6 | – | 4 | 0 | 43 | 34 | |||
| Total | 169 | 88 | 20 | 12 | 16 | 4 | 9 | 2 | 214 | 106 | ||
| Schalke 04 | 2004–05 | Bundesliga | 29 | 14 | 2 | 1 | 7 | 1 | 6 | 4 | 44 | 20 |
| Beşiktaş | 2005–06 | Süper Lig | 14 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 2 | – | 18 | 7 | |
| Hamburger SV (loan) | 2005–06 | Bundesliga | 13 | 3 | 0 | 0 | – | – | 13 | 3 | ||
| Red Star Belgrade | 2006–07 | Serbian SuperLiga | 11 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 | – | 13 | 4 | |
| Grasshoppers (loan) | 2006–07 | Swiss Super League | 13 | 8 | 1 | 0 | – | – | 14 | 8 | ||
| MSV Duisburg | 2007–08 | Bundesliga | 8 | 1 | 0 | 0 | – | – | 8 | 1 | ||
| Metalurh Donetsk | 2008–09 | Ukrainian Premier League | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | – | – | 2 | 1 | ||
| SCR Altach (loan) | 2008–09 | Austrian Bundesliga | 12 | 7 | 0!!0 | – | – | 12 | 7 | |||
| Campinense | 2009 | Série B | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | – | – | 1 | 1 | ||
| Chongqing Lifan | 2009 | Chinese Super League | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | – | – | 5 | 0 | ||
| KFC Uerdingen 05 | 2009–10 | Oberliga Niederrhein | 13 | 4 | 0 | 0 | – | – | 13 | 4 | ||
| FC Oberneuland | 2010–11 | Regionalliga Nord | 12 | 3 | 1 | 0 | – | – | 13 | 3 | ||
| Rio Branco | 2011 | Campeonato Paulista Série A2 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | – | – | 2 | 1 | ||
| Career total | 363 | 164 | 24 | 13 | 29 | 8 | 15 | 6 | 431 | 191 | ||
Aílton's Awards and Trophies
Aílton won several important awards and trophies during his football career:
Team Honours
- Werder Bremen
- Bundesliga: 2003–04 (German League Champions)
- DFB-Pokal: 1998–99, 2003–04 (German Cup Winners)
- DFB-Ligapokal runner-up: 1999 (German League Cup Finalist)
- Schalke 04
- UEFA Intertoto Cup: 2004 (European Club Competition)
- Red Star Belgrade
- Serbian SuperLiga: 2006–07 (Serbian League Champions)
Individual Awards
- Bundesliga top scorer: 2003–04 (He scored the most goals in the German League)
- Footballer of the Year (Germany): 2004 (Voted the best player in Germany)
- kicker Bundesliga Team of the Season: 2003–04 (Chosen as one of the best players in the league for that season)
