Fabio Aurelio

 Fábio Aurélio

Fábio Aurélio Rodrigues (born 24 September 1979) is a Brazilian footballer who plays for Liverpool of the Premier League, having previously played for São Paulo andValencia. He plays as either a left back or left winger and has represented Brazil at Under-17 and Under-20 levels and at the 2000 Sydney Olympics. Of Italian descent, Aurélio claims dual citizenship of that country alongside that of his birthplace, Brazil. He is married with two children.

Personal life

Aurélio was born on 24 September 1979 in São Carlos, Brazil. to parents Mario and Neide. Of Italian descent, he holds dual citizenship of both Brazil and Italy. He has one sister, who is married to fellow Brazilian footballer Edu.[4] Fábio married his wife Elaine in January 2000 and they have two children, Fábio (born December 2001) and Victoria (born 2006).

Club career São Paulo

Aurélio came through the youth scheme at São Paulo FC, making his first team debut in 1997, and represented Brazil at Under-17 and Under-20 levels during his time at the club. He also played in the 2000 Sydney Olympics.

  Valencia

He joined Valencia CF after the Olympics on a six-year contract. The 2001–02 season would see his first major trophy win, when he helped Rafael Benitez's team to their firstLa Liga championship in 31 years.[7] The next year, he established himself as one of the league's best left-backs with 8 league goals; 10 goals in all competitions. The 2003–04 season was another big year for Valencia, winning both the domestic La Liga championship as well as the European 2003–04 UEFA Cup tournament, beating Olympique de Marseille 2–0 in the final. However, Aurélio missed most of the season with a broken leg, managing only two games.

  Liverpool

His 6 year contract having expired, Aurélio left Valencia to join Liverpool on a Bosman free transfer in July 2006, becoming the first Brazilian to sign for the club. He cited the chance to rejoin former manager Benitez as a key factor in his decision, telling the Liverpool Echo:

"I am going to a new club in which the trainer knows me, to see if I can conquer the objectives I have set myself. The most important moments I had in my career were the titles (with Valencia) and that was with Benítez. He trusted me and he continues to trust me and that is what I value more."

On 5 July, the transfer was confirmed by Liverpool.

Aurélio made his debut for the club in the FA Community Shield victory over Chelsea on 13 August and played a key part in Liverpool's squad during his first season, notably providing two assists for Peter Crouch and Daniel Agger in a 4–1 win over fellow title contenders Arsenal on 31 March 2007. However, Aurélio soon suffered a setback as he injured his achilles tendon on 3 April in a UEFA Champions League first leg tie against PSV. Aurélio missed the rest of Liverpool's 2006–07 campaign meaning that he played only 25 games in his first year on Merseyside. He returned to action the following season on 18 September, coming on as a late substitute in a 1–1 draw against F.C. Porto in the Champions League group phase.

Aurélio scored his first goal for Liverpool on 2 March 2008 in a league match win against Bolton Wanderers at the Reebok Stadium. The final score was 3–1, with Aurelio scoring Liverpool's third with a volley from Xabi Alonso's corner. He scored again on the 7 February 2009 against Portsmouth at Fratton Park with a free kick into the bottom corner, getting his team back on level terms and helping Liverpool towards a 3–2 victory. His next goal was the third in a 4–1 victory over perennial rivals Manchester United in March 2009.

Aurélio went on to establish himself as Liverpool's first choice left-back but was again beset by injury. In the team's 1–1 draw with Chelsea in a Champions League semi-final first leg clash. Aurélio tore his adductor muscle after a forceful impact with Joe Cole and as a result, was ruled out for the rest of the season. In the summer of 2009, while returning from the injury, he was injured playing beach football with his children. He returned a month into the season.

Rafael Benitez confirmed on 25 May 2010 that Aurelio would leave Liverpool after rejecting a pay-as-you-play offer. Following a change of manager, on 1 August 2010, Aurelio re-signed for Liverpool on a two year deal. He made his first appearance in his second spell for the club in a pre-season game against Borussia Mönchengladbach the day after re-signing, coming on as a substitute and wearing the captain's armband for the closing stages of the match. The new Liverpool manager, Roy Hodgson, declared his delight at being able to re-sign Aurélio and, during an interview with the club's T.V channel, he said: "I was quite surprised when I found out he was fully fit and hadn't been offered a new contract, so I think it was a bit of an obvious thing to do. I said, 'rather than move to another Barclays Premier League club why don't you stay with us?'".

Aurélio opted to give up the No.12 shirt he wore prior to re-signing for the club back in July and chose the No.6 shirt instead because that is the one that he had worn when playing in Brazil. The number 12 shirt passed to Spanish teenager Daniel Pacheco.

International career

Of his first four in the 2010–11 season, 3 came in the UEFA Europa League. He then picked up an achilles injury before making his comeback as a substitute against West Ham on 20 November 2010, in a game which Liverpoolwon 3–0. Aurelio played in Liverpool's FA Cup 3rd round match that resuled in a 1 – 0 loss against Manchester United at Old Trafford on 9 January 2011. This was Kenny Dalglish's first match back in charge of Liverpool. On 11 April 2011, Aurélio returned from the injury to play in Liverpool's 3 – 0 home win over Manchester City. On 17 April 2011, he started at left back against Arsenal at the Emirates, where he picked up a hamstring injury and was replaced by youngster Jack Robinson.

Having previously represented them at Under-17 and Under-20 level, Aurélio played for Brazil at the Sydney Olympics in 2000.

In October 2009 he was called into the Brazil squad for friendly matches against England and Oman, but was not able to make his full debut, as he had to withdraw from the squad due to injury

Statistics

São Paulo F.C.  - Brazilian League - Copa do Brazil - Campeonato Paulista - CONMEBOL - TOTAL

Valencia F.C.  - Liga Española - Copa del Rey - Supercopa de España - Europa - TOTAL

Liverpool F.C.  - Premier League - FA Cup - Curling Cup - Europe - TOTAL

CLUB -/- APP - GOALS -/- APP - GOALS -/-APP - GOALS -/-

Honours

 São Paulo F.C.

• Campeonato Paulista: 1998, 2000
• Copa do Brasil Runner-up: 2000
• Supercopa Sudamericana Runner-up:1997

 Valencia F.C.

• La Liga: 2001–02, 2003–04
• UEFA Champions League Runner-up: 2001
• UEFA Cup: 2004

 Liverpool F.C.

• FA Community Shield: 2006
• UEFA Champions League Runner-up 2007