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POSITION: Forward
FULL NAME: Dario José dos Santos
DATE OF BIRTH: 04-03-1946
PLACE OF BIRTH: Rio de Janeiro (RJ)
CAREER DETAILS:
Campo Grande: 1967-68, Atlético Mineiro: 1968-73, Flamengo: 1973-74, Atlético Mineiro: 1974, Sport: 1974-75, Internacional: 1976-77, Ponte Preta: 1977-78, Atlético Mineiro: 1978, Paysandu: 1979, Náutico: 1980, Santa Cruz: 1981, Bahia: 1981-82, Goiás: 1983, Coritiba: 1983-84, América-MG: 1984, Nacional-AM: 1984-85, XV de Piracicaba: 1985, CA Douradense: 1986, Comercial de Registro-SP: 1986
ATLETICO HONOURS:
Brazilian Championship (1971)
2 Mineiro State Championships (1970, 1978)
PERSONAL HONOURS:
3 Times Brazilian Championship Top Scorer: 1971, 1972 & 1976
4 Times Mineiro State Championship Top Scorer: 1969, 1970, 1972 & 1974
Rio de Janeiro State Championship Top Scorer: 1973
2 Times Pernambucano State Championship Top Scorer: 1975 & 1976
Record number of goals in one match between Brazilian sides: 10 goals ( Sport 14-0 Santa Amaro)
DADA MARAVILHA
Whilst he may have been inferior to several other players in this list in terms of natural ability, the impact Dario made upon Atlético Mineiro was quite phenomenal. Dadá Maravilha, the son of the adoring Torcida Alvinegra, scored goals aplenty during his illustrious tenure as a Galo superstar. His goalscoring exploits culminated in Atlético becoming the first ever Brazilian Champions in 1971.
The captivating upbringing and subsequent rise to fame of Dario José dos Santos reads as an epic tale would -from rags to riches, from tragedy to prosperity, from criminal activity to superstardom. Dario was raised in Hermes Marshal - a rough district within the state of Rio de Janeiro. At the tender age of five, he was subjected to a tragic occurrence, witnessing his mother die, engulfed in flames. Left to fend for himself, Dario turned to crime. His subsistence was reliant on him robbing for cash. In turn, Dario came to reckon on his pace and ability to climb walls – or any other potential obstacles – in his attempt to flee from the scene of his wrongdoings, before being caught by the police. Dario continued in this trend throughout his teenage years, before eventually being caught and subsequently detained in a centre for juvenile delinquents. Dario fled but was impecunious and it was another assault – this time on two young females – which paved the path for Dario to become a
professional footballer. For with the money which he stole, Dario bought a football. From that moment on, he turned his back on a life of crime, to concentrate his attentions on prospering on the football field.
Dario was 21 years old before he made his breakthrough with the Campo Grande club in Rio. In 1968, he gained a transfer to Atlético Mineiro which he hoped, would present him with the chance to make his name. Soon into his time in Minas Gerais, doubt surrounded his future with Atlético. Dario had struggled to make a positive impression and had become a peripheral employee of the club. Whilst the majority of people would have crumbled, confidence and charm were always qualities Dario exuded. So he approached the coach Iustrich and exercising his charm, persuaded the boss to give him a chance to impress. His request was granted. Two days later, Dario lined up for the club’s reserves in a confrontation against the first team and took his break with distinction. The reserves won 2-0 with both goals coming courtesy of the unmistakable striker. The match served as an opportunity for Dario to showcase his quality and he was immediately promoted from the auxiliary string.
1971 turned out to be the crowing year for Atlético and Dario. The club won the inaugural Brazilian Championship, defeating Botafogo in the final. Galo went into the second leg in Rio’s intimidating Maracanã Stadium, holding a 1-0 lead from the first ninety minutes of action. Botafogo – with Jairzinho in sparkling form – had the better of the first half but as they pushed for the all-important tie leveller, Atlético put the fixture beyond their opponents reach. In typical fashion, the Mineiro side got the ball out wide and after Humberto Ramos had evaded the challenges of two defenders, he floated a high, hovering cross into the box. The onrushing Dario connected with the cross as only he could, to register what has since proved the most important goal of his celebrated career. The encounter ended with Dario’s solitary strike securing a 1-0 victory for the Mineiro side, thus sending the Galo fans into a state of delirium.
Despite the club’s success, their style of play was tagged as ‘predictable’ – that they most certainly were. Despite opposing sides expectancy of long ball behind the defence or high, hanging crosses into the area, stopping Atlético – in particular their talismanic striker - proved unfathomable. If teams defended further up field, long balls would be played behind their backline for Dario to sprint on to – who could be expected to catch a man who ran the 100 metres in a staggering 9.9 seconds?
One tactic that was regularly employed to counter explosive pace was to defend deep. Incredibly, adopting this tactic was also to the detriment of sides opposing Dadá Maravilha. For all Atlético would do in this instance, was get the ball out wide and deliver high, hanging crosses into the box. Nobody in Brazilian football, nor anybody in world football for that matter, was capable of nullifying the aerial threat of Dario. Dario combined two key contributory skills, which asserted him as the master of the headed goal. Primarily, there was his mighty leap, largely reminiscent of Sergei Bubka in his pole-vaulting prime. Dadá was able to jump 90 centimetres standing and clear 1.5 metres from a running leap - something which he later accredited to his childhood exploits. Not only did he rise to unsurpassable heights but he was able to hang in the air in a fashion reminiscent of the aforementioned athlete - albeit minus the assisting pole which had advantaged the great Russain.
This distinctive asset caused two additions to Dario’s elongating list of nicknames. "Dadá Hummingbird" and "Dadá Helicopter" were attributed to the Rio de Janeiro born striker, joining existing nicknames such as “Dario Steel Chest”, “The Alligator” and the more affectionate epithet of “Dadá Maravilha”, which translates as Dadá the Wonderful.
Secondly, there was his actual heading of the ball. Dario’s headers were distinctively powerful and consistently accurate. The collective benefits of his spring, ability to hang in the air, generation of power and accuracy with his nut enabled Dada Maravilha to register an astounding 499 headed career goals. Wow! This remains, quite clearly, the highest total of headed goals scored by any one player in the history of professional football, easily surpassing the figure achieved by the legendary Hungarian, Sandor Kocsis.
The epoch of the Brazilian Championship saw the dominance of Dario in the goalscoring charts. He was the recipient of the artilheiro (top goalscorer) award in the season of 1971, and one year later, he took consolation for Atlético’s failure to retain their title, by becoming the first player to win successive top scorer honours. In 1973, Dario was traded to Flamengo but his time there was short and unceremonious. He returned to Atlético in 1974 and then again in 1978, these spells in Minas Gerais sandwiching stints with Sport, Internacional and Ponte Preta. In a career which spanned nineteen years, the goal machine graced almost twenty different club sides with his presence. Throughout his career, goals came with rapidity. He was thrice the Brazilian Championship’s top goalscorer and managed to top the State Championship goal scoring charts on eight separate occasions. Statistics as such may underline his capabilities but Dario did have critics to contend with.
His atypically Brazilian characteristics made him a constant target for the captious media. They were reluctant to administer praise to a player, who lacked the technical ability considered hereditary to Brazilians. Throughout his career, this failed to fluster the forward who responded with the goals to justify his verbal retorts.
Dario was perhaps the most idiosyncratic figure in the history of Brazilian football. His conduct, both on and off the field, was alarmingly bizarre. From his pre-match nicknaming of the goals he expected to score, to the post-match philosophies he regularly gave, almost as if he was an actor, delivering an epilogue to his audience. He simply revelled in his own uniqueness and little he did or said, complied with normality.
After retiring from the game in 1986, Dario encountered financial problems and slipped into a state of depression. From poverty to opulence and back again - Dario’s life, alike Garrincha’s, was a prime example of the financial journey undertaken by many a Brazilian footballer. It was also indication of how little clubs did to aid former stars, who had contributed so heavily to their successes. Fortunately for Dario, he was able to resurface within the sport. His natural appeal made his appointment as a commentator, a profitable one for his employers, and saw Dario reunited with the game he blessed so magnificently.
His ranking in this list is based on the immeasurable contribution he made towards Atlético Mineiro’s triumph of the early seventies. His registration as a club legend stands as eternally as does his place in Brazilian folklore.
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Rankings prepared by Mark Lowdon based on criteria including length of service, achievements and performances. Players have been judged on the period they spent at the club only.
Last page update: Jan 27 2005
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