Daniel da Cruz Carvalho

Dani

Personal information
Full name	Daniel da Cruz Carvalho
Date of birth	November 2, 1976 (1976-11-02) (age 35)
Place of birth	Lisbon, Portugal
Height	1.82 m (5 ft 11 1⁄2 in)
Playing position	Forward
Youth career
1990–1994	Sporting CP
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps†	(Gls)†
1994–1996	Sporting CP	10	(0)
1996	→ West Ham (loan)	9	(2)
1996–2000	Ajax	72	(12)
2000	Benfica	5	(0)
2000–2003	Atlético Madrid	64	(10)
National team
1995	Portugal U20	6	(4)
1995–1998	Portugal U21	15	(8)
1995–2000	Portugal	9	(0)
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only. † Appearances (Goals).

For other "Dani", See Dani.

For other "Daniel Carvalho", See Daniel da Silva Carvalho.

This name uses Portuguese naming customs. The first or maternal family name is Cruz and the second or paternal family name is Carvalho.

Daniel da Cruz Carvalho (born 2 November 1976 in Lisbon), aka Dani, is a retired Portuguese footballer who played mainly as a forward.

Club career

A skilled offensive player whose career was cut short by poor professional judgment, Dani began his career with local club Sporting Clube de Portugal, making his first team debuts in 1994–95, aged just 17, in a team which also included Luís Figo, Ricardo Sá Pinto and Bulgarian Krassimir Balakov, and helped the capital side to the season's Portuguese Cup.

In January 1996, he served a small stint in the Premier League with West Ham United, scoring two goals (at Tottenham Hotspur^[1] and at home against Manchester City).^[2] Despite playing a decent role in his nine-game career, his season ended when he was sacked by manager Harry Redknapp, when he missed training after being spotted in a nightclub. Subsequently, he represented Ajax Amsterdam, appearing regularly, but almost never as an undisputed starter (although he scored an important goal in the 1996–97 UEFA Champions League quarterfinal clash against Atlético Madrid, in a 3–2 away win (4–3 aggregate).

After a brief spell with S.L. Benfica, Dani signed for Atlético Madrid, in Spain's second level, teaming up with compatriot Hugo Leal. After the colchoneros returned to La Liga, Dani was pretty much absent for the majority of the 2002–03 campaign and, after failing to find a new team, definitely retired from football in early 2004, at only 27.

International career

Dani had nine caps for Portugal, the first coming on December 12, 1995, in a 1–1 friendly tie with England, and the last on 29 March 2000, in a 2–1 success over Denmark (also friendly).

Previously, he appeared for the nation at the 1995 FIFA World Youth Championship in Qatar, being awarded the second place in both the Golden Boot and Golden Ball awards, while also competing at the 1996 Summer Olympics, where Portugal reached a final fourth place.

Honours

Club

Sporting

• Portuguese Cup: 1994–95

Ajax

• Dutch League: 1997–98
• Dutch Cup: 1997–98, 1998–99

Atlético Madrid

• Second Division: 2001–02

Country

• FIFA U-20 World Cup: Third place 1995

Personal life

Already during his footballing days, Dani worked regularly as a model. After retiring, he also worked on TV, in sporting and non-sporting situations.

Quotes

"Dani is so good-looking I don't know whether to play him or fuck him" - Harry Redknapp, former West Ham manager^[3]

References

1. ^ Moore, Glen (12 February 1996). "Dani buoys West Ham on debut". The Independent. http://www.independent.co.uk/sport/football-dani-buoys-west-ham-on-debut-1318853.html. Retrieved 23 November 2009. 
2. ^ Jones, Ken (23 March 1996). "City refuse to employ crisis tactics". The Independent. http://www.independent.co.uk/sport/football-city-refuse-to-employ-crisis-tactics-1343934.html. Retrieved 23 November 2009. 
3. ^ Football's best ever quotes; The Sun, 18 September 2007

External links

• Stats and profile at Zerozero
• Stats at ForaDeJogo (Portuguese)
• Dani career stats at Soccerbase
• Beijen profile (Dutch)
• BDFutbol profile
• Daniel da Cruz Carvalho at National-Football-Teams.com
• Zanziball profile (Italian)

Persondata
Name	Daniel da Cruz Carvalho
Alternative names
Short description	Footballer
Date of birth	2 November 1976
Place of birth	Lisbon, Portugal
Date of death
Place of death