Neco

This article is about the football player and manager. For the Egyptian pharaohs, see Necho (disambiguation).

Neco

Personal information
Full name	Manoel Nunes
Date of birth	March 5, 1895(1895-03-05)
Place of birth	São Paulo, SP, Brazil
Date of death	May 31, 1977(1977-05-31) (aged 82)
Place of death	São Paulo, SP, Brazil
Playing position	Midfielder, striker
Youth career
1911–1913	Corinthians
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps†	(Gls)†
1913–1930	Corinthians	313	(239)
1915	A.A. Mackenzie College
National team
1917–1922	Brazil	15	(8)
Teams managed
1920	Corinthians
1927	Corinthians
1937–1938	Corinthians
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only. † Appearances (Goals).

Manoel Nunes (known as Neco), born March 5, 1895 in São Paulo – died May 31, 1977 in São Paulo, Brazil) was an association football midfielder. With great skill and tenacity, he was the first idol of Corinthians, being the first player to get a statue in the team's gardens (in 1929). As of 2006, Neco is the player who played the longest for Corinthians: 17 years.

Called often to the Brazilian national team, he won two South American Championships: 1919 (team's top scorer) and 1922 (top scorer). Playing for Corinthians, he won the Paulista League eight times as a player (being top scorer in 1914 and 1920) and once as a coach (1937).

Neco had a quick temper and frequently got involved in fights; his second stint as a manager occurred because he was suspended as a player for 18 games when he beat a referee.

He started in the third team of Corinthians at the age of 16 and joined the first team in 1913 (the first year Corinthians participated in official competitions). In 1915, Corinthians did not play official games because of political issues and almost went bankrupt; this year, Neco played friendlies for Corinthians and the official games for Mackenzie. During this time, he broke into the Corinthians building to retrieve books that the landlord had locked inside due to non-payment of the rent.

After scoring two goals playing for Brazil against Uruguay in the 2x2 tie valid for the 1919 South American Championship in Rio de Janeiro, Neco returned to his regular job as a carpenter in São Paulo and was fired for missing work..

Statistical career overview

Player

Teams:

• 1917–1922: Brazil (14 matches / 9 goals / official internationals only)

• 1913–1914: SC Corinthians Paulista
• 1915: AA Mackenzie College
• 1916–1930: SC Corinthians Paulista

Honours:

• Copa América: 1919, 1922

• Campeonato Paulista: 1914, 1916, 1922, 1923, 1924, 1928, 1930

Top Scorer:

• Copa América: 1919 (4 goals)
• Campeonato Paulista: 1914 (12 goals)
• Campeonato Paulista: 1920 (24 goals)

Coach

Clubs:

• SC Corinthians Paulista : 1920, 1927, 1937–38

Honours:

• Campeonato Paulista: 1937

External links

• Profile at cbf.com.br