Cristiano Marques Gomes

Cris

Personal information
Full name	Cristiano Marques Gomes
Date of birth	3 June 1977 (1977-06-03) (age 34)
Place of birth	Guarulhos, Brazil
Height	1.83 m (6 ft 0 in)
Playing position	Centre back
Club information
Current club	Lyon
Number	3
Youth career
	Corinthians
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps†	(Gls)†
1995–1999	Corinthians	24	(0)
1999–2004	Cruzeiro	122	(13)
2003	→ Bayer Leverkusen (loan)	2	(0)
2004–	Lyon	203	(18)
National team‡
1999–2000	Brazil U-23	5	(0)
2001–	Brazil	16	(1)
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 29 May 2011. † Appearances (Goals). ‡ National team caps and goals correct as of 20:15, 22 July 2010 (UTC)

Cristiano Marques Gomes (born 3 June 1977 in Guarulhos, São Paulo) or simply Cris, is a Brazilian footballer.^[1] He currently plays for Olympique Lyonnais as a centre back and has also represented his country. Also nicknamed "the policeman" by way of reference to his authoritarian nature on the pitch and his four months experience in a police department in Guarulhos. He has also won the Ligue 1 with Olympique Lyonnais in 2005 to 2008, the Brazilian Championship in 1998 with Corinthians and in 2003 with Cruzeiro. He also won the Copa do Brasil in 1995 with Corinthians and 2000 with Cruzeiro EC and the Copa America in 2004 with Brazil.

Club career

Cris spent a three year spell in São Paulo playing for Corinthians (1995–98) before joining Cruzeiro. There he won his first cap for the national team, playing on 4 April 1999 against the USA in Brasília (a match won 7–0 by Brazil). In 2000, the Brazilian magazine Placar named Cris as the leading player in his position during the Brazilian Championship, awarding him the Silver Ball title.

In 2002, he secured a transfer to Europe, moving to Bayer Leverkusen in Germany. However, this move did not prove successful as he struggled to adapt to his new surroundings both on and off the field. The following year saw him return to his native country, rejoining Cruzeiro as part of their Brazilian Championship winning team of that year.

In August 2004, he left Brazil once more, this time moving to Olympique Lyonnais for a transfer fee close to €3.5 million. Having been involved in a brawl during a match in June earlier that year Cris ran the risk of a six month suspension that the Brazilian Football Federation eventually decided not to extend to matches outside of Brazil. This affair, along with the physical duel he enjoyed with Thierry Henry during the France-Brazil international at the Stade de France on 20 May 2004 (a match that finished goalless), earned Cris the reputation of a rough, rugged defender.

After an unconvincing first spell in Europe Cris quickly imposed himself at the heart of Olympique Lyonnais' defense, proving himself an international class defender. His first season in Ligue 1 saw the club crowned league champions and Cris was selected in the Ligue 1 Players' team of the year. His second season was one of consolidation : Cris again had an excellent season with Lyon leaving no doubt as to his overall class. He was crowned "étoile d'or" (Gold Star) by the magazine France Football. The newspaper L'Equipe considered him the best defender of the 2005–06 season and he was once more voted into the Ligue 1 team of the year by his fellow professionals. This excellent season earned him an upwardly revised salary as well as a one year extension to his contract, tying him to the French club until 2010. Cris recently extended his contract an additional year keeping him at Lyon until 2011.^[2] Newly appointed OL manager Alain Perrin appointed Cris as the new captain starting from the 2007–08 Ligue 1 season.

On 11 August 2007, Cris was injured in a game between Lyon and Toulouse, tearing ligaments in his right knee during a collision with Johan Elmander. Cris made his return to the squad on 1 March 2008 in a 1–0 win over Lille. The match was held at the Stade de France.

International career

He has 16 caps with the Brazilian national team, the first one obtained in July 2001. Cris was part of the Brazilian squad that capture their 7th Copa América title back in 2004. He was also rewarded for his magnificent club form on 15 May 2006 by Carlos Alberto Parreira who selected him in the national squad for their 2006 World Cup Campaign in Germany. On 13 November 2009, he was called back into the national squad for friendlies against England on 14 November and Oman on 18 November, despite last appearing with the team on 1 March 2006.

Honours

Brazil

• Copa América: 1

2004

Corinthians

• São Paulo State championship: 3

1995, 1997, 1999

• Brazilian championship: 1

1998

• Copa do Brasil: 1

1995

Cruzeiro

• Brazilian championship: 1

2003

• Minas Gerais State championship: 1

2004

• Copa do Brasil: 1

2000, 2003

Lyon

• Ligue 1: 4

2004–05, 2005–06, 2006–07, 2007–08

• Trophée des Champions: 1

2005

• Coupe de France: 1

2008

References

1. ^ "Cris" (in German). kicker.de. http://www.kicker.de/news/fussball/bundesliga/vereine/2010-11/29391/vereinsspieler_cris.html. Retrieved 23 April 2011. 
2. ^ "French Football League : Cris commits to Lyon". http://www.frenchleague.com/ligue1/lireArticle.asp?idArticle=8436. ^{[dead link]}

This article has been translated from French Wikipedia

External links

Cris at fussballdaten.de (German)

Persondata
Name	Gomes, Cristiano Marques
Alternative names
Short description
Date of birth	3 June 1977
Place of birth	Guarulhos, Brazil
Date of death
Place of death