Robinho · Biography

The first trophy of Robson de Souza's career, known as Robinho, came in December 2002, when Santos won the Brazilian championship with a side built on academy graduates. The forward, born on 25 January 1984 in São Vicente on the coast of São Paulo state, was 18 at the time. That final against Corinthians made him known across Brazil. He later played for Real Madrid, Manchester City and Milan, and was a Brazil international for more than a decade.

Early years in the Baixada Santista

Robinho grew up in a modest family in São Vicente and started out in futsal, which shaped the way he carried the ball in tight spaces. He joined the Santos youth system as a boy, and at the club he was linked with Pelé, who followed his development closely. He made his first-team debut in 2002 in a squad coached by Emerson Leão, in which Diego was also emerging.

Champion with Santos

In the final of the 2002 Brasileirão against Corinthians, Robinho repeatedly took on the opposing full-back Rogério with a run of step-overs that ended with a penalty for Santos. The club had not won the national title since the Pelé era. In 2003 the team reached the Copa Libertadores final, losing to Boca Juniors, and in 2004 Santos were Brazilian champions again, with Robinho by then the focal point of the attack.

Real Madrid

In the summer of 2005 he joined Real Madrid. In his first season he shared a dressing room with Zidane, Ronaldo, Beckham and Raúl at a club going through several coaching changes. Under Fabio Capello the team won the 2006-07 Spanish league, and under Bernd Schuster retained the title in 2007-08. Robinho spent three seasons in Madrid, moving between a starting role on the left wing and the bench.

Manchester City, a Santos return and Milan

On 1 September 2008, deadline day, he moved to Manchester City on the same day the English club changed hands. In his first Premier League season he scored 14 league goals. In January 2010 he returned to Santos on loan, playing alongside Neymar and Ganso and winning the 2010 Campeonato Paulista and Copa do Brasil. In August 2010 he signed for Milan, winning the 2010-11 Serie A in a front line with Ibrahimović and Pato, followed by the 2011 Supercoppa Italiana.

Later career

In 2014 he went back to Santos once more, on loan from Milan. In 2015 he moved to Chinese football with Guangzhou Evergrande, and in 2016 returned to Brazil to play for Atlético Mineiro. He then spent time in Turkey, first with Sivasspor in 2018 and then with İstanbul Başakşehir, who won the Turkish Süper Lig in 2019-20. In October 2020 he signed with Santos for a fourth time, but the contract was suspended within days.

Brazil national team

He made his Brazil debut in 2003. He won the Confederations Cup in 2005 and 2009, and was top scorer and best player of the 2007 Copa América, won in Venezuela with a 3-0 victory over Argentina in the final. He played at the 2006 World Cup in Germany and the 2010 tournament in South Africa, scoring against Chile in the round of 16 and against the Netherlands in the quarter-final in which Brazil were knocked out. He made more than 100 international appearances.

Criminal conviction

In 2017 a Milan court sentenced him to nine years in prison for taking part in a group sexual assault at a nightclub in the city in 2013. The verdict became final in January 2022 after a ruling by Italy's Court of Cassation. Because Brazil does not extradite its own citizens, Italy asked for the sentence to be served there. Brazil's Superior Court of Justice approved the request in March 2024, and on 21 March 2024 Robinho was arrested in Santos to begin serving his sentence.