Introduction
Eduardo Luís Abonízio de Souza, better known as Edu Dracena (born 18 May 1981) is a retired Brazilian professional footballer who played as a central defender.
Club career
Guarani
Born in Dracena, São Paulo, Dracena graduated with Guarani's youth setup. He made his professional debut in 1999, in a 1–2 loss against Matonense, aged just 17.
Dracena established himself in the club's starting XI in the following years, impressing in 2002.
Olympiacos
On 2 July 2002 Dracena was loaned to Olympiacos in a season-long deal. He was a part of the squad which won the Alpha Ethniki, but only appearing in five matches.
Cruzeiro
Shortly after his return to Guarani, Dracena signed for Cruzeiro on 8 February 2003, as a replacement for Lyon-bound Cris. He appeared regularly for the club, winning the year's League and Cup.
Dracena fell through the pecking order in 2005, mainly due to an injury which ruled him out for seven months. In 2006, he was appointed Cruzeiro's captain, winning the state league.
Fenerbahçe
In August 2006, Dracena transferred to Fenerbahçe for a €5.7 million fee. On 19 May 2007, he scored Fenerbahçe's 500th goal against rivals Galatasaray.
Dracena rescinded his link with the club on 24 August 2009, after being mainly used as a backup during the 2008–09 season.
Santos
On 16 September 2009 Dracena signed a three-year-deal with Santos FC, being sidelined during his first year due to a knee injury.
Dracena was an important defensive unit for Peixe in the following years, winning three state leagues (2010 2011 and 2012), one Copa do Brasil (2010, scoring in the final) and one Copa Libertadores (2011). However, he struggled with two serious knee injuries which sidelined him for long periods.
On 15 January 2015, after the club's financial trouble, Dracena rescinded his link.
Corinthians
On 21 January, Dracena signed a two-year deal with Santos' fierce rivals Corinthians.
International career
Dracena played for the Brazil U-20 team in 2001, participated in the 2001 U-20 World Cup. He was also a member of Brazil U-23 team that failed to win the 2004 Pre-Olympic Tournament and hence failed to qualify for the 2004 Summer Olympics.
In June 2003, Dracena received his first call up to the Brazilian senior team for the 2003 Confederations Cup. However, he did not make his international debut during the competition.
Four years later, Dracena was called up to play a friendly match against United States and Mexico on 9 and 12 September 2007. He played 45 minutes as a substitute against United States, which marked his first international cap, followed by a place in the starting line-up against Mexico.
Career statistics
- As of 4 September 2018.
| Club | Season | State League | National League | National Cup | Continental | Other | Total | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Guarani | 1999 | 13 | 0 | 16 | 1 | 4 | 0 | — | — | 33 | 1 | ||
| 2000 | 11 | 2 | 16 | 1 | 1 | 0 | — | — | 28 | 3 | |||
| 2001 | 10 | 0 | 21 | 0 | 2 | 0 | — | — | 33 | 0 | |||
| Total | 34 | 2 | 53 | 2 | 7 | 0 | — | — | 94 | 4 | |||
| Olympiacos | 2002–03 | — | 5 | 0 | — | 5 | 0 | — | 10 | 0 | |||
| Total | — | 5 | 0 | — | 5 | 0 | — | 10 | 0 | ||||
| Cruzeiro | 2003 | 3 | 1 | 35 | 3 | 9 | 1 | 2 | 1 | — | 49 | 6 | |
| 2004 | 12 | 0 | 32 | 2 | — | 9 | 1 | — | 53 | 3 | |||
| 2005 | 13 | 1 | 5 | 0 | 3 | 0 | — | — | 21 | 1 | |||
| 2006 | 14 | 1 | 17 | 1 | 6 | 1 | — | — | 37 | 3 | |||
| Total | 42 | 3 | 89 | 6 | 18 | 2 | 11 | 2 | — | 160 | 13 | ||
| Fenerbahçe | 2006–07 | — | 27 | 1 | 4 | 0 | 8 | 0 | — | 39 | 1 | ||
| 2007–08 | — | 29 | 3 | 4 | 0 | 12 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 46 | 3 | ||
| 2008–09 | — | 16 | 1 | 5 | 1 | 8 | 0 | — | 29 | 2 | |||
| Total | — | 72 | 5 | 13 | 1 | 28 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 114 | 6 | ||
| Santos | 2009 | — | 2 | 0 | — | — | — | 2 | 0 | ||||
| 2010 | 16 | 0 | 28 | 2 | 9 | 2 | 2 | 0 | — | 55 | 4 | ||
| 2011 | 19 | 1 | 27 | 1 | — | 13 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 61 | 3 | ||
| 2012 | 13 | 4 | 6 | 2 | — | 12 | 1 | — | 31 | 7 | |||
| 2013 | 15 | 1 | 33 | 2 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 53 | 3 | |
| 2014 | 0 | 0 | 19 | 0 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 25 | 0 | |
| Total | 63 | 6 | 115 | 7 | 20 | 2 | 27 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 227 | 17 | |
| Corinthians | 2015 | 11 | 0 | 16 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 32 | 2 |
| Total | 11 | 0 | 16 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 32 | 2 | |
| Palmeiras | 2016 | 4 | 0 | 17 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 25 | 0 |
| 2017 | 12 | 0 | 25 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 47 | 0 | |
| 2018 | 1 | 0 | 13 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 21 | 0 | |
| Total | 17 | 0 | 55 | 0 | 10 | 0 | 11 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 93 | 0 | |
| Career total | 167 | 11 | 405 | 22 | 69 | 5 | 86 | 4 | 3 | 0 | 730 | 42 | |
Including matches for Copa Libertadores, Copa Sudamericana, UEFA Cup and UEFA Champions League.
Including matches for Turkish Super Cup and FIFA Club World Cup.
Honours
- Guarani
- Copa São Paulo de Juniores: 1994
- Olympiacos
- Greek Super League: 2002–03
- Cruzeiro
- Campeonato Brasileiro Série A: 2003
- Copa do Brasil: 2003
- Campeonato Mineiro: 2003, 2004, 2006
- Fenerbahçe
- Süper Lig: 2006–07
- Turkish Super Cup: 2007
- Santos
- Campeonato Paulista: 2010, 2011, 2012
- Copa do Brasil: 2010
- Copa Libertadores: 2011
- Corinthians
- Campeonato Brasileiro Série A: 2015
- Palmeiras
- Campeonato Brasileiro Série A: 2016, 2018