Matateu

{{Infobox football biography

| name = Matateu

| image_size =

| caption =

| fullname = Sebastião Lucas da Fonseca{{WorldFootball.net|matateu}}

| birth_date = {{Birth date|1927|7|26|df=yes}}

| birth_place = Lourenço Marques, Mozambique

| death_date = {{death date and age|2000|1|27|1927|7|26|df=y}}

| death_place = British Columbia, Canada

| height =

| position = Striker

| youthyears1 = | youthclubs1 =

| years1 = 1951–1964 | clubs1 = Belenenses | caps1 = 270 | goals1 = 210

| years2 = 1964–1967 | clubs2 = Atlético | caps2 = 21 | goals2 = 9

| years3 = 1967–1968 | clubs3 = Gouveia | caps3 = | goals3 =

| years4 = 1968–1969 | clubs4 = Amora | caps4 = | goals4 =

| years5 = 1969–1970 | clubs5 = Chaves | caps5 = | goals5 =

| years6 = 1970–1971 | clubs6 = First Portuguese | caps6 = | goals6 =

| years7 = 1972–1974 | clubs7 = Sagres Victoria | caps7 = | goals7 =

| nationalyears1 = 1952–1960 | nationalteam1 = Portugal | nationalcaps1 = 27 | nationalgoals1 = 13

}}

Sebastião Lucas da Fonseca (26 July 1927 – 27 January 2000), known as Matateu ({{IPA|pt|mɐtɐˈtew}}), was a Portuguese footballer who played as a striker.

His professional career, which spanned more than 20 years, was closely associated to Belenenses. He won the Bola de Prata twice during his spell with the club, and scored 219 goals in 291 Primeira Liga games, being dubbed the World's Eighth Wonder.{{cite news|url=http://www1.ionline.pt/conteudo/43822-matateu-ele-e-que-foi-o-d-sebastiao|title=Matateu. Ele é que foi o D. Sebastião|trans-title=Matateu. The real D. Sebastião|newspaper=i|first=Rui Miguel|last=Tovar|language=pt|date=27 January 2010|access-date=15 December 2011|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120525210019/http://www1.ionline.pt/conteudo/43822-matateu-ele-e-que-foi-o-d-sebastiao|archive-date=25 May 2012}}

Matateu's was Belenenses most-capped ever player for the Portugal national team.

Club career

Born in Lourenço Marques, Portuguese Mozambique, Matateu started his career with local teams João Albasini, 1º de Maio and Manjacaze. He signed for C.F. Os Belenenses from Portugal in 1951, scoring Primeira Liga 17 goals in 26 games in his first season as the Lisbon side finished fourth and adding 29 in the same number of matches in the following campaign for a third place.{{cite web|url=http://www.osbelenenses.com/2014/07/26-de-julho-de-1927-nasce-matateu/|title=26 de Julho de 1927 – Nasce Matateu|trans-title=26 July 1927 – Matateu is born|publisher=C.F. Os Belenenses|language=pt|date=25 July 2014|access-date=22 October 2018}}

From 1953 to 1960, Matateu continued scoring in double digits (a minimum of 14 goals), netting a career-best 32 in 1954–55 for his team's final runner-up position (and his second Silver Ball award).{{cite web|url=https://www.rsssf.org/tablesp/porttops.html|title=Portugal – List of Topscorers|website=RSSSF|first1=Paulo|last1=Claro|first2=Simon|last2=Preston|first3=João|last3=Nunes|first4=Roberto|last4=Di Maggio|access-date=9 April 2020}} In 1960, he helped his main club to win the Taça de Portugal against Sporting CP (2–1), his only career trophy; he left in summer 1964 at the age of 37, after only totalling four appearances in his last two seasons due to a serious leg injury from which he never fully recovered.

Matateu then joined neighbouring Atlético Clube de Portugal of the Segunda Liga, helping to promotion in his second year. In the 1966–67 season – his final in the Portuguese top flight – the 39-year-old contributed nine goals in 21 games, but the team suffered relegation after ranking second-bottom.{{cite web|url=https://maisfutebol.iol.pt/geral/30-12-2000/matateu-e-jose-aguas-adeus-em-2000|title=Matateu e José Águas, adeus em 2000|trans-title=Matateu and José Águas, goodbye in 2000|publisher=Mais Futebol|language=pt|date=30 December 2000|access-date=26 October 2023}} In the next three years, he played with second-tier CD Gouveia and in amateur football with Amora F.C. and G.D. Chaves.

Matateu retired from professional football well past his 40s, after spending several years in Canada, where he represented National Soccer League side Toronto First Portuguese.{{cite news|url=https://issuu.com/correiodamanhacanada.com/docs/cmc_web_out01|title=First Portuguese Canadian Cultural Centre celebra 63 anos|trans-title=First Portuguese Canadian Cultural Centre celebrate 63rd birthday|newspaper=Correio da Manhã|first1=Marzio|last1=Lorenzo|first2=Paulo|last2=Pereira|language=pt|pages=10–11|date=1 October 2019|access-date=12 April 2020}}{{cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/image/739589476/?terms=European%20veteran%20sparkles&match=1|title=European veteran sparkles|newspaper=Montreal Star|first=Doug|last=Campbell|page=33|date=30 June 1969|access-date=26 October 2023}} In 1971 he headed westward to Victoria, British Columbia, and represented Latino in the Vancouver Island Soccer League. He also played a pivotal role in the creation of Sagres Victoria.{{cite journal|title=Negociações identitárias dos luso-descendentes no Canadá através do futebol português e do hóquei no gelo canadiano |trans-title=Identity negotiations of luso-descendants in Canada through Portuguese football and Canadian ice hockey|journal=Etnográfica. Revista do Centro em Rede de Investigação em Antropologia|first=João|last=Sardinha|language=pt |date=12 February 2012|pages=143–162|volume=16|issue=1 |issn=0873-6561|doi=10.4000/etnografica.1424|doi-access=free}}

International career

Matateu earned 27 caps for Portugal and scored 13 goals.{{cite web|url=https://maisfutebol.iol.pt/geral/selecao/lista-completa-dos-internacionais-portugueses|title=Lista completa dos internacionais portugueses|trans-title=Complete list of Portuguese internationals|publisher=Mais Futebol|language=pt|date=18 February 2004|access-date=26 October 2023}} After making his debut on 23 November 1952 in a friendly with Austria in Porto, his last appearance was against Yugoslavia on 22 May 1960 for the 1960 European Nations' Cup (5–1 away loss, he netted in the first leg, a 2–1 win), aged 32.

Matateu never played internationally with his compatriot Eusébio although he had been called for the final 1962 FIFA World Cup qualifiers where the latter would make his debut, being left out of the squads for the matches against Luxembourg and England.{{cite web|url=https://maisfutebol.iol.pt/geral/08-05-2001/a-magoa-de-nao-ter-sido-campeao|title=A mágoa de não ter sido campeão|trans-title=The sorrow of failing to win a championship|publisher=Mais Futebol|language=pt|date=8 May 2001|access-date=26 October 2023}}António Simões, Eusébio, Como Nunca se Viu, Lisbon, Publicações D. Quixote, 2014

Personal life and death

Matateu's younger brother, Vicente, was also a footballer. A defender, he played 13 years with Belenenses (sharing teams with his sibling during ten), and also appeared for the Portugal national team.{{cite web|url=http://osbelenenses.blogspot.com/2009/05/grande-vicente.html|title=Grande Vicente!|trans-title=Great Vicente!|publisher=Os Belenenses Blogspot|language=pt|date=27 May 2009|access-date=15 December 2011}}{{cite news|url=https://www.dn.pt/1864/matateu-e-vicente-dois-irmaos-na-historia-de-um-clube-centenario--11315093.html|title=Matateu e Vicente. Dois irmãos na história de um Belenenses centenário|trans-title=Matateu and Vicente. Two brothers in the history of centenary Belenenses|newspaper=Diário de Notícias|first=Nuno|last=Fernandes|language=pt|date=22 September 2019|access-date=26 October 2023}} His daughter Argentina, born in 1954 from a relationship with a Portuguese woman, was named like that as he received the news at half-time of a friendly against Argentina.{{cite news|url=https://observador.pt/especiais/argentina-matateu-filha-pai-belenenses/|title=Argentina Matateu. "O meu pai imitou o Matthews"|trans-title=Argentina Matateu. "My father emulated Matthews"|newspaper=Observador|first=Rui Miguel|last=Tovar|language=pt|date=26 July 2017|access-date=26 October 2023}}

Matateu died on 27 January 2000 at 72, in the Victoria General Hospital in British Columbia, after a long battle with illness.{{cite news|url=https://www.record.pt/futebol/futebol-nacional/liga-3/b-sad/detalhe/lenda-do-futebol-portugues-matateu-tenta-vencer-a-morte|title=Lenda do futebol português Matateu tenta vencer a morte|trans-title=Portuguese football legend Matateu tries to beat death|newspaper=Record|first=Carlos|last=Arsénio|language=pt|date=7 December 1999|access-date=26 October 2023}}{{cite web|url=https://arquivos.rtp.pt/conteudos/morte-de-matateu/|title=Morte de Matateu|trans-title=Death of Matateu|publisher=Rádio e Televisão de Portugal|language=pt|date=27 January 2000|access-date=26 October 2023}}

References

External links

{{ForaDeJogo}}
{{NFT player|17539}}
{{FIFA player|53813}}
{{Eu-Football.info|13235}}
{{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100804145915/http://www.osbelenenses.com/portal/belenenses/_specific/public/allbrowsers/asp/projuhistory.asp?stage=2&id=32&name=Idolos%20do%20passado|date=dmy|title=Belenenses biography {{in lang|pt}}}}
{{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20051024113310/http://www.amorafc.com/matateu.htm|date=dmy|title=Amora biography {{in lang|pt}}}}

Category:1927 births

Category:2000 deaths

Category:Mozambican emigrants to Portugal

Category:20th-century Portuguese sportsmen

Category:Mozambican men's footballers

Category:Portuguese men's footballers

Category:Footballers from Maputo

Category:Men's association football forwards

Category:Primeira Liga players

Category:Liga Portugal 2 players

Category:C.F. Os Belenenses players

Category:Atlético Clube de Portugal players