Full name : Nélson de Jesus Silva
Date of birth : 7 October 1973 (age 38)
Place of birth : Irará, Bahia, Brazil
Height : 1.96 m (6 ft 5 in)
Playing position : Goalkeeper
Though he was born in
Irará, Bahia, Dida was brought up in the smaller northern state of Alagoas. His footballing function models were goalkeepers
Valdir Peres and
Rinat Dasayev, whom he watched on television during the 1982 World Cup.
Dida was obtained by Cruzeiro EC in 1994, where, in a span of five seasons, he won three Minas Gerais state titles, the 1996 Copa do Brasil, and the 1997
Copa Libertadores, along with a combine of Placar Bola de Prata awards as the top goalkeeper in the Campeonato Brasileiro Série A. But with this success soon came a desire to ply his trade in Europe, and in January 1999, he decided to leave Cruzeiro in order to sign with A.C. Milan.
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| Nelson Dida |
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| Nelson Dida |
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| Nelson Dida |
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| Nelson Dida |
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| Nelson Dida |
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| Nelson Dida |
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| Nelson Dida |
