José Luís Vidigal
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | José Luís da Cruz Vidigal | ||
| Date of birth | 15 March 1973 | ||
| Place of birth | Sá da Bandeira, Angola | ||
| Height | 1.84 m (6 ft 1⁄2 in) | ||
| Playing position | Midfielder | ||
| Youth career | |||
| 1984–1992 | O Elvas | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 1992–1994 | O Elvas | 60 | (3) |
| 1994–1995 | Estoril | 27 | (0) |
| 1995–2000 | Sporting CP | 110 | (5) |
| 2000–2004 | Napoli | 86 | (8) |
| 2004–2005 | Livorno | 30 | (3) |
| 2005–2006 | Udinese | 23 | (1) |
| 2006–2008 | Livorno | 18 | (0) |
| 2008–2009 | Estrela Amadora | 15 | (3) |
| Total | 369 | (23) | |
| National team | |||
| 1994–1995 | Portugal U21 | 7 | (1) |
| 2000–2002 | Portugal | 15 | (0) |
| * Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only. |
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José Luís da Cruz Vidigal (born 15 March 1973) is a retired Portuguese footballer who played as a defensive midfielder.
During his extensive professional career, the no-nonsense midfield battler played more years abroad (Italy, eight) than in his country of adoption (seven), where he represented mainly Sporting.
A Portugal international for two years, Vidigal appeared with the national team at Euro 2000, helping them to the third place.
Born in Sá da Bandeira, Portuguese Angola, Vidigal moved to Portugal at an early age, and started his footballing career with amateurs O Elvas CAD, moving in 1994 to the second division with G.D. Estoril-Praia.
The following year, Vidigal signed with another team from the Lisbon area, Sporting Clube de Portugal in the Primeira Liga. After tentative beginnings he became an essential defensive unit, contributing with a career-best – in Portugal – 32 games as the Lions won they first title in 18 years.
At 27, Vidigal moved to Italy, where he would remain the following eight years: he started out with S.S.C. Napoli after signing along Sporting teammates Facundo Quiroga and Abdelilah Saber, but only played in four Serie A matches in his first year and the team was also relegated (his best individual year – 33 appearances, five goals – was incidentally spent in the Serie B, but they faced another relegation, eventually ending 16th).
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