Hulk's real name. Where does Hulk play after Zenit? Hulk's club career

Hulk is Brazilian footballer, who is well known to Russian fans from his performances for Zenit St. Petersburg. However, this summer the striker left the team, and many are wondering where Hulk is playing now. You will find the answer to this question in this article, but there will be information about much more than just that. The fact is that this player’s career was extremely eventful and interesting, so it would be unreasonable to simply tell which club he currently plays for. You will find out not only where Hulk plays now, but also where he played before, where he began his career and how he ended up in Russia.

Carier start

Many football fans are interested in where the Hulk plays, without even knowing where he came from to Zenit. But he went through a long career path before getting to St. Petersburg. At the age of thirteen, the young Brazilian ended up in the Serrano club academy, where he stayed for two years, after which, along with his parents’ move, he moved to Portugal, where he entered football academy"Vilanovense". However, he did not stay there for long - quite soon he was noticed by junior scouts of the largest Brazilian club"Sao Paulo", where he moved in 2002. But the very next year he was sent to the Vitoria academy, since he did not suit Sao Paulo. It was with Vitoria, in whose structure he found himself at the age of 17, that a year later Hulk, then known only under his real name Givanildo Vieira de Souza, entered into a professional contract. Then he played as a full-back, which may seem amazing to modern fans. But if you are asked where Hulk plays at the beginning of his career, then it’s hardly worth talking much about Brazil - after all, he played only two matches in Vitoria. Just six months after the conclusion of the contract, the Brazilian was sold to the Japanese club Kawasaki - many Brazilians played in Japan in those days.

Japanese period

In Japan, the Brazilian was primarily moved to the midfielder position, so it was already difficult to answer exactly where Hulk plays. The footballer played for Kawasaki, but has already changed his position from defender to midfielder. At this club he played 12 matches, scoring three goals, after which he was loaned to another Japanese club, Consadole Sapporo. The team played in the second division, so there was less pressure on the young Brazilian, and he was able to take advantage of this, playing 41 matches and scoring 26 goals. How did he do it? The fact is that the new club saw him as an excellent striker and transferred him from midfield to attack. Thus was born a star of modern football - the following year Hulk was loaned to Tokyo Verdi, where he staged a real scoring extravaganza, scoring 37 goals in 42 matches. But when he returned to Kawasaki, there was still no place for him in the team - when he played two more matches, he was sold to Tokyo, from which he had just returned. Thanks to the efforts of the Hulk, this team made it out of the second division into the first, so the return of the Brazilian on a permanent basis was met with everyone's happiness. However, Hulk was not able to help the capital club stay in the top division - in the first half of the season he played in 14 matches, scoring eight goals, after which the transfer window came in Europe. It was impossible not to notice such outstanding results, so in the summer of 2008 the 22-year-old Brazilian ended up in the Portuguese Porto, who paid 19 million euros for him - this was fabulous money for a club that had just reached the top division, so the management agreed, and Hulk himself would naturally want to play in Europe.

Performances in Porto

Some lovers football simulators They don’t find the Hulk in FIFA of the early editions in Zenit, so they immediately start having questions. Where does Hulk play in FIFA 11? It's simple - after all, at that time he had not yet moved to a Russian club, but was playing in Porto. He spent four years with the Portuguese club, winning three Portuguese championships, three Portuguese Cups and two Portuguese Super Cups. Moreover, in 2011, Hulk also managed to win the Europa League, and at the same time he was one of the team. He spent the first two years not very productively - in 75 matches he scored only 19 goals. But in the triumphant season of 10/11, as well as in the next one, the Hulk actually took off - in 95 matches he scored 59 goals. As a result, he attracted the attention of Zenit St. Petersburg, which paid an incredible 55 million euros for him in 2012. It was the most expensive transfer of that year - and to this day this transfer is among the twenty most expensive in history.

Transfer to Zenit

Hulk spent four years at Zenit, which turned out to be extremely productive - in 144 matches he scored 75 goals, making a serious contribution to the victory of the St. Petersburg club in the Russian Championship in 2015, as well as to victory in the Cup the following season. However, even then, many pointed out that the once poor Brazilian boy had turned into a man hunting for money. It was impossible to explain otherwise the transition from the more successful Porto to the less successful Zenit at the peak of his career. This fact was confirmed in the summer of 2016.

Departure for China

In the last couple of years, the Chinese have very actively begun to conquer the football world, scattering huge sums of money for those players they would like to see in their league. And while most football players refused such offers because they wanted to play in prestigious leagues, Hulk agreed to go to China to receive a huge salary. Zenit got their 55 million euros back, and now you know where the Hulk plays. Which team specifically? The Shanghai SIPG club paid this money for the 30-year-old striker, who has already played three matches in the new championship, scoring two goals.

The name of this popular football player will almost never disappear from newspapers and magazines. He is distinguished by strength, speed, aim and accuracy of strikes. But the Hulk did not immediately become famous. For several years he tried to gain a foothold in the main team, but nothing worked. But persistence and perseverance played a role.

Soon he was noticed and invited to play in one of the most prestigious football clubs. Soon this striker became famous throughout the world. Today the forward plays for the Brazilian national team.

Many people are interested in what kind of person is the Hulk? What is his fate? This topic has become fascinating and intriguing, which is why it is worth talking about it in more detail.

Height, weight, age. How old is football player Hulk?

Immediately, as soon as the popular super football player appeared as part of the St. Petersburg Zenit, he attracted the attention of many Russian fans. He literally flew across the field, each of his attempts at goal became a scoring chance. Fans were interested in the height, weight, age, and age of the football player Hulk. He never hid his parameters. He weighs 83-84 kilograms and is 180 centimeters tall.

Hulk, whose photo in his youth and now amazes with his strength and spontaneity, says that he achieved such success thanks to the support of his family, incredible endurance and perseverance. He went towards his goal, despite the difficulties. Now he is recognized all over the world, and not just in his native Brazil and Russian Federation.

Biography and personal life of Footballer Hulk

The boy was born in 1985. At birth he was given the name Givanildo Vieira de Souza. Apart from him, there were only girls in the family. Father, Jovan de Souza, ran his own shop where he sold meat. Mother Maria de Souza helped her husband and raised eight children.

From the age of 7, the strong and resilient boy helped his parents, as he considered himself responsible for the well-being of the family. At this time, the comic book superhero Hulk became his favorite hero. The muscular and slightly ferocious character attracted the boy so much and was similar to him in appearance that his father jokingly called his son the Hulk. After some time, all the neighbors and relatives did not call the future famous football player anything else.

From the age of 12, Hulk, like many other Brazilian children, began to play football. Soon for him the game becomes the meaning of life, without which he can no longer live. He was noticed by one of the trainers at the Ze do Egito children's academy and invited him to study. Then the young man played in the teams of Vilanovense, Sao Paulo, and Vitoria (El Salvador).

At the age of 16 he began to play in the Vitoria team. At first he played as a defender, then in the center, and only a few months later he became a striker. But soon our hero ended up on the bench, where he sat for two long years.

In 2005, Hulk was offered to play for one of the Japanese clubs, to which he agreed. But after losing a season at Kawasaki Frontal, he moved to the 2nd division club Consadole Sapporo.” During his performance at the Tokyo Verdi club, the Hulk gains popularity. The biography and personal life of the football player Hulk at this time are becoming interesting for fans of football derbies. In 2008, the football player was noticed by the management of the Portuguese superclub Porto, which soon bought him. Together with the team, the athlete becomes a triumphant three times in the Portuguese championship, cup and super cup of the country. Since 2011, Hulk begins to play for the Brazilian national team. He began to be invited to many European football super teams. But to everyone’s amazement, the great athlete chose the St. Petersburg club Zenit.

In 2016, Hulk Hulk moved to Chinese football club"Shanghai SIPG", in which he began to receive more than 20 million dollars every year.

Family and children of football player Hulk

Currently, the family and children of football player Hulk live in St. Petersburg. The beloved wife of the world-famous football player Hulk says that for the sake of the happiness of the children, they decided to stay and live in the northern capital. Our hero very often visits his beloved and sons.

The parents and sisters of the famous football star live in Brazil. Mother and father are very proud of their son and are waiting for him to visit. They are now helping the younger sister of our today’s hero raise her three children.

Son of football player Hulk - Ian

The boy was born at a time when his father was just beginning to become famous. He was named Ian because the mother of the famous football player’s first-born liked the name. Ian is currently 9 years old and speaks several languages ​​very well. Speaks Russian, Japanese, English, Portuguese and Spanish well. Now he has started studying Chinese, because during the holidays Ian will go to Shanghai with his mother, where his father now lives.

The boy studies in one of the St. Petersburg schools. In addition to football, he plays athletics, drawing, classical dancing. The son of football player Hulk, Ian, is a true fan of his father. He calls him Hulk during the match, but in everyday life he calls him daddy.

Son of football player Hulk – Thiago

The youngest son of a popular football master was born during the period when his father brilliantly played football fields Europe as part of the Portuguese super team Porto. He tries in everything to be like his older brother, without whom he cannot live even for one minute.

He was named Thiago by his paternal grandmother, who loves her grandchildren very much and spoils them terribly when they come to visit her. The youngest son of the football player Hulk, Thiago, is just learning the basics of training. But now he speaks three languages ​​– Russian, Spanish and English. The boy dreams of following in his father's footsteps and becoming famous football player.

Football player Hulk's wife - Iran

The girl was born in Great Britain. At age 18, she went to Japan for an internship. Iran's friends offered to attend a local football team's game. Although she was indifferent to the game, she agreed to go. The play of a strong and courageous striker captivated the girl. After the match, one of his friends introduced Iran to the athlete. After talking for just a few minutes, the young people decided that they could not live without each other. Literally a few days later they began to live together. Soon they officially registered their relationship.

After a short period of time, children appeared in the family, who became truly expected and loved.
The footballer Hulk's wife, Iran, and her husband traveled to many countries around the world. She invariably sat on the podium and cheered for her husband. Arriving in St. Petersburg for the first time, the woman fell in love with the city and decided to stay and live here forever.

Currently, she is raising children and is waiting for her beloved husband to visit. She did not move to China. Next summer, Iran is going to cheer for her husband at the world championship, which will be held in Russia.

The Hulk is known all over the world; this Brazilian has made millions fall in love with him. Few people know that his real name is Givanildo Vieira de Souza, so the nickname has stuck to him so firmly. By the way, I came up with it biological father, for his resemblance to the popular comic book hero.

Hulk has a crazy kick with both legs, has excellent vision of the field, and is ready for a penetrating cross pass. He always inspires his teammates with confidence and is not afraid to take charge of the game. Has a powerful shot when taking free throws.

The beginning of the Hulk's path to the 2018 World Championship

Givanildo was born on July 25, 1986 in the small Brazilian town of Campina Grande, in the state of Paraiba. He grew up in a large family, where in addition to him there were six siblings. As a brother, he took an unskilled job from an early age to help his parents feed their large family.

Only at the age of 12, he was able to find himself football team, she became the local Ze do Iguito. Subsequently, Hulk visited many youth teams, and eventually, at the age of 16, signed his first professional contract with Vitoria.

Vitoria

The coach took the player to the left side of the defense; he liked the textured player and his speed. But Hulk soon demonstrated his ball-handling skills and was moved to center field. He didn’t really play in Brazil, playing only two matches for the main team of the new club.

Japan

In the winter of 2005, Hulk was acquired by the Japanese team Kawasaki Frontale, where his compatriots had already competed. For the rest of his debut season, the young Hulk, who appeared on Japanese pitches 12 times, managed to score only three goals. To the surprise of many, Hulk was sent to the Japanese second division team Consadoli Sapporo.

Hulk accepted the challenge and the new season was a powerful one for him. He played 38 matches for the Sapporo team and scored 25 goals. He became the top scorer in the Japanese League Two, with three hat-tricks to his name. Largely because the coach gave him the opportunity to play as a forward. It was then that the Hulk found his place on the field.

Upon his return to Frontale, he again found no place on the field. This time they did not rent it out, but sold it for 5 million to Tokyo Verdi.

Hulk spent two years in the new team, during which he played 53 matches, in which he scored 44 goals. Amazing numbers. At that time, European breeders noticed him.

Porto

The Portuguese Porto breeders worked faster than others, and already in 2007, Hulk set off to conquer the European continent.

His debut took place in a fundamental confrontation in the Super Cup with Lisbon Sporting, losing to Porto 2:0. The team coach, too, transferred Hulk to the position of right midfielder.

This is where he probably spent his best years gaming career. Won many trophies:

• Three times Portuguese Championship
• In the 2011-2012 season, the Europa League
• Three times Portuguese Cup and Super Cup

In 2011, he finally became the top scorer of the national championship. This success seriously raised his transfer price.

In total, over several Portuguese years, he played 99 matches for the team and scored 54 goals. On the wave of this success, on the last day of the 2008 transfer window, he left the team.

Zenith

They predicted a great future for him best clubs peace. But he chose Russian Zenit, as evil tongues said, only because of the money. But as time showed, he fell in love new club, where he again reached great heights.

At first, the transfer of the Brazilian haunted many Russian players, who openly conflicted with the management of Zenit, hoping that their salaries would be equalized. Soon these players left the team, and the Hulk showed that it was not in vain that he received fabulous money.

During 4 years in St. Petersburg, he won:

• Cup
• Russian championship
• Russian Super Cup
• Rank best player Russian Championship

Single-handedly he carried the team in the Champions League, where Zenit repeatedly passed on “one leg” group stage.

Shanghai SIPG

In the winter of 2016, the first rumors began that Hulk intended to continue his career in China. In the summer of the same year, he moved to the Shanghai SIPG team for an astronomical sum of 55 million euros.

In China, the Brazilian continues to score, and pulls his team not only into the national championship, but also into the Asian Champions League.

Brazil national team

For the first time, the Hulk was summoned to national team in 2009, he played in a friendly match against 1:0. He scored his first goal only in 2012, when Brazil played with Denmark in a friendly match; by the way, in that meeting he scored two goals at once.

Let's move on to the major tournaments where Hulk managed to perform while wearing the Brazilian national team uniform:

• Olympic Games 2012 London. Hulk, along with Thiago Silva and Marcelo, were three senior players in the Brazilian national team. The team performed generally well, easily overcame the group stage, beating Belarus, and. They defeated Honduras and Korea in the playoffs. Hulk managed to distinguish himself only in final match, where the team lost to Mexico 1:2.
• Confederations Cup 2013 Brazil. On the eve of the home World Cup, the Brazilians performed well at the Confederations Cup. The team eventually won the tournament, but the Hulk never hit the opponents' goal.
• World Cup 2014 Brazil. The tournament was supposed to be a triumph; he arrived in excellent shape. But he always lacked just a little. At the World Cup, he made the most shots on goal, he constantly escalated the game, but the ball stubbornly did not go into the goal. failed, losing in the semifinals, and Hulk never scored a single goal.

Player at the 2018 FIFA World Cup

World Championship 2018, good way for Hulk to remind Russian fans of himself, who managed to fall in love with him over the years spent at Zenit. The player will not be able to finally lift the curse and score his first goal at major world tournaments.

Hulk is not old at all, he is only thirty years old, he is in excellent playing shape, so he should be called up to the national team, despite the fact that he plays in the Chinese championship. In short, half of Brazil's players play in that championship.

Warm support for the Hulk will not be provided.

Givanildo Vieira do Sousa, famous in football world as the football player Hulk, was born in the small Brazilian town of Campina Grande on July 25, 1986. Currently, the footballer plays for Zenit. Football player's role: right and center forward.

Interview with Hulk

There are several interesting facts about a football player. Givanildu received his nickname in honor of the Incredible Hulk from the comics. Just like the comic book hero, when he was angry, he clenched his fists and gritted his teeth. Now the Hulk is a striker, but as a child he played defense. Footballer Hulk never liked Japanese referees, but he met his wife in Japan. See here.
The football player has high growth and a dense physique, and when he enters the field he can be compared to a boxer who competes in heavyweight weight category. The Hulk really looks like his comic book namesake - a huge green monster who had the unthinkable physical strength. His large figure helps him break through to the enemy’s goal, literally pushing everyone away with his broad shoulders. At Zenit, the football player is a clear star, he fits perfectly into the team and looks great in the squad. Unfortunately for the fans, while playing for the Brazilian national team, he failed to do anything worthwhile or useful for the team at the 2014 home World Cup. And if it weren’t for the failure of the entire team at that championship, a lot of negativity would have fallen on the Hulk. He was always distinguished by his ability to receive and handle the ball; his powerful shots from afar and from the penalty areas were successful. But all these skills did not help, and after the fiasco at the 2014 World Cup, the football player was no longer invited to play for the national team. The forward has played for the national team since 2009, but these were always friendly games, and the only serious one was the Confederations Cup, which was held in 2013, and the failed World Cup itself.
The Hulk's childhood quickly ended, since besides him, his parents had 6 more children and all of them were girls. Footballer Hulk began working early in order to help his parents feed and clothe his sisters. Fortunately, his parents had a butcher shop, and the future star sold meat there. Despite his difficult childhood, the boy did not give up his dream of playing football professionally and at the age of 12 he was enrolled in football school for children, and yours professional career he started at the age of 16 at the Vitoria club. But Hulk played one match for Vitoria and in 2005 he was sold to the Japanese Kawasaki Frontatel, where Juninho and Augusto became his teammates. In total, Hulk spent three years in Japan and changed three teams. There, he met his future wife. After playing in Japanese clubs, he was invited to the Portuguese Porto. The footballer played there for 5 seasons. In total, 165 matches were played for Porto and 78 goals were scored. Look at the photo of Hulk in Porto

A significant meeting for the football player took place in Porto. Jesualdo Ferreiro, the team's coach, molded the player from scratch and made him the best forward in Portugal in 2010. What happened in the football player’s career. A scandalous fight with stewards in a game with Benfica served as the reason for his disqualification for four whole months. Read here, ?
In 2012, the football player transferred to Zenit St. Petersburg. The deal was worth 60 million euros, of which Hulk got 10 million. The rest of the transfer was divided between Porto and Vitoria. The debut at Zenit took place against Terek, but the white-blues lost this game with a score of 2:0. But, soon Hulk justified his multimillion-dollar transfer and scored his first goal on Russian soil against Krylya Sovetov, but, unfortunately, this goal did not help Zenit win and the game was played as a draw. The move to Zenit and move to Russia practically minimized the chances of playing for his native team. Since his game practically went unnoticed by the management and coaching staff of the Brazilian national team. Look at the photo of Hulk in Zenith

Analysts believe that Hulk's failure at the World Cup in Brazil is due to his incorrect use on the playing field. The forward was not allowed to take free kicks at all, although this is his strong point. But this concerns free kicks, but in defense, the Hulk himself showed himself to be not very good. the best side and out of 12 combats he won only 3, and he didn’t shine in interceptions.
Today, Hulk has been living in the cultural capital of Russia for three years. Together with him, his family moved to St. Petersburg: his wife and two children. In the summer, there was a rumor in the football world that the comic book super hero might leave Zenit, but it turned out to be just a rumor and the Hulk continues to play for the St. Petersburg club. At Zenit, he had a conflict with the coach, but it was resolved and did not hinder his career. and the Zenit forward played 89 matches in three seasons. He scored 44 goals, the statistics are not bad, he scores every game. (Read

The Brazilian striker's new club became the champion of China for the first time in history

Heading East

The nets in Russian stadiums stopped breaking after volleys two years ago, in July 2016. The Brazilian striker, after four years in, with whom he became the national champion and took the Russian Cup and Super Cup, scoring 76 goals in 148 matches and giving 60 assists, left St. Petersburg and headed for the East.

Chasing your dreams

The club, which the year before had had its best season in history, finishing second in the Chinese Championship, did not spare 56 million euros that fell into the blue-white-blue account to bring the 30-year-old Brazilian to the Celestial Empire and go with him for a dream. The trip had to be postponed immediately - Hulk put on red, a color unloved for St. Petersburg, and played in his debut match against " Henan" (5:0) 20 minutes (did not score), suffered muscle damage and was out for almost two months.

While I was being treated, I celebrated my birthday, and in the first game after returning, I saved " Shanghai"from losing, putting a double - and the second goal was scored from a penalty kick in the 90th minute - into the goal" Beijing Guoan" (2:2).

Before the end of the Chinese Super League 2016, the results of which were summed up at the end of October, Hulk scored twice more, but couldn’t really help the team - " Shanghai" took bronze, remaining 12 points behind the champion, " Guangzhou Evergrande".

Forward movement

The next season was much more productive for the Brazilian: 17 goals and 14 assists in 27 championship games - and now the Shanghai team celebrated a repeat best result, having reached silver medals championship.

Moreover, thanks to four balls Hulk(one of them in the video)" Shanghai" reached the final of the Chinese Football Association Cup for the first time, where only because of the away goal rule, he gave the trophy to his neighbors from " Shanghai Shenhua"And yet there was progress, both for the player and for the club.

Meeting with Zenit and winning goal against Spartak

At the training camp in Dubai last winter Hulk met with the blue-white-blues who were stationed nearby, and then behaved like a real Zenit player - he scored the winning goal" Spartak"in the control match (1:0), in which he received a serious knee injury Dzhikia, who missed the 2018 World Cup because of this.

The long-awaited championship

Maybe the joy of meeting former teammates fueled the Brazilian for success - Hulk, who led his team out with the captain's armband from the first game of the new championship, took it right off the bat, did not leave the field without a goal for three rounds in a row and helped " Shanghai"in the second half of the championship, put on an unbeaten streak of 13 matches, which was crowned by a victory two rounds before the finish over a direct competitor in the fight for gold - " Guangzhou Evergrande", - seven recent years who didn’t let anyone come close to the first line in the table.

The game came out dramatic - " Guangzhou", thanks to the double Paulinho, who returned to China in the summer after a year-long business trip to " Barcelona", came back twice and took the lead, but a few minutes before the final whistle Hulk scored the decisive goal from the penalty spot, " Shanghai“Won 5:4 and practically ended the intrigue in the Super League. All that was left was to take the last step.

And it was done. Even without Hulk who missed the game with " Beijing Renhe"(2:1), but with a stunning goal from the ex-midfielder" Anji" And " Krasnodar" Odila Akhmedova. Having scored three points, " Shanghai Shangan" found himself at a distance beyond the reach of his pursuers, becoming the champion of China for the first time. Following national titles in Portugal (" Porto") and Russia (" Zenith") Hulk The Celestial Empire also submitted.

He is its new emperor.

Hulk in "Shanghai Shangan"