# Zé Ivaldo

José Ivaldo Almeida Silva (born 21 February 1997), known as Zé Ivaldo, is a Brazilian footballer who plays as a centre-back for Santos, on loan from Cruzeiro.

## Early life

Born in Cajueiro, Alagoas, Zé Ivaldo helped his grandparents to grow corns and watermelons while studying. After failed trials at Fluminense and Cruzeiro, he joined the youth sides of CRB, and played in the 2014 Copa São Paulo de Futebol Júnior for the club.

## Career
### Athletico Paranaense

In 2014, Zé Ivaldo was loaned to Atlético Paranaense's youth sides, being initially assigned to the under-17 team. He made his first team debut on 2 May 2015, starting in a 5–0 Campeonato Paranaense home routing of Nacional-PR. On 15 June, he was bought outright by the club, and signed a contract until June 2020.
Definitely promoted to the main squad ahead of the 2016 season, Zé Ivaldo only featured in two matches during the entire year. In 2017, he was a starter in the year's Paranaense, scoring his first goal on 18 March in a 4–0 home success over FC Cascavel.
Zé Ivaldo made his Série A debut on 14 May 2017, playing the full 90 minutes in a 6–2 away loss to Bahia. He started to feature more regularly in the following year, and scored his first goal in the top tier on 19 August 2018, in a 3–0 home win over Flamengo.

#### Loan to Vitória

On 17 May 2019, after struggling with his weight, Zé Ivaldo was loaned to Série B side Vitória until the end of the year. He suffered a knee injury in July, being sidelined for two months, and returned to his parent club after just 11 appearances.

#### 2020–21: breakthrough

Back to Athletico, Zé Ivaldo was initially a fifth-choice behind Thiago Heleno, Felipe Aguilar, Lucas Halter and Edu; he still renewed his contract for a further year on 15 June 2020. He became a third-choice in the 2021 campaign (only behind Thiago Heleno and Pedro Henrique), and further extended his link until 2023 on 10 May of that year.
Zé Ivaldo finished the 2021 season with Furacão with three goals in 50 appearances, winning the 2021 Copa Sudamericana.

#### Loan to Cruzeiro

On 12 April 2022, Zé Ivaldo was announced on loan at Cruzeiro until the end of the year. He immediately became a first-choice at the club, scoring once in 33 appearances overall as they returned to the top tier as champions.

#### 2023 season

Back to Athletico, Zé Ivaldo was a regular starter in the 2023 Campeonato Paranaense, but after allegedly agreeing to a pre-contract with Cruzeiro in July, he was separated from the first team squad in August. On 16 October, he left the club after agreeing to terminate his contract early.

### Cruzeiro return

On 31 October 2023, Cruzeiro confirmed Zé Ivaldo's pre-contract, and the player started training with the club. He was a first-choice during most of the 2024 season, but lost his starting spot after the arrival of Fernando Diniz as head coach.

#### Loan to Santos

On 11 January 2025, Santos confirmed the signing of Zé Ivaldo on a one-year loan deal, with a buyout clause. He made his club debut six days later, replacing João Basso in a 2–1 Campeonato Paulista home win over Mirassol.

## Career statistics

    As of 4 March 2025
| Club | Season | League | League | League | State League | State League | Cup | Cup | Continental | Continental | Other | Other | Total | Total |
| Club | Season | Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals |
| Athletico Paranaense | 2015 | Série A | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | — | 1 | 0 |
| Athletico Paranaense | 2016 | Série A | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | — | — | — | — | 2 | 0 |
| Athletico Paranaense | 2017 | Série A | 6 | 0 | 12 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | — | — | 20 | 1 |
| Athletico Paranaense | 2018 | Série A | 19 | 1 | 10 | 1 | 5 | 0 | 2 | 0 | — | — | 34 | 2 |
| Athletico Paranaense | 2019 | Série A | 0 | 0 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | — | 8 | 0 |
| Athletico Paranaense | 2020 | Série A | 14 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 18 | 0 |
| Athletico Paranaense | 2021 | Série A | 30 | 1 | 7 | 0 | 5 | 2 | 8 | 0 | — | — | 50 | 3 |
| Athletico Paranaense | 2022 | Série A | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 5 | 0 |
| Athletico Paranaense | 2023 | Série A | 14 | 0 | 10 | 2 | 5 | 0 | 6 | 0 | — | — | 35 | 2 |
| Athletico Paranaense | Subtotal | Subtotal | 83 | 2 | 53 | 4 | 18 | 2 | 20 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 175 | 8 |
| Vitória (loan) | 2019 | Série B | 11 | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 11 | 0 |
| Cruzeiro (loan) | 2022 | Série B | 30 | 1 | — | — | 3 | 0 | — | — | — | — | 33 | 1 |
| Cruzeiro | 2024 | Série A | 29 | 1 | 9 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 11 | 1 | — | — | 50 | 4 |
| Santos | 2025 | Série A | 0 | 0 | 11 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | — | — | 11 | 0 |
| Career total | Career total | Career total | 153 | 4 | 73 | 6 | 22 | 2 | 31 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 280 | 13 |
* 1 2 3 Appearance(s) in Copa Libertadores
* 1 2 3 4 Appearance(s) in Copa Sudamericana
* ↑ Appearance(s) in Recopa Sudamericana

## Honours

Athletico Paranaense
* Campeonato Paranaense: 2018, 2019, 2020, 2023
* Copa Sudamericana: 2018
Cruzeiro
* Campeonato Brasileiro Série B: 2022