Dequinha

José Mendonça dos Santos, simply known as Dequinha (March 19, 1928 – July 23, 1997), was a Brazilian footballer.He played as a midfielder, a position which, due to his versatility, he played in a variety of ways. He started out as a left winger, and then moved to the defensive midfield position, where his athletic and marking skills stood out; His passing accuracy and speed made him an effective counter-attacker later on. Widely regarded as one of Brazil's finest defensive midfielders of all time.

Club career

Growing up both football-wise and personally in Rio Grande do Norte, he earned a transfer to América of Recife, Pernambuco, from which he was then sold to Flamengo in 1950. With the Rio de Janeiro team, he managed to break the hegemony of Vasco da Gama, which had won the state championship almost continuously from 1945 to 1952. In fact, Flamengo won three consecutive titles, and Dequinha's contribution was important, as he played a balancing role in the line-up.  After leaving the Carioca team after eleven years, he ended his career in 1963 with América-PE.

International career

He played with the national team for a short period mainly the one related to the successes with Flamengo obtaining the call-up for the 1954 World Cup, where, however, he failed to make his debut. Subsequently, it played mainly friendly matches, with the notable result of winning the Bernardo O'Higgins Cup and Taça Oswaldo Cruz in 1955.

 Honours 
 Player 
ABC 
 Campeonato Potiguar: 1947

Flamengo
 Campeonato Carioca: 1953, 1954, 1955
 Torneio Início do Rio de Janeiro: 1959
 Campeonato Carioca de Aspirantes: 1955, 1956
 City of Ilhéus Trophy: 1950
 Elfsborg Cup: 1951
 Lima Quadrangular Tournament: 1952
 City of Arequipa Trophy: 1952
 Curitiba Quadrangular Tournament: 1953
 Juan Domingo Perón Trophy: 1953
 Argentina Quadrangular Tournament: 1953
 Rio de Janeiro International Tournament: 1954
 Gilberto Cardoso International Tournament: 1955
 Oswaldo Aranha Ambassador Trophy: 1956
 Rio-São Paulo State Champions Cup: 1956
 Morumbi International Tournament: 1957
 Brasília Cup: 1957
 Ponto Frio Bonzão Trophy: 1957
 Allmänna Idrottsklubben Trophy: 1957
 Israel Quadrangular Tournament: 1958
 Sporting Clube de Portugal Trophy: 1958
 Lima Hexagonal Tournament: 1959

Brazil
 Taça Oswaldo Cruz: 1955
 Bernardo O'Higgins Cup: 1955

 Manager 
Sergipe
 Campeonato Sergipano: 1970, 1971, 1972

References

Category:1928 births
Category:1997 deaths
Category:Brazilian footballers
Category:People from Rio Grande do Norte