Jaime da Silva Graça (Portuguese pronunciation: [ˈʒajmɨ ˈɣɾasɐ]; 30 January 1942 – 28 February 2012) was a Portuguese football midfielder and manager.
.png) Graça in 1972 | |||||||||||||||||
| Personal information | |||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Jaime da Silva Graça | ||||||||||||||||
| Date of birth | 30 January 1942 | ||||||||||||||||
| Place of birth | Setúbal, Portugal | ||||||||||||||||
| Date of death | 28 February 2012 (aged 70) | ||||||||||||||||
| Place of death | Lisbon, Portugal | ||||||||||||||||
| Height | 1.63 m (5 ft 4 in) | ||||||||||||||||
| Position(s) | Midfielder | ||||||||||||||||
| Youth career | |||||||||||||||||
| Palmelense | |||||||||||||||||
| 1959–1961 | Vitória Setúbal | ||||||||||||||||
| Senior career* | |||||||||||||||||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) | ||||||||||||||
| 1961–1966 | Vitória Setúbal | 103 | (32) | ||||||||||||||
| 1966–1975 | Benfica | 159 | (19) | ||||||||||||||
| 1975–1977 | Vitória Setúbal | 41 | (4) | ||||||||||||||
| 1978–1979 | Sesimbra | ||||||||||||||||
| 1979 | Eléctrico | ||||||||||||||||
| 1980–1981 | Oliveirenses | ||||||||||||||||
| Total | 303 | (55) | |||||||||||||||
| International career | |||||||||||||||||
| 1965–1972 | Portugal | 36 | (4) | ||||||||||||||
Medal record
| |||||||||||||||||
| *Club domestic league appearances and goals | |||||||||||||||||
Club career edit
Born in Setúbal, Graça made his professional – and Primeira Liga – debut with local Vitória Futebol Clube, appearing in nearly 150 official games over five seasons and helping the Sadinos to three Taça de Portugal finals during his spell.[1][2]
In summer 1966, after totalling 28 goals in his last two seasons with Vitória, he signed with S.L. Benfica, where he would win seven national championships and three Portuguese Cups, playing 229 matches in all competitions (29 goals). He equalised the 1967–68 European Cup final, a 4–1 extra time loss against Manchester United.[3]
On 5 December 1966, Benfica's new hydro massage bath short-circuited with seven players immersed. Luciano Fernandes was electrocuted before Graça – an electrician by trade before he became a professional footballer – could save himself and the others, and the team played the rest of that season in black.[4][2]
After featuring rarely during his latter years at the Estádio da Luz, the 33-year-old Graça returned to his first club, retiring from the game in 1977 with Portuguese top-flight (the only division he competed in) totals of 303 matches and 55 goals. He was in charge of C.D. Santa Clara as the Azores side were promoted to the Segunda Liga in 1987, but could not prevent relegation the following year.
International career edit
Graça collected 36 caps for the Portugal national team and scored four goals, mostly whilst as a Benfica player. His debut came on 24 January 1965, in a 5–1 home victory over Turkey for the 1966 FIFA World Cup qualifiers.[5]
Graça was selected for the final stages in England, appearing in all the games for the eventual third-placed team.[6] He also represented the nation in the Brazilian Independence Cup in 1972, where Portugal lost to hosts Brazil, in what would be his last international appearance.[7]
Graça assisted José Torres in the ill-fated 1986 World Cup in Mexico, marred by the Saltillo Affair.[7]
Death edit
On 28 February 2012, Graça died at the Lusíadas Hospital in Lisbon after a long battle with illness. He was 70 years old.[8]
Career statistics edit
- Scores and results list Portugal's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Graça goal.[9]
| No. | Date | Venue | Opponent | Score | Result | Competition |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 24 January 1965 | Estádio Nacional, Lisbon, Portugal |  Turkey |
3–1 | 5–1 | 1966 World Cup qualification |
| 2 | 13 November 1966 | Estádio Nacional, Lisbon, Portugal |  Sweden |
1–0 | 1–2 | Euro 1968 qualifying |
| 3 | 12 November 1967 | Estádio das Antas, Porto, Portugal |  Norway |
2–1 | 2–1 | Euro 1968 qualifying |
| 4 | 2 July 1972 | Estádio do Maracanã, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil |  Uruguay |
1–1 | 1–1 | Brazilian Independence Cup |
Honours edit
Setúbal
Benfica
- Primeira Divisão: 1966–67, 1967–68, 1968–69, 1970–71, 1971–72, 1972–73, 1974–75[10]
- Taça de Portugal: 1968–69, 1969–70, 1971–72[11]
- Taça de Honra (3)[11]
- European Cup runner-up: 1967–68[3]
Portugal
- FIFA World Cup third place: 1966[6]
References edit
- ^ a b Sequeira, Pedro (6 October 2008). "Década de 60: V. Setúbal mostra garras" [60s: V. Setúbal show their claws]. Diário de Notícias (in Portuguese). Retrieved 9 April 2020.
- ^ a b Escobar de Lima, Filipe (29 February 2012). "Jaime Graça, o sexto elemento de luxo do Benfica" [Jaime Graça, Benfica's sixth deluxe element]. Público (in Portuguese). Retrieved 25 May 2017.
- ^ a b "O adeus a Wembley: as duas finais perdidas pelo Benfica" [Farewell to Wembley: Benfica's two lost finals] (in Portuguese). Mais Futebol. 30 September 2002. Retrieved 7 August 2017.
- ^ M., Craig (10 April 2013). "A Misfortune Never Comes Alone – Benfica 1967, Part One". Beyond The Last Man. Retrieved 28 May 2014.
- ^ "Lista completa dos internacionais portugueses" [Complete list of Portuguese internationals] (in Portuguese). Mais Futebol. 18 February 2004. Retrieved 19 October 2023.
- ^ a b Paixão, Paulo; Castanheira, José Pedro (13 July 2016). "A lenda dos Magriços começou há 50 anos" [The legend of the Magriços started 50 years ago]. Expresso (in Portuguese). Retrieved 9 April 2020.
- ^ a b "Morreu o antigo jogador do Benfica Jaime Graça" [Death of former Benfica player Jaime Graça]. i (in Portuguese). 28 February 2012. Retrieved 9 April 2020.
- ^ "Morreu Jaime Graça" [Jaime Graça has died]. Record (in Portuguese). 28 February 2012. Retrieved 9 April 2020.
- ^ "Jaime Graça". European Football. Retrieved 20 October 2015.
- ^ "Especial 'Tetra'" ['Tetra' special edition]. Mística (in Portuguese). No. 33. Portugal: Impresa Publishing. April–June 2017. p. 78. ISSN 3846-0823.
- ^ a b "Bicampeões para a história" [Back-to-back champions for the ages]. Visão (in Portuguese). Portugal: Impresa Publishing. May 2015. p. 48. ISSN 0872-3540.
External links edit
- Jaime Graça at ForaDeJogo (archived)
- Jaime Graça manager stats at ForaDeJogo (archived)
- Jaime Graça at National-Football-Teams.com
- Jaime Graça – FIFA competition record (archived)
