Emerson Sheik

Early days

Emerson Sheik was born in Nova Iguaçu and made his senior debut for São Paulo FC in 1998.^[4]

Japan and Qatar

In 2000, Emerson Sheik joined Consadole Sapporo in the Japanese second division, for whom he scored 31 goals in 34 games during the 2000 season. After the season, he joined another second division club, Kawasaki Frontale, where he continued his impressive goalscoring record, netting 19 times in 18 league games. Midway through the 2001 season, however, he left to join the Urawa Red Diamonds, for whom he yet again excelled, scoring 71 league goals in 100 appearances. Al-Sadd bought Emerson for US$8 million in 2005 and paired him with Ecuadorian Carlos Tenorio.

Rennes and return to Al-Sadd

On 25 August 2007, Emerson Sheik signed a three-year contract with French side Rennes.^[5] However, he could not break into the first team. Meanwhile, Al-Sadd were going through a lean phase. They had many bad results and were 14 points behind unbeaten leaders Al Ahli by the end of 2007. In addition, their new import Mauro Zárate did not link up well with Carlos Tenorio up front. On 19 December, Al-Sadd announced Emerson's return to fulfill fans' demands.^[6]

Flamengo

On 1 February 2009, Emerson Sheik signed a season-long deal with Flamengo after leaving Al-Sadd as a free agent. He formed a fearsome strike partnership with Adriano, helping the Mengão win the 2009 Brasileirão Série A after a relatively bad start. Club legend Andrade praised both players' performances.^[7]

Al Ain

On 24 July 2009, he signed a two-year deal with Emirati side Al Ain. He was presented to the press on 6 September 2009 and was handed the number 8 shirt.

Fluminense

On 19 July 2010, Emerson signed for Fluminense. On 5 December 2010, Emerson scored the winning goal for Fluminense to conquer the Brasileirão Série A title, making him a Brazilian champion for two years in a row.

Corinthians

On 11 April 2011, Emerson Sheik signed for Corinthians. On 4 December 2011, he won his third Brazilian championship in a row with the Timão, making him the first player in history to win three straight Brazilian championships with three different teams.

On 4 July 2012, Emerson scored two goals in the second match of the 2012 Copa Libertadores Finals, helping Corinthians to win their first Copa Libertadores.^[8][9] On 16 December 2012, he was part of the Corinthians team which won the 2012 FIFA Club World Cup, beating Chelsea 1–0.^[10] In the last few minutes of the game, he was involved in an off-the-ball incident with Gary Cahill, in which Emerson fell to the ground holding his face. Cahill received a red card, but the Englishman claimed Emerson fouled him first before diving.^{[citation needed]}

In an interview for Esporte Espetacular, an attraction of Rede Globo, Emerson showed his dislike for Mano Menezes, coach of the club. Emerson Sheik told reporters: "I do not wanna work with him [Mano] anymore." Still, according to the former Corinthiano: "I think he [Mano] is a very limited coach. I did not see anything special in him, and I do not think he will improve, because he does not have the humility to ask something."^[11]

Emerson Sheik returned to Corinthians in 2015 as Tite returned to the club as the new manager. He was a first choice for many of the first games of the season, including the 2015 Copa Libertadores. After Corinthians was eliminated in the Round of 16, the club opted against renegotiating Emerson's contract, due to end in 31 July of the same year. He was released on 12 June, after both sides reached an agreement on the matter.^[12]

Botafogo

In February 2014, he was loaned to Botafogo, his third club in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. He took the shirt number seven, used before by Botafogo's biggest idol, Garrincha.

Kiss issue

On 25 August 2013, after the 1–0 victory over Coritiba in the Brasileirão, Emerson Sheik celebrated by kissing his friend and posting the photo on Instagram.^[16]

On 26 August, one day after the incident, homophobic Corinthians supporters protested the kiss during a training session. Emerson Sheik called the protests an "idiotic prejudice".^[17]

On 28 August, in the first game after the incident, a 1–0 loss against Luverdense in the 2013 Copa do Brasil, Emerson Sheik was sent off along with opposition player Zé Roberto after they argued. Speaking to the press after the game, Zé Roberto, in reference to Emerson, said: "I am not the guy that takes a kiss from anyone, I do not accept this kind of thing."^[18]

Club

FIFA Club World Cup

* Friendly

International

^[19]