Zé Carlos (footballer, born 1975)

José Carlos Santos da Silva (born 19 March 1975), known as Zé Carlos, is a Brazilian retired footballer who played as a forward.

His own included, he played professionally in six countries.

Football career
Born in Ipirá, Bahia, Zé Carlos received the nickname Zé do Gol (Zé of the Goal) while playing at Botafogo de Futebol e Regatas. There, he was champion of the 1997 Campeonato Carioca and the Torneio Rio – São Paulo in the following year. In January 2002 he left for Turkish club Malatyaspor and, the next year, moved back to Brazil, for Clube de Regatas do Flamengo also in Rio de Janeiro.

In January 2004, Zé Carlos joined South Korea's Pohang Steelers. The following year in the same month he moved again, penning a one-year deal with Esporte Clube Juventude.

Zé Carlos spent the next one-and-a-half seasons in Portugal, with C.S. Marítimo and S.C. Braga, helping the Minho side finish fourth in 2006–07 and qualify for the UEFA Cup. He was also an essential attacking unit in their semi-final run in the Taça de Portugal, notably scoring a hat-trick in a 5–2 home win against Portimonense SC.

On 12 July 2007, Zé Carlos signed a contract with APOEL FC in Cyprus. He experienced some trouble with injuries during his stay, but helped his team win the domestic cup.

In 2011, 34-year-old Zé Carlos helped Club Bolívar conquer the Bolivian League, scoring ten goals. He subsequently returned to his country, playing exclusively in amateur football.

Honours

 * Botafogo
 * Campeonato Carioca: 1997


 * APOEL
 * Cypriot Cup: 2007–08


 * Bolívar
 * Liga de Fútbol Profesional Boliviano: 2011