By DPA
Zurich : On Sunday, Brazilian international Kaka was in Tokyo, inspiring his team AC Milan to a 4-2 victory over Argentine club Boca Juniors in the club World Cup. A day later he was in Zurich picking up the award as the World’s Best Footballer of 2007.
For the offensive midfielder both must have seemed like just another day at the office. Although he is still only 25, he has picked up awards and titles in abundance – highlighted Monday with the World Footballer of the Year award in the annual poll conducted among national team coaches and captains by the world governing body, FIFA.
Born Ricardo Izecson dos Santos Leite April 22, 1982 in Brasilia, he started playing for Sao Paulo at the age of eight, winning the prestigious Copa de Juvenil with the club as a 15-year-old.
Four years later, he made his debut for the Sao Paulo senior side, leading the team to glory in the Rio-Sao Paulo championship, but more importantly, gaining the interest of European clubs.
In 2003, Champions League winners AC Milan were willing to part with $8.5 million for the youngster – a fee Milan president Silvio Berlusconi described as “peanuts” at the time.
Although many thought he had been signed as a player for the future and would be loaned out to gain experience, he broke into the starting line-up within a few months of joining the club and has stayed there since.
In his first season with the Serie A club, he won the Italian league and the European Super Cup. In the following season, the club finished runner-up to Juventus in the league and lost in the final of the Champions League to Liverpool.
He was the top scorer in the Champions League in the 2006-07 season, scoring 10 goals and helping Milan beat Liverpool 2-1 in the final in Athens earlier this year.
Kaka played his first game for the national side in January 2002 and was a member of the Brazilian World Cup-winning squad in the same year, but played just 19 minutes against Costa Rica.
He won the Confederations Cup in 2005 and is a regular in the Selecao.
A few months ago, he was named by Europe’s governing body UEFA as the best forward of the Champions League season and the best Club Footballer of the Year.
He topped that at the beginning of the month when he was officially named the winner of the European Footballer of the Year award, beating Cristiano Ronaldo, who was also one of the three players short-listed for the World Footballer award.
In accepting the reward, Kaka said that it had been an exceptional year.
“I want to thank God, who allowed me to be here today. I thank my wife, my parents and Milan, the team that allowed me to win. I also thank my teammates, both at Milan and Brazil, and all of the fans.”
The Brazilian, whose nickname comes from his younger brother Rodrigo, who could not pronounce Ricardo and called him Caca instead, which developed into Kaka over time, is a devout evangelical Christian.
He has often lifted his jersey to show religious messages on a t-shirt underneath and is said to have stitched: “I belong to Jesus” and “God is Faithful” onto the tongues of his boots.
Kaka, who earlier this year became an Italian citizen, is a member of the organization Atletas de Cristo (Athletes for Christ) and counts the Bible as his favourite book and gospel music as his favourite music.
At the press conference before the glittering gala at which he was crowned World Footballer, he said the fact that three young players had been short-listed showed that the sport was getting younger.
“A new cycle has begun,” he said.
But with his inspiration and talent, it could well be that he will rule for quite some time.