His chat was so good, if he opened his mouth, that was it
going through the youth academy of Rio club Botafogo, 16-year-old Carlos was offered a trial at Mexican first division side Puebla FC but failed to impress coaches and was released, never having played a match.
After a brief spell at El Paso Patriots in the US, again without a single appearance, Carlos returned to his home city and, falsely claiming he had helped win the 1984 Copa dos Libertadores with Argentine side Independiente, set about convincing the biggest Brazilian clubs to sign him.
Carlos would frequent the most exclusive nightclubs in Rio in search of famous footballers, using his charisma and charm to befriend the likes of Romario, Bebeto, Carlos Alberto and Zico, convincing them he was just as much a star as them.
Brazil legend Bebeto said: “His chat was so good, if you let him open his mouth, that would be it. He’d charm you. You couldn’t avoid it.”
With the help of famous football friends, Carlos convinced many clubs to take him on. This started with Rio giants Botafogo, then Flamengo. Once his contract and transfer fee were secured, Carlos’ mind turned to how he could avoid kicking a ball. He said: “Most footballers arrive at games concentrating on how to get on the pitch and win games, score goals. I spent the whole time devising ways to avoid playing. So I faked injury, I found ways to get sent off, and if that wasn’t an option, I had to think of other ways not to play.”
Carlos negotiated short-term, often three-month contracts with clubs.
Once there, he would tell the management he didn’t feel match-fit and needed a few weeks to concentrate on training. Then, when it was time for him to actually play, the instant he was required to kick a ball he would drop to the floor, writhing in agony, claiming he had torn a hamstring.
He said: “I had a dentist friend who would give me a doctor’s note claiming I had some physical problem.”
Carlos ensured he was popular with teammates – finding women for them to have sex with. He said: “When the team was going to be staying at a hotel for a game, I would arrive three days earlier, taking 10 women with me, and I would rent rooms two floors below where the footballers were going to be. At night time, all of us would head downstairs.”
BEBETO BRAZILIAN FOOTBALL LEGEND
Carlos passed through 10 top-flight clubs, with statistics like no other: no appearances, no goals, no assists.
Carlos, who now has a dodgy hip and poor eyesight, has become a Buddhist and a fitness coach, training female bodybuilders. He said: “I could have been the great footballer everybody thought I was if I’d have put the same effort into playing as I did in making everyone believe it.”