Daniel Mendes

Daniel Freire Mendes (pronounced [ 'Me ⁿ dʒis ]; born 14 July 1981 in São Paulo ) is a Brazilian footballer. The striker played most of his career in Sweden.

Career

Mendes began playing football at SE Palmeiras. About SC Corinthians and CA Juventus, he came in 1997 to Botafogo FR. With the U-17 team of the club, he won the 1999 Copa Juvenil Do Estado Do Rio De Janeiro, where he was best scorer of the team with 14 goals. A year later he succeeded with the youth team of the club winning the title in the Campeonato Carioca De Juniores.

In 2003, Mendes first time to Sweden. For Kalmar FF, he joined in the Superettan and belonged with 14 goals this season for the top scorer of the season. He was instrumental in the rise of the clubs in the Allsvenskan. However, at the end of the season he left the club and moved to Japan to Ulsan Hyundai. After only a year he moved on to Atlético Nacional, where he again played only one year.

2006 Mendes returned to Sweden. In the second division Degerfors IF he showed his famous eye for goal and scored in the first half of the season the second division season 2006 ten goals. Therefore, it was higher class noticed him and in July of the year promoted the Allsvenskan club AIK striker from. In his new club but he could not prevail despite four goals in 14 games to the end of the season. In the following years, he came on as a substitute mainly used, whereby he was in the 2008 with five goals behind the Argentines Iván Óbolo, get the ten goals this season, along with the Slovenes Miran Burgič second best scorer of the club.

Mendes decided after the season to change clubs and returned after five years back to Kalmar FF. At the reigning champion, he signed a three- year contract. With his first competitive goal for the new employer he made in March 2009 with a 1-0 win against Cup winners IFK Göteborg winning the Supercupen. At first team regular, he found himself in the course of the season after he was temporarily left without scoring on the bench again. Ultimately, he had eight goals this season one of the most prolific players on the team and reached the club in fourth as the participation for the first qualifying round of the UEFA Europa League 2010/11.

In his second season at KFF Mendes was initially less goal threat, so he had to sit on the substitutes ' bench temporarily. In the game against the hitherto undefeated league leaders Helsingborgs IF on May 16, he wrote Swedish football history: With his goal in a 1-0 Full Time 6.4 seconds after kick-off, he scored the fastest goal in the history of the Allsvenskan. In the same match he was expelled after an assault of the field. However, he fought his way back and reached his place with the team in the fall of 2011, the final of the National Cup. Despite a goal from Erik Israelsson the game went with a 1-3 defeat to beat the champion Helsingborgs IF.