Gérson dos Santos

Gérson dos Santos
Personal information
Full name	Gérson dos Santos
Date of birth	14 July 1922
Place of birth	Belo Horizonte, Brazil
Date of death	5 June 2002 (aged 79)
Place of death	Belo Horizonte, Brazil
Position(s)	Midfielder
Youth career
	Pitangui-MG
Senior career*
Years	Team
1942–1945	Cruzeiro
1945–1956	Botafogo
1946	→ Cruzeiro (loan)
1956–1957	Cruzeiro
International career
1952–1954	Brazil
Managerial career
1957	Cruzeiro
1958–1959	Cruzeiro
1962	Cruzeiro
1966–1967	Atlético Mineiro
1969–1970	Cruzeiro
1974	Vila Nova
1977	Vila Nova
1981	Remo
	*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 20 February 2024

Gérson dos Santos (14 July 1922 – 5 June 2002), was a Brazilian professional footballer and manager, who played as a midfielder.

Career

Gérson dos Santos began his career at Pitangui FC in Belo Horizonte. As a professional, he arrived at Palestra Itália (currently Cruzeiro EC) in 1942, where as a youth player, he was part of the three-time state champion squad in 1943–45. Still, in 1945, he was transferred to Botafogo, where he marked his time by making 371 appearances and becoming the state champion in 1948.^[1] Gérson formed the defensive system called the "maginot line" at Botafogo, alongside Oswaldo Baliza and Nilton Santos. He still returned to Cruzeiro, where he ended his career as a player.^[2]^[3]

International career

For the Brazil national team, dos Santos was part of the winning squad of the 1952 Panamerican Championship, playing one match in the campaign.^[4] In 1954 he was called up again, participating in two matches for the 1954 FIFA World Cup qualification.^[5]

Managerial career

As a coach, Gérson dos Santos began his career immediately after retiring in 1957 at Cruzeiro. He also had spells at Atlético Mineiro, Vila Nova and Remo.^[2]