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Luis Figo is the piston that drive's Portugal's engine.
Ostensibly a right winger, Figo has licence to roam,
quarterbacking his nation's attack.
In the mould of the classic midfielder, he can dribble
around or past opponents seemingly at will, boasts a
devastating free kick and keeps his strikers serviced
with accurate crosses and long passes.
FIFA's World Player of the Year for 2001, Figo isn't
really a scorer, but he's one of the best at setting
them up.
"I'm not a goal scorer or a defender, I'm not
a passer," he said.
"Soccer for me is speed; quick on the ball, quick
thinking, quick to move."
He also likes to have the ball.
"If I don't touch the ball for five minutes, I
start going crazy."
In 2000 he became the most expensive player in the
world when he transferred from FC Barcelona to Spanish
powerhouse Real Madrid for $56 million (US), a figure
that was only topped by Zinedine Zidane's transfer to
the same team last year.
Figo's move was viewed as sacrilege in Barcelona, and
fans there have treated him as a traitor, pelting him
with batteries and coins whenever Madrid visits.
He can do no wrong in Portugal, though. Figo drew attention
for his outstanding play at the 2000 European Championships,
leading his team to the semifinals, where the Portuguese
suffered a controversial defeat to France, which went
on to win the Euro 2000 crown.
Born in Lisbon in 1972, Figo joined Sporting Lisbon
when he was 11 and made his debut with the club's first
team at just 16. He earned his first international cap
in 1991 and has won the Under-20 World Championships
with Portugal and the Under-16 European Championships.
He's the most luminous of the so-called "golden
generation" of Portuguese soccer - the cornerstone
of perhaps Portugal's greatest-ever national side made
up
of players in their late 20s and early 30s. It's the
same corps of players who won the world under-21 championship
in 1989 and 1991. Most pundits have
Portugal tipped as a dark horse to win the World Cup
in its third trip to soccer's premier tournament.
Like so many of the biggest stars playing this June
in South Korea and Japan, Figo has struggled with his
fitness of late, battling ankle problems for several
months prior to the World Cup. Figo himself has said
that if it
wasn't for the Cup, he'd have undergone surgery this
summer. Even at less than 100 per cent, though, Figo
is the heart and soul of the Portugues side.
With files from Associated Press
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