José Travassos

Portuguese footballer (1926–2002)

José Travassos
Personal information
Full name	José António Barreto Travassos
Date of birth	(1926-02-22)22 February 1926
Place of birth	Lisbon, Portugal
Date of death	12 February 2002(2002-02-12) (aged 75)
Place of death	Lisbon, Portugal
Position(s)	Forward
Youth career
1942–1944	CUF
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps	(Gls)
1944–1946	CUF
1946–1959	Sporting CP	248	(105)
International career
1947–1958	Portugal	35	(6)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals

José António Barreto Travassos (22 February 1926 – 12 February 2002) was a Portuguese footballer who played as a forward.

Club career

Born in Lisbon, Travassos joined Sporting CP in 1946 from G.D. CUF. During his spell with the club, he appeared in 321 games in all competitions and scored 128 goals, being part of an attacking line dubbed Cinco Violinos (Five Violins) that also included Albano, Jesus Correia, Fernando Peyroteo and Manuel Vasques and winning eight Primeira Liga championships and two Taça de Portugal trophies.^[1]

In the 1948–49 season, Travassos netted a career-best 16 goals to help the Lions to win the domestic league ahead of S.L. Benfica. He retired in 1959 at the age of 33, dying in his hometown at the age of 75.^[2]

International career

Travassos won 35 caps for the Portugal national team over 11 years, scoring six times.^[3] His debut came on 5 January 1947 in a 2–2 friendly draw against Switzerland in the Portuguese capital and, 21 days later and in another home exhibition game, netted a brace to help defeat Spain 4–1.^[4]

Travassos was one of the first Portuguese footballers to reach international recognition, playing in 1955 for a FIFA side that defeated England 4–1 in Belfast.^[5] For this achievement, he was dubbed "Zé da Europa" (Europe Joe).^[6]

References

^ Roseiro, Bruno (29 July 2017). "Quem eram os Cinco Violinos, a famosa linha avançada que marcou mais de 1.200 golos?" [Who were the Five Violins, the famous forward line who scored more than 1.200 goals?]. Observador (in Portuguese). Retrieved 25 April 2020.
^ Marques, Sara (16 February 2015). "O dia em que os cinco violinos marcaram 12 golos" [The day the five violins scored 12 goals] (in Portuguese). Mais Futebol. Retrieved 21 July 2015.
^ "Lista completa dos internacionais portugueses" [Complete list of Portuguese internationals] (in Portuguese). Mais Futebol. 18 February 2004. Retrieved 22 February 2023.
^ Vaza, Marco (17 November 2010). "Por uma noite, o campeão do mundo foi Portugal" [For one night, Portugal were the world champions]. Público (in Portuguese). Retrieved 22 February 2023.
^ "England Player Honours – International Representative Teams". England Football Online. Retrieved 2 April 2013.
^ "O homem que nasceu Travassos se se tornou o Zé da Europa" [The man who was born Travassos and became Europe Joe] (in Portuguese). Sporting CP. 28 July 2016. Retrieved 25 April 2020.