Alexandre Rodrigues da Silva Pato

Alexandre Rodrigues da Silva (born 2 September 1989), commonly known as Alexandre Pato or simply Pato, is a Brazilian professional footballer who plays as a striker for Milanand the Brazilian national team. His nickname, Pato, refers to his place of birth, Pato Branco. The literal translation of Pato from Portuguese to English is "Duck" which has evolved into a common nickname for him.

Club career[

Internacional

In June 2006, at only 16 years of age, Pato was signed by Sport Club Internacional to compete in the Campeonato Brasileiro Sub-20. Despite the fact that he was competing against players up to four years older than he was, Pato became top scorer of the competition as Internacional Sub-20 defeated Grêmio 4–0 in the championship's final match. Ready to join the Inter first team in November that same year, his debut finally happened at the Estádio Palestra Itália against São Paulo giants Palmeiras for the Campeonato Brasileiro. Alexandre Pato met and surpassed any and all expectations of what was expected of him as he scored his first professional goal within the first minute of the game. The rest of his participation was spent dribbling and confusing defenders as he made two assists (and almost scoring another himself) to help Internacional rout Palmeiras 4–1. He was substituted off in the 77th minute.

Pato was included in the Internacional squad that won the 2006 FIFA Club World Cup. During this event, Pato broke Pelé's long standing record as he became the youngest ever player to score in a FIFA organised competition at the age of 17 years and 102 days old against African club champions Al-Ahly. Pelé was 17 years and 239 days old when he scored against Wales during the 1958 FIFA World Cup.

Keeping up with his promising figure, Pato debuted at the Campeonato Gaúcho on February 24 against Veranópolis and scored a goal in the 2–1 victory. He also debuted in Copa Libertadores on 28 February against Emelec of Ecuador (also his first game at Beira-Rio) and scored once during the 3–0 thumping. But the biggest highlight of Pato's time with Internacional was during the Recopa Sudamericana as he helped Internacional win their first ever title. Against Pachuca of Mexico, he scored one goal in the 2–1 defeat in Mexico. But on the return game on June 7 and with more than fifty-one thousand Colorados present, Pato had a great performance as he scored once and led the 4–0 thrashing to win Internacional's third international title.

Milan

2007–08 season

Incumbent European champions AC Milan officially confirmed the signing of Pato on 2 August 2007,^[3] paying nearly €24 million to transfer his contract from Internacional.^[4]

Due to FIFA football regulations regarding non-EU minors, Pato was unable to play official matches for Milan until 3 January 2008, when the Italian transfer window and registration reopened.^[5] However, Milan was allowed to include the player in friendlies and training beginning 3 September 2007, one day after his 18th birthday. Pato made his non-competitive debut in a 2–2 draw against Dynamo Kiev on 7 September 2007 and scored a header. On 4 January 2008, Pato's transfer to Milan became official.^[6]

Pato scored his first Milan goal on his Serie A debut against Napoli in a 5–2 home victory on 13 January 2008. He scored his first brace for Milan, in a 2–0 victory over Genoa at the San Siro on 27 January 2008. He finished the 2007–08 season with 9 goals in 20 appearances (18 in the league).

2008–09 season

In late 2008, Pato scored two goals in Milan's 5–1 win over Udinese just before the Christmas break, and managed to shine again with a brace against Roma the following matchday at the Stadio Olimpico on 11 January 2009, proving that he is a vital part of Milan's attack. He continued his impressive form for Milan, hitting six goals in four games, including a game winning strike against Fiorentina on 18 January. On 15 February, he scored his 11th goal of the season in a 2–1 defeat against home rivals Internazionale. On 26 February, Pato scored his 12th goal of the season against Werder Bremen in the UEFA Cup, a game Milan drew 2–2; but with this, were knocked out the competition on the away goals rule. Pato continued his good form with two goals against Siena on 15 March. Pato finished the 2008–09 season as Milan's top goalscorer with 18 goals.

2009–10 season

On 22 August 2009, in the first Serie A match of the 2009/2010 season, Pato scored a goal in each half during the 2–1 win against Siena.^[7]Around two months later, on 21 October 2009, during matchday 3 of the Champions league group stage, Pato scored 2 second half goals in a 3–2 win against Real Madrid at the Bernabéu. He has since played at the right wing in a 4–3–3 formation. On 18 January 2010, Pato was awarded the 2009 Serie A Young Footballer of the Year award at the Oscar del Calcio ceremony becoming the first Brazilian to be awarded with the title. On his return to the team from injury, Pato scored a goal in each of Milan's next three games against Udinese, Bari, andFiorentina. On 28 February, he scored a brace in the first half at the San Siro, helping Milan beat Atalanta 3–1 but coming off halfway through the second half due to a hamstring injury. This injury forced him to miss two crucial trips to Roma and Manchester United. To conclude Pato's season, he injured the same muscle again shortly after returning and was forced to miss the rest of the season, playing only 20 games due to constant injuries.

2010–11 season

Pato while playing for Milan in the Emirates cup

In the first match of the season against Lecce, he scored 2 goals in Milan's 4–0 win. However, he found himself on the treatment table just after his first 2 matches of the season which ruled him out for the next 3 matches. In his next full match after his injury, he scored twice against Chievo at the San Siro, returning to his position as a striker in a 4–3–1–2 formation. He then scored once again against Bari in San Nicola. After a string of great performances, Pato injured his hamstring for the third time in less than a year. This injury ruled him out for six weeks.

On 9 January, he scored his first two goals of 2011 to help Milan draw 4–4 against Udineseafter going down 3–1. On 26 January, he scored two goals helping Milan to win 2–1 againstSampdoria in Coppa Italia. On February 6 he scored a goal against Genoa helping Milan to draw 1–1. Another remarkable goal of his came on 20 February when he scored the winning goal in a 2–1 away victory over Chievo, when he dribbled in between two defenders and finished off with a goal off the post. He scored the third goal after assisting Boateng in a 3–0 victory over Napoli on 28 February. With Ibrahimovic suspended for the Milan derby Pato's two goals saw Milan secure their much needed 3 points. He dedicated his brace to his supporters. Assisted by Boateng, he scored the second goal in a 2–1 away win against Fiorentina on 10 April.]

2011–12 season

On September 13, in a Champions League group-stage match against Barcelona, Pato scored the 5th fastest goal in the competition's history, 24 seconds after kick-off.^[8] Later that month, he suffered a thigh injury during a 1–1 draw with Udinese.^[9] Pato made his return as a sub against Fiorentina and hit the post in the 79th minute in a 0-0 draw. He then scored and won a penalty in a 4-0 win against Chievo and in midweek scored against Viktoria Plzen and setup Robinho in a 2-2 draw. He started against Bologna the next week in a 2-2 draw. In January 2012, Pato was on the brink of moving to the Ligue 1 side Paris Saint-Germain F.C.. This move would have given AC Milan the opportunity to make a bid for Carlos Tevez. However on the 12th January 2012 Pato refused the transfer citing his commitment for the rossoneri. During the Coppa Italia round of 16 victory over Novara, Pato picked up a muscle strain in his thigh, which tests revealed an injury of his biceps femoris of his left feet.