Name	Amantino Mancini
Height	6' 0"
Naionality	Brazilian
Date of Birth	August 1, 1980
Place of Birth	Ipatinga, Brazil
Famous for

Alessandro Faioli Amantino was born on 1 August 1980 in Belo Horizonte, which is in the Brazilian state of Minas Gerais. He broke through at local club Atletico Mineiro, where, during his early playing days he was nicknamed O manciño – ‘the docile one’.

His first two seasons saw him play 35 matches, in which he scored one goal. In 2001 he joined São Caetano where he made 14 appearances and scored twice. Alessandro then returned to Atletico Mineiro in 2002 where, in the space of one season, he scored 15 goals in 36 matches.

That feat paved the way for a move to Italy. Then AS Roma technical director Franco Baldini saw the potential of the gifted Brazilian and moved swiftly to sign him. The Roman giants immediately loaned him to SSC Venezia in Serie B in order to introduce him gently to Italian football and to assess his potential.

However, initially struggled with the uncompromising style of Serie B, he failed to score in his first 13 matches and was often criticised for being too flamboyant. AS Roma, however, had seen enough promise and were confident that he could cope in the less physical Serie A, and would fit nicely into an attack-minded AS Roma side.

Then coach Fabio Capello showed his trust in Mancini by giving him 33 starts in his first season at AS Roma. Mancini responded in style, making the fans forget the departure of Cafu to AC Milan. In his first term he scored eight goals. The first of them, in November 2003, could not have been more important or spectacular – a delightful backheel against arch rivals Lazio n the Rome derby. Ever since he has been known as Il Tacco di Dio - the Backheel of God.

In 2004/05, Mancini played 34 matches for Roma, scoring four times, as both club and player struggled to come to terms with the departure of Fabio Capello who had moved to Juventus.

However, 2005/06 saw Mancini back to his best with 12 goals in 27 Serie A matches. In 2006/07 Mancini scored eight goals in 29 matches, and he caught the attention of audiences and clubs across Europe when he scored a magnificent goal against Lyon in the Champions League, making four stepovers before surging past a defender and smashing the ball into the roof of the net.

Mancini has outstanding technique, incredible pace and amazing physical strength enabling him to play either as a modern winger, covering the entire length of the pitch, or, just behind the striker in an attacking midfield role.