Maicon Marques Bitencourt Profile
Fluminense Striker Brings Brazil Into U20 World Cup Semi-Finals
Oct 11, 2009
Maicon Marques Bitencourt – or simply known as Maicon – helped Brazil reach the semi-finals of the U20 FIFA World Cup in Egypt by scoring two goals in the Selecao’s 2-1 win over Germany in the quarter-finals. The 19-year-old Fluminense striker is expected to be one of Brazil’s biggest attack talents.
Not To Be Confused With Other Maicons
Maicon Marques Bitencourt was born on February 18, 1990 in Duque De Caxias, Brazil. He signed with the youth ranks of Brazilian power Fluminense in 2006 and joined the side’s seniors in 2008. The 19-year-old should not be confused with 28-year-old defender Maicon Douglas Sisenando, who played 49 times for Brazil and starred at Cruzeiro Belo Horizonte, AS Monaco and Inter Milan; or 24-year-old attacking midfielder Maicon Thiago Pereira de Souza, who has played for Fluminense, Bangu, Botafogo, Madureira, Duisburg and Figueirense.
U17 World Cup 2007
Maicon was impressive enough in his time at Fluminense that he was selected for Brazil’s U17 national team and won the U17 South American championship. At the 2007 U17 World Cup in Korea he appeared in two first round games, starting and scoring the fourth goal in Brazil’s 6-1 victory over North Korea. He started the next game against England but was subbed out early in the second half and did not play the rest of the tournament as Brazil were bounced in the Round of 16 by eventual semi-finalists Ghana.
Slowly Making Mark With Fluminense
Since then, Maicon – who in 2008 was a member of Brazil’s U19 national team – has slowly worked his way into Fluminense’s line-up on a regular basis. In 33 games over the 2008 and 2009 season, he has scored four goals, including three of them in 2009 – against Resende on January 31; vs. Tigres do Brasil on February 15; and against Sport on August 7.
Transfer To Desportivo Brasil Participacoes, Future Unclear
The 2009 season also saw him transfer from Fluminese to Desportivo Brasil Participacoes Ltda in February before getting sent on loan back to Fluminense until December 31, 2009. It remains unclear what his future will bring when 2010 comes
2009 U20 World Cup
Maicon was also selected for the U20 World Cup team in Egypt though it was unclear how big of a role he would play with Alan Kardec being Brazil’s main striker in addition to a number of attacking midfielders such as star Alex Teixeira and captain Giuliano. But Maicon was subbed in the first two games and started the third game. He was also brought in a substitute in the Round of 16 showdown with Uruguay but had remained scoreless in those four games.
Maicon Doubles Up Against Germany
But all that changed and Brazilian fans got a glimpse of what they can expect of Maicon in the future in the quarter-finals against Germany. Trailing 1-0, Maicon was brought on in the 77th minute. And he equalized the game with two minutes left in the contest. Maicon then gave Brazil a lead they would not relinquish just one minute into extra time as Brazil won 2-1 to reach the semi-finals and a date against Costa Rica.
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