Ilan Araújo Dall'Igna (born 18 September 1980), commonly known as Ilan, is a Brazilian former professional

footballer A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby lea ...

who played as a striker. He also holds an Italian passport.

Club career

Paraná Clube

Born in

Curitiba Curitiba () is the capital and largest city in the state of Paraná (state), Paraná in Southern Brazil. The city's population was 1,773,718 , making it the List of cities in Brazil by population, eighth most populous city in Brazil and the larg ...

, Ilan was initially scouted and signed by

Paraná Clube Paraná Clube, commonly referred to as Paraná, is a Brazilian professional club based in Curitiba Curitiba () is the capital and largest city in the state of Paraná (state), Paraná in Southern Brazil. The city's population was 1,773,718 ...

, and subsequently made his full-professional debut in a

Campeonato Paranaense The Campeonato Paranaense is the top-flight professional state football league in the Brazilian state of Paraná. It is run by the Paraná Football Federation (FPF). List of champions Notes * In 1924 Internacional and América merged in ...

game in the 1999 season. He remained at the club during the 2000 season, and was instrumental in helping the team to place fifth in the

Copa João Havelange The 2000 Campeonato Brasileiro Série A (officially the Copa João Havelange) was the 44th edition of the Campeonato Brasileiro Série A, the top-level of professional football in Brazil. Due to legal complications, the championship was organized ...

— which put Paraná back amongst the elites of Brazilian football.

São Paulo

In 2001, Ilan moved to

São Paulo São Paulo (; ; Portuguese for 'Paul the Apostle, Saint Paul') is the capital of the São Paulo (state), state of São Paulo, as well as the List of cities in Brazil by population, most populous city in Brazil, the List of largest cities in the ...

, where he was part of the squad who won the Torneio Rio-São Paulo. However, he found himself restricted to very few appearances at São Paulo and was transferred to

Atlético Paranaense Club Athletico Paranaense (abbreviated CAP, commonly known as Athletico Paranaense and up to 2019 known as Atlético Paranaense) is a Brazilian football team from the city of Curitiba, capital city of the Brazilian state of Paraná, founded o ...

Atlético Paranaense

Although Ilan was mainly used as a substitute, his impact was pivotal during the final of the Brazilian Championship, in which he started the match in place of fellow striker

Kléber Boas Kléber may refer to: * French cruiser ''Kléber'', French armored cruiser active from 1904 to 1917 * Kléber (Paris Métro), Paris Métro station * ''Kléber'' (train), former express train in France * Lycée Kléber, secondary school in Strasb ...

. In the first leg of the final against São Caetano he scored

's first goal in their 4–2 victory. His contribution was a key part of Atlético Paranaense winning their first Campeonato Brasileiro Série A. In 2002, he suffered a serious injury which left him on the sidelines for the remainder of the season. He returned to full fitness ready for the 2003 season and quickly made up for his absence by becoming a regular goalscorer for the club. In 2004, he continued to score many goals for Atlético, even though he was often playing as a lone striker. Due to the arrival of

Washington Washington most commonly refers to: * George Washington (1732–1799), the first president of the United States * Washington (state), a state in the Pacific Northwest of the United States * Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States ** A ...

and the increasing interest from

Sochaux Sochaux () is a commune in the Doubs department in the Bourgogne-Franche-Comté region in eastern France. Geography Sochaux lies east of Montbéliard, and southeast of Paris. Population Inhabitants are known as ''Sochaliens''. Economy ...

, he was sold in the summer for worth 3 million.

Sochaux

Ilan adapted well to the French league and scored 13 goals for

in his debut season in which he became a key player and a fan favourite. On 21 August 2004, he made his debut for the club in a 2–1 loss against

Auxerre Auxerre ( , , Burgundian language (Oïl), Burgundian: ''Auchoirre'') is the capital (Prefectures in France, prefecture) of the Yonne Departments of France, department and the fourth-largest city in the Burgundy historical region southeast of Par ...

. On 16 October 2004, Ilan scored his first goal before scoring a hat-trick in a 3–0 win over

Stade Rennais Stade Rennais Football Club (SRFC, ), commonly referred to as Stade Rennais () or simply Rennes,''Rennais'' and ''Stade Rennes'', used by some English-speaking media outlets and journalists, are not grammatically correct names for the club. is ...

. He followed up with goals in the next three matches against

Toulouse Toulouse (, ; ; ) is a city in southern France, the Prefectures in France, prefecture of the Haute-Garonne department and of the Occitania (administrative region), Occitania region. The city is on the banks of the Garonne, River Garonne, from ...

Caen Caen (; ; ) is a Communes of France, commune inland from the northwestern coast of France. It is the Prefectures in France, prefecture of the Departments of France, department of Calvados (department), Calvados. The city proper has 105,512 inha ...

and

Monaco Monaco, officially the Principality of Monaco, is a Sovereign state, sovereign city-state and European microstates, microstate on the French Riviera a few kilometres west of the Regions of Italy, Italian region of Liguria, in Western Europe, ...

. Following a long wait he returned to scoring form with a brace in a 2–2 draw against

Nantes Nantes (, ; ; or ; ) is a city in the Loire-Atlantique department of France on the Loire, from the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic coast. The city is the List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, sixth largest in France, with a pop ...

on 19 December 2004. On 16 March 2005, he scored another brace in a 2–1 win over

Metz Metz ( , , , then ) is a city in northeast France located at the confluence of the Moselle (river), Moselle and the Seille (Moselle), Seille rivers. Metz is the Prefectures in France, prefecture of the Moselle (department), Moselle Departments ...

. He continued a further three goals against

Bastia Bastia ( , , , ; ) is a communes of France, commune in the Departments of France, department of Haute-Corse, Corsica, France. It is located in the northeast of the island of Corsica at the base of Cap Corse. It also has the second-highest popu ...

, Toulouse and Caen. In the

UEFA Cup The asterisk ( ), from Late Latin , from Ancient Greek , , "little star", is a Typography, typographical symbol. It is so called because it resembles a conventional image of a star (heraldry), heraldic star. Computer scientists and Mathematici ...

campaign, Ilan scored one goal in the first leg and scored a brace in the second leg as Sochaux clearly beat Norwegian side Stabæk by a 9–0 aggregate score in the first round. In the first game of the group stage, he scored a brace in a 2–0 win over

Dinamo Tbilisi Dinamo Tbilisi is a sports club from Tbilisi, Georgia (country), Georgia. It was founded in 1925. Among its highest honors, is the European trophy earned by its Association football, football team which won the Cup Winners' Cup in 1981, beating ...

. Ilan continued to impress during the 2005–06 season, netting another ten goals in the league. He scored his first two goals of the season in a 2–1 win over

Nice Nice ( ; ) is a city in and the prefecture of the Alpes-Maritimes department in France. The Nice agglomeration extends far beyond the administrative city limits, with a population of nearly one million Le Mans Le Mans (; ) is a Communes of France, city in Northwestern France on the Sarthe (river), Sarthe River where it meets the Huisne. Traditionally the capital of the Provinces of France, province of Maine (province), Maine, it is now the capital of ...

, Monaco (twice in two matches of the season),

Lens A lens is a transmissive optical device that focuses or disperses a light beam by means of refraction. A simple lens consists of a single piece of transparent material, while a compound lens consists of several simple lenses (''elements'') ...

, Saint-Étienne (his future club), Nancy and Stade Rennais. His performances for Sochaux had not gone unnoticed and in the summer of 2006 he was bought by

Saint-Étienne Saint-Étienne (; Franco-Provençal: ''Sant-Etiève''), also written St. Etienne, is a city and the prefecture of the Loire département, in eastern-central France, in the Massif Central, southwest of Lyon, in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes regi ...

for a transfer fee of €6 million.

Saint-Étienne

Ilan initially flourished at his new club, and forged a formidable partnership with French striker

Bafétimbi Gomis Bafétimbi Gomis (born 6 August 1985) is a French former professional Association football, footballer who played as a Striker (association football), striker. Gomis played youth football with AS Saint-Étienne, Saint-Étienne before making his ...

and Czech striker

Marek Heinz Marek Heinz (born 4 August 1977) is a Czech former professional association football, footballer who played as a striker (association football), striker. Career Early career Heinz started his football career in his native Czech Republic, whe ...

. In the second half in the 2006–07 season, he scored an overhead kick in a 2–0 victory over

Paris Saint-Germain Paris Saint-Germain Football Club, commonly referred to as Paris Saint-Germain () or simply PSG, is a French professional Association football, football club based in Paris. They compete in Ligue 1, the French football league system, top d ...

which later earned him the

Trophées UNFP du football The Trophées UNFP du football are a number of awards given annually by the Union Nationale des Footballeurs Professionnels (UNFP) to players playing in France's Ligue 1, Ligue 2, and Division 1 Féminine, as well as to managers and referees. The ...

Goal of the Year award. In his first season, he scored nine goals in Ligue 1 while the club did not meet the fans' expectations reaching only 11th place in the league. He scored against Nancy (twice in two matches of the season along with Lens and PSG), Auxerre and a brace each against

Lille Lille (, ; ; ; ; ) is a city in the northern part of France, within French Flanders. Positioned along the Deûle river, near France's border with Belgium, it is the capital of the Hauts-de-France Regions of France, region, the Prefectures in F ...

and

Valenciennes Valenciennes (, also , , ; ; or ; ) is a communes of France, commune in the Nord (French department), Nord Departments of France, department, Hauts-de-France, France. It lies on the Scheldt () river. Although the city and region experienced ...

. Also in a match against Lens, Ilan scored an own goal. In his second season, Ilan scored only six goals in 31 matches. He netted against

Strasbourg Strasbourg ( , ; ; ) is the Prefectures in France, prefecture and largest city of the Grand Est Regions of France, region of Geography of France, eastern France, in the historic region of Alsace. It is the prefecture of the Bas-Rhin Departmen ...

, twice against Caen, Sochaux and Auxerre. In the 2008–09 season, he was Saint-Étienne's top scorer in the

where the club played after 27 years of absence from international football. He scored the winning goal in their second-leg win against

Olympiacos Olympiacós Sýndesmos Filáthlon Peiraiós (, Olympic Association of Fans of Piraeus) is a major multi-sport club based in Piraeus, Greece. Olympiacos is parent to a number of different competitive departments which participate in football, ...

which put them through to the final 16 to face eventual runners up

Werder Bremen Sportverein Werder Bremen von 1899 e. V. (), commonly known as Werder Bremen, Werder or simply Bremen, is a German professional sports club based in Bremen. Founded on 4 February 1899, Werder are best known for their professional association foo ...

. In the league, he reached 9 goals. In his fourth and last season, Ilan only played 12 times scoring twice after falling out of favour within the Saint-Étienne ranks. In January 2010 Ilan and the club mutually agreed to cancel his contract, which was due to end the following summer, leaving him free to find a new club.

West Ham United

On 1 February 2010,

West Ham United West Ham United Football Club is a professional Association football, football club based in Stratford, London, Stratford, East London, England. The club competes in the Premier League, the top tier of English football league system, English f ...

confirmed the signing of Brazilian forward Ilan on a six-month contract. He was available on a free transfer after leaving French club AS Saint-Étienne in January. He made his debut for West Ham on 6 February in a 2–1 away defeat to

Burnley Burnley () is a town and the administrative centre of the wider Borough of Burnley in Lancashire, England, with a 2021 population of 78,266. It is north of Manchester and east of Preston, at the confluence of the River Calder and River B ...

. Having replaced

Mark Noble Mark James Noble (born 8 May 1987) is an English former professional Association football, footballer who played as a midfielder. He is currently the sporting director of Premier League club West Ham United F.C., West Ham United. A fan of the c ...

in the 77th minute, he scored three minutes later. In March 2010 the press speculated that Ilan had openly criticised manager Gianfranco Zola; a claim later refuted by the player and the club. After nine games without scoring for West Ham United, Ilan scored his second goal in the 87th minute against Everton to make it 2–2 on 4 April 2010. The following week, he scored the only goal in the game in a 1–0 win over

Sunderland Sunderland () is a port City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in Tyne and Wear, England. It is a port at the mouth of the River Wear on the North Sea, approximately south-east of Newcastle upon Tyne. It is the most p ...

. After the impressive performances against Everton and Sunderland, he hoped to win a long-term deal at Upton Park. 14 days later, he scored the opener after 31 minutes in a 3–2 win over

Wigan Wigan ( ) is a town in Greater Manchester, England. The town is midway between the two cities of Manchester, to the south-east, and Liverpool, to the south-west. It is the largest settlement in the Metropolitan Borough of Wigan and is its ad ...

on 24 April 2010. On 2 June 2010, West Ham announced that they would be releasing Ilan (along with Mido) as they were surplus to requirements.

Internacional

After being released by West Ham United, Ilan had been linked to the Hammers league rivals

Bolton Wanderers Bolton Wanderers Football Club ( ) is a professional association football, football club based in Horwich, Metropolitan Borough of Bolton, Greater Manchester, England, which competes in EFL League One, League One, the third level of the Englis ...

and Scottish runners-up

Celtic Celtic, Celtics or Keltic may refer to: Language and ethnicity *pertaining to Celts, a collection of Indo-European peoples in Europe and Anatolia **Celts (modern) *Celtic languages **Proto-Celtic language *Celtic music *Celtic nations Sports Foot ...

as well as clubs in Turkey and Greece. On 24 August 2010,

Sport Club Internacional Sport Club Internacional (), commonly known as Internacional, Inter de Porto Alegre, a cidade do Grêmio or simply Inter, is a Brazilian professional Association football, football club based in Porto Alegre. They play in the Campeonato Bras ...

announced that Ilan would be undergoing a medical and physical exams before signing a 1.5-year contract. His move to Internacional ended his six-year stay in Europe. On 22 September 2010, Ilan made his debut for Internacional in a 1–0 loss against

. After making just four appearances for the club, he was released at the end of the Série A campaign. Before his release, he would have participated in the

FIFA Club World Cup The FIFA Club World Cup (FIFA CWC) is an international men's association football competition organised by the ''Fédération Internationale de Football Association'' (FIFA), the sport's global sports governing body, governing body. The compe ...

but had to do surgery because of an injury.

Ajaccio

free agent In professional sports, a free agent is a player or manager who is eligible to sign with other clubs or franchises; i.e., not under contract to any specific team. The term is also used in reference to a player who is under a contract at present ...

after his release from Internacional, Ilan returned to the Ligue 1 on 28 July 2011 signing for league newcomers

Ajaccio Ajaccio (, , ; French language, French: ; or ; , locally: ; ) is the capital and largest city of Corsica, France. It forms a communes of France, French commune, prefecture of the Departments of France, department of Corse-du-Sud, and head o ...

on a one-year deal with an option for a further season. On 6 August 2011, he made his debut for Ajaccio in a 2–0 loss against

and scored his first goal on 27 August 2011 in a 4–1 loss against

. He added another goal the following week against

in a 3–1 win. On 25 September 2011, he suffered an injury during a match against Brest in a 1–1 draw stating he was "suffering from slight pain" but added that the injury was "nothing too serious". The injury caused him to miss three games before he made his return in a 3–0 loss against

Marseille Marseille (; ; see #Name, below) is a city in southern France, the Prefectures in France, prefecture of the Departments of France, department of Bouches-du-Rhône and of the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur Regions of France, region. Situated in the ...

on 22 October 2011. Later on the season, Ilan would later score against

(2–2 draw on 19 November 2011),

(3–2 loss on 3 December 2011),

Lorient Lorient (; ) is a town (''Communes of France, commune'') and Port, seaport in the Morbihan Departments of France, department of Brittany (administrative region), Brittany in western France. History Prehistory and classical antiquity Beginn ...

(1–1 draw on 24 March 2012) and

Rennes Rennes (; ; Gallo language, Gallo: ''Resnn''; ) is a city in the east of Brittany in Northwestern France at the confluence of the rivers Ille and Vilaine. Rennes is the prefecture of the Brittany (administrative region), Brittany Regions of F ...

(3–1 loss on 29 April 2012). The club ended the season in 16th place, staying in Ligue 1 for another season, with Ilan becoming the top-scorer for the club with six goals.

Bastia

On 12 July 2012, Ilan signed for Ajaccio's

Corsica Corsica ( , , ; ; ) is an island in the Mediterranean Sea and one of the Regions of France, 18 regions of France. It is the List of islands in the Mediterranean#By area, fourth-largest island in the Mediterranean and lies southeast of the Metro ...

rivals

, who had been newly promoted to Ligue 1.

International career

Ilan made his international debut for

Brazil Brazil, officially the Federative Republic of Brazil, is the largest country in South America. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by area, fifth-largest country by area and the List of countries and dependencies by population ...

on 19 June 2003 against

Cameroon Cameroon, officially the Republic of Cameroon, is a country in Central Africa. It shares boundaries with Nigeria to the west and north, Chad to the northeast, the Central African Republic to the east, and Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, and the R ...

in the

2003 Confederations Cup The 2003 FIFA Confederations Cup football tournament was the sixth FIFA Confederations Cup, held in France in June 2003. France retained the title they had won in 2001, but the tournament was overshadowed by the death of Cameroon player Marc-Vivi ...

. Two further appearances followed in the same competition. He earned a call-up from

Carlos Alberto Parreira Carlos Alberto Gomes Parreira (born 27 February 1943) is a Brazilian former football manager who holds the record for attending the most FIFA World Cup final tournaments as manager with six appearances. He also managed five different national t ...

to the Brazil National Team in 2003 but did not make Parreira's final squad of 22 for the 2004 Copa América 2004.

Personal life

Ilan was born in Brazil but holds an Italian passport because of his father Italian descent and his mother is Brazilian with Spanish ancestry. Ilan is the son of William Dall'Igna, former professional football player and former coach of

. His father was responsible for introducing Ilan to football and was also his agent.Ilan
on www.furacao.com

Career statistics

Club

References

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Ilan Araujo Dalligna 1980 births Footballers from Curitiba Living people Brazilian men's footballers Brazilian expatriate men's footballers Brazilian expatriate sportspeople in England Brazil men's international footballers Expatriate men's footballers in France Expatriate men's footballers in England Brazilian expatriate sportspeople in France Men's association football forwards 2003 FIFA Confederations Cup players Paraná Clube players São Paulo FC players Club Athletico Paranaense players SC Internacional players FC Sochaux-Montbéliard players AS Saint-Étienne players West Ham United F.C. players AC Ajaccio players SC Bastia players Campeonato Brasileiro Série A players Ligue 1 players Premier League players 21st-century Brazilian sportsmen