This Thursday (16.10), former Flamengo left-back Piá turns 45 years old. Marcus Vinícius Pedro Nogueira was a starter on the Flamengo teams that won the 1992 Brazilian Championship, the 1991 Carioca Championship, and the 1990 Copa do Brasil and São Paulo Championship. Piá played for the club from 1989 to 1993, defending the Manto for 221 games. With five assists that resulted in goals in championship finals (two in the 1991 Carioca Championship and three in the 1992 Brazilian Championship), Piá is the second player in the club's history with the most assists for goals in finals. He trails only Zico, who provided the assist for six goals.

In the finals of the fifth Brazilian championship, Piá provided the crosses for three of the five goals scored by the Mais Querido: in the first game, by Junior and Gaúcho; in the second, by Julio César Imperador. The player says these are the matches he and Flamengo fans remember most.

"The 1992 Brazilian Championship finals were very memorable for me, especially the first game (when I was named man of the match). What I remember most from that time were the plays I made in the first match. Everywhere I go, people remember and reminisce about those plays, which were two crosses for goals. I'm very happy about that," said Piá, who names Carlinhos and Jair Pereira as the best coaches he's worked with. "My relationship with them was very good; they gave me a lot of peace of mind, confidence, and they believed in my football," he concluded.