Background
Leonardo was born and raised in Niterói, Brazil, in 1969.
Leonardo during his youth career
São Paulo Football Club
FC Milan
FC Milan
Milan, Italy
NOVEMBER 22: Ronaldinho of Milan celebrates with head coach of Milan Leonardo after scoring the fourth goal during the Serie A match between Milan and Cagliari at Stadio Giuseppe Meazza on November 22, 2009 in Milan, Italy.
Como, Italy
DECEMBER 29: New FC Internazionale Coach Leonardo attends a training session at Centro Sportivo Angelo Moratti on December 29, 2010 in Appiano Gentile near Como, Italy.
Leonardo was born and raised in Niterói, Brazil, in 1969.
Something of a nomad, even for a footballer, Leonardo played his way to several countries around the world. He played mostly as a left fullback until he went to Japan in which and ever after he played as a midfielder – sometimes on the left sometimes behind the attack.
After playing 2 seasons in Valencia Leonardo would return to Sao Paulo for a season. After an extended time away from Brazil playing in Japan, Paris and Milan Leonardo would return to both Flamengo and Sao Paolo for a season and a half before returning to Milan to retire at the end of the 2003 season.
Leonardo’s international career is a little strange. The 1994 WC (the first World Cup in the United States), where Brazil would beat Italy on penalties in the final, was Leonardo’s first chance at regular playing time wearing a Brazil shirt (as a left fullback). However, a nasty elbow to the chops of American Tab Ramos (after which Ramos had to spend several months or weeks in the hospital depending on the source you believe with a skull fracture) ended his WC prematurely in the round of 16.
Leonardo’s 1998 WC went a little better both for him and Tab Ramos. Leonardo got the runner’s up medal as a midfielder. Ramos’s US team would lose every game in the tournament but he was able to leave France without extreme trauma to his brain bucket.
Leonardo would play for Brazil in 2002 but he would not make the squad that participated in the WC. When all was said and done he had 60 caps and 8 goals for Brazil.
Post football career he would pop up as a pundit in England and as a combination scout/agent for Milan in Brazil. As the new coach of Inter he is rumored to be bringing Kaka back to Italy because that is precisely what he is most famous for doing while an agent for Milan: bringing Kaka to Italy. As the manager of Milan in 2009-2010 he is reasonably well known for getting Milan to finish in the top 3 when their talent level wasn’t perhaps at its highest ever point and for not being able to abide Silvio Berlusconi.
On 24 December 2010, after days of speculation, it was confirmed Leonardo would take over as head coach of fresh FIFA Club World Cup champions Internazionale, replacing Rafael Benítez in a somewhat controversial move, due to the Brazilian's long career with rivals Milan as both player and manager; he agreed an 18-month contract due to expire on 30 June 2012. Leonardo started extremely well, collecting 30 points from 12 games with an average of 2.5 points per game, better than his predecessors Benítez and José Mourinho. On 6 March 2011, Leonardo set a new Italian Serie A record by collecting 33 points in 13 games; the previous record was 32 points in 13 games, achieved by Fabio Capello in 2004–05.
On 15 March 2011, Leonardo led Inter to a memorable 3–2 Champions League away victory over Bayern Munich at the Allianz Arena in the Round of 16 after losing the first leg at home. On 2 April 2011, Internazionale lost 3–0 against their fierce rivals Milan, and when Inter, two weeks later, lost 2–0 against relegation battlers Parma, the club's title ambitions had effectively ended. On 6 April, Inter lost 2–5 to Schalke 04 in the quarter finals of the Champions League. On 29 May 2011, Internazionale defeated Palermo 3–1 to give Leonardo his first and only trophy as a manager of Inter, the Coppa Italia. He resigned from Internazionale on 18 June.