Biography
Who is Sammir?
Early life and career beginnings
Jorge Sammir Cruz Campos was born in Itabuna, Bahia, Brazil. He began his football development with the youth setup at Atlético Mineiro before moving to Atlético Paranaense in 2001 at the age of 14. By February 2004, he earned a promotion to the first team at Atlético Paranaense. However, he did not appear in any matches for that club during his time there.
To gain experience, he went on a series of loan spells at other Brazilian clubs. He spent time with Associação Ferroviária de Esportes and later joined Paulista in December 2005. Following a brief period with Venda Nova in 2006, he was loaned to Associação Desportiva São Caetano, where he played regularly for two months.
Years at GNK Dinamo Zagreb
In November 2006, he joined GNK Dinamo Zagreb on loan. His debut for the team occurred in March 2007 during a league match against Rijeka. During that first season, he contributed to the club winning both the league title and the Croatian Cup. The move to Zagreb became permanent in 2007, with reports suggesting a transfer fee of 1.4 million euros.
Over the following seasons, he became a central figure for the team. In 2008, he started wearing the number 10 shirt following the departure of Luka Modrić. He helped the club secure multiple domestic doubles, including league and cup victories between 2007 and 2009. In August 2009, he scored a hat trick in a 5–0 victory against NK Osijek, which included two penalties and a free kick.
International play and career abroad
After obtaining a Croatian passport, he expressed interest in playing for the Croatia national team. He made his international debut in October 2012 against Macedonia, entering the match as a substitute in a 2–1 victory. He was subsequently selected for the Croatia squad that competed in the 2014 FIFA World Cup in Brazil. He started in the group stage match against Cameroon, playing 72 minutes before being substituted.
Outside of Croatia, he had several stints with international clubs. In January 2014, he signed with Getafe CF in Spain, making his La Liga debut in March of that year. He later moved to China in 2015 to join Jiangsu Sainty, where he won the Chinese FA Cup. His later career included a short spell with Sport Recife in 2019 and a return to the Croatian league with Lokomotiva. He retired from professional football in 2021 alongside his teammate Nikica Jelavić.
Birthday and age
Sammir was born on April 23, 1987, which makes Sammir 39 years old today. That birthday falls under the Taurus sign. Sammir shares the date with 59 other famous people.
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