Widely regarded as one of the best footballers in the world, Rivaldo has enhanced his reputation at the World Cup.

He possesses all the skills of the former Brazilian greats, such as Pele and Rivelino - a superb first touch and the ability to ghost past defences with ease. He also strikes a lethal free-kick.

All those elements attracted Spanish Primera Liga side Deportivo La Coruna to sign him following Brazil's Olympic campaign in 1996.

It did not take long for Barcelona to pick up on Rivaldo's potential and they bought his talents for the princely sum of £18m.

He helped the side to their second successive Spanish championship in the 1998/99 season.

It was a superb season for Rivaldo, who also picked up the World and European Footballer of Year awards.

In the first match of Brazil's campaign he showed a darker side to his nature when he went down, cycnically clutching his face in an incident against Turkey.

However, ever since he has shown his array of skills around the pitch and weighed in with five goals.