Welliton Soares de Morais (born 22 October 1986), or simply Welliton, is a Brazilian former footballer who played as a forward. During his time at Spartak Moscow, Welliton was a very prolific scorer and won the Russian Premier League top scorer title in the 2009 and 2010 seasons.
Club career
Career in Brazil
Born in Conceição do Araguaia, Brazil, Welliton began his youth career at Bandeirante club before joining Goiás, where he started his professional football career. From October 2005 to December 2005, Welliton was loaned out to Ituano, where he scored ten times in thirty–two appearances for the side.
In December 2005, Welliton signed his first professional contract with the club, keeping him until 2009. The following month, he made his debut for Goiás, coming on as a late substitute, in a 1–1 draw against C.D. Cuenca in the first leg of the Copa Libertadores. Welliton then scored his first goals in the Group Stage of the Copa Libertadores, in a 3–0 win over Newell's Old Boys. It wasn't until on 16 April 2006 when he made his Goiás debut, starting the whole game, in a 0–0 draw against Santos. Welliton established himself in the first team at Goiás. A month later on 20 May 2006, Welliton scored his first league goal for the club, in a 3–2 win over Athletico Paranaense. Eight days later on 28 May 2006, he scored twice for the side, in a 2–1 win over São Caetano. Welliton scored three goals in three matches between 10 October 2006 and 28 October 2006. In the last two league matches of the season, he scored three times against Ponte Preta and a brace against Internacional. At the end of the 2006 season, Welliton made thirty–eight appearances and scoring twelve times in all competitions.
In the 2007 season, Welliton scored his first goal of the season, in a 3–1 win over Moto Club in the first round of the Copa do Brasil. He then scored four goals between 27 May 2007 and 10 June 2007, including a brace against Juventude. Welliton later added two more goals for the side, including a 1–0 win over Santos FC on 25 July 2007, which turns out to be his last appearance for the side. By the time of his departure, he made thirteen times and scoring seven times for Goiás this season.
Spartak Moscow
In July 2007, Welliton moved to Russian club Spartak Moscow, signing a five-year contract. he was previously linked with a move to Lokomotiv Moscow, Dynamo Kyiv and Dynamo Moscow. Upon joining the club, Welliton was given a number eleven shirt for the side.
Welliton made his Spartak Moscow debut on 5 August 2007, in a 3–2 win over Tom Tomsk. In the next match against Krylia Sovetov Samara, Welliton was a subject of racism by opposition fans, telling him to go home. Welliton was defended by Spartak Moscow and criticised the "racial abuse" in Russia as a disgrace. He then scored his first Spartak Moscow goal, in a 3–1 loss against Rubin Kazan on 25 August 2007. Welliton suffered an injury during a match against CSKA Moscow, resulting in him being substituted. After the match it was reported that Welliton would be sidelined for about three weeks. He added three more goals later in the season, where he finished the half of the season at Spartak Moscow, making twelve appearances and scoring four times. For the first four months at the club, Welliton spoke out his life in Russia.
To begin the 2008 season, Welliton scored six times in his first nine matches. Former Russia midfielder Aleksandr Mostovoi heaped praise on the young striker after his performance in a 3–0 away win, stating "He has overcome all problems with passage into a new country. He is young, fast, technical, an ideal artist who acts along the entire front line of attack, not just along the flanks as this past season." Unfortunately, his stellar start was cut short due to a muscle tear that forced him out of action for 10 months.
After a successful return in 2009, Welliton made his return from training and played his first match for Spartak Moscow since returning from injury, in a 1–1 draw against Zenit Saint Petersburg. Three weeks later, Welliton then scored his first Spartak Moscow goal, in a 2–0 win over Spartak Nalchik. By the time he scored eleven times in sixteen appearances, he scored his first career hat-trick on 8 August 2009 at Spartak Nalchik. His excellent performance in his second season at Spartak Moscow also rewarded him with a long-term contract with Spartak Moscow. Later in the 2009 season, Welliton helped Spartak Moscow early to a prime position to qualify for the UEFA Champions League after finishing a dismal 8th place in 2008. He also finished the season as the league's top scorer for 2009 season, with 21 goals.
