José Kléberson Pereira (born 19 June 1979), commonly known as José Kléberson or simply Kléberson, is a Brazilian

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly c ...

coach and former player who is currently the assistant coach of

New York City FC New York City Football Club is an American professional soccer club based in New York City that competes in Major League Soccer (MLS), the highest level of American soccer, as a member of the league's Eastern Conference. The club is co-owned ...

. He previously played for

Brazil Brazil ( pt, Brasil; ), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Portuguese: ), is the largest country in both South America and Latin America. At and with over 217 million people, Brazil is the world's fifth-largest country by area ...

32 times and was part of the squad that won the

2002 FIFA World Cup The 2002 FIFA World Cup, also branded as Korea Japan 2002, was the 17th FIFA World Cup, the quadrennial Association football, football world championship for List of men's national association football teams, men's national teams organized by ...

Playing career

Club

Atlético Paranaense

Kléberson was born and raised in the provincial town of Uraí in the southern Brazilian state of Paraná. He began his football career with

Atlético Paranaense Club Athletico Paranaense (commonly known as Athletico and formerly known as Atlético Paranaense) is a Brazilian football team from the city of Curitiba, capital city of the Brazilian state of Paraná, founded on March 26, 1924. The team ...

. There, Kléberson won the Paraná State League in 2000 and 2001, and the

Brazilian Série A Brazilian commonly refers to: * Something of, from or relating to Brazil * Brazilian Portuguese, the dialect of the Portuguese language used mostly in Brazil * Brazilians, the people (citizens) of Brazil, or of Brazilian descent Brazilian may also ...

title in

2001 The September 11 attacks against the United States by Al-Qaeda, which Casualties of the September 11 attacks, killed 2,977 people and instigated the global war on terror, were a defining event of 2001. The United States led a Participants in ...

. His performances for Atlético Paranaense led to

Luiz Felipe Scolari Luiz Felipe Scolari (; born 9 November 1948), also known as Felipão ("Big Phil"), is a Brazilian football manager and former player. He is the current manager of Athletico Paranaense. Scolari was a defender during his playing days, and notab ...

calling him up to the Brazil national team for the

in South Korea and Japan.

Manchester United

His World Cup performances led to Scolari declaring Kléberson the driving force behind Brazil's cup-winning side, and drew interest from several European teams;

Barcelona Barcelona ( , , ) is a city on the coast of northeastern Spain. It is the capital and largest city of the autonomous community of Catalonia, as well as the second most populous municipality of Spain. With a population of 1.6 million within ci ...

Newcastle United Newcastle United Football Club is an English professional football club, based in Newcastle upon Tyne, that plays in the Premier League – the top flight of English football. The club was founded in 1892 by the merger of Newcastle East End ...

Leeds United Leeds United Football Club is a professional football club based in Leeds, West Yorkshire in England. The club competes in the Premier League, the highest level of England's football league system, and plays its home matches at Elland Road S ...

and

Celtic Celtic, Celtics or Keltic may refer to: Language and ethnicity *pertaining to Celts, a collection of Indo-European peoples in Europe and Anatolia **Celts (modern) *Celtic languages **Proto-Celtic language * Celtic music *Celtic nations Sports Fo ...

all expressed an interest. Leeds, failed to secure the signing after Kléberson decided against leaving Brazil without his girlfriend, who he was unable to marry until her 16th birthday, and eventually it was

Manchester United Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of City of Salford, Salford to ...

who signed Kléberson, paying a fee of £6.5 million on 12 August 2003. Seen as a replacement for

Juan Sebastián Verón Juan Sebastián Verón (; born 9 March 1975) is an Argentine former professional footballer and current chairman of Estudiantes de La Plata, where he had served as Director of Sports. A former midfielder, Verón's career started in Estudiantes, ...

, Kléberson was injured in his second appearance for the club and made only 20 appearances in two seasons. He scored two league goals in his time at Manchester United, both coming in home wins against

Blackburn Rovers Blackburn Rovers Football Club is a professional football club, based in Blackburn, Lancashire, England, which competes in the , the second tier of the English football league system. They have played home matches at Ewood Park since 1890. T ...

and Everton.

Beşiktaş

On 6 August 2005, Kléberson signed for Turkish club

Beşiktaş Beşiktaş () is a district and municipality of Istanbul, Turkey, located on the European shore of the Bosphorus strait. It is bordered on the north by Sarıyer and Şişli, on the west by Kağıthane and Şişli, on the south by Beyoğlu, and ...

for €2.95 million. He signed a three-year deal, with the option of a further 12 months. Kléberson unilaterally terminated the contract after claiming the club failed to pay his wages on time.

Flamengo

Kléberson signed with

Flamengo Clube de Regatas do Flamengo (; English: ''Flamengo Rowing Club''), more commonly referred to as simply Flamengo, is a Brazilian sports club based in Rio de Janeiro, in the neighborhood of Gávea, best known for their professional football t ...

on 27 September 2007 as a free agent, but he was unable to play for the club until February 2008, due to problems related to his resignation from Beşiktaş. On 10 August 2007 (announced on 27 August), the FIFA Dispute Resolution Chamber passed a decision that Kléberson had to pay Beşiktaş €3.18 million as for the compensation of breach of contract. and Besiktas had to pay US$461,112 as outstanding wage. Furthermore, Kléberson was suspended for four months (retroactively from 27 September 2007) Kléberson and the club later agreed to reduce the compensation from €3.18 million to €1 million. Kléberson's first matches for his new club were on the reserves team in several matches of the Rio State League. His climb to the first team started slowly as he began to play consistently in the

Copa Libertadores The CONMEBOL Libertadores, also known as the Copa Libertadores de América ( pt, Copa Libertadores da América), is an annual international club football competition organized by CONMEBOL since 1960. It is the highest level of competition in S ...

. Kléberson earned an important spot in the midfield after the transfers of

Renato Augusto Renato Soares de Oliveira Augusto (born 8 February 1988) is a Brazilian professional footballer who plays as a midfielder for Campeonato Brasileiro Série A club Corinthians. From 2011 to 2018, he played for the Brazil national team, scoring s ...

and Marcinho. After returning to the first team, Kléberson's good spell in 2009 was interrupted on 12 August, in a friendly match against

Estonia Estonia, formally the Republic of Estonia, is a country by the Baltic Sea in Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by the Gulf of Finland across from Finland, to the west by the sea across from Sweden, to the south by Latvia, a ...

, where he suffered a foul and fell, causing him a dislocated shoulder. Kléberson had surgery and was expected to miss the rest of the year. He managed to recover quickly being able to return on 22 November in a 0–0 draw against

Goiás Goiás () is a Brazilian state located in the Center-West region. Goiás borders the Federal District and the states of (from north clockwise) Tocantins, Bahia, Minas Gerais, Mato Grosso do Sul and Mato Grosso. The state capital is Goiânia. ...

and also playing in the 2–1 win over Grêmio and winning the 2009 Brazilian Série A, the second in his career. In the 2010 pre-season,

Palmeiras Sociedade Esportiva Palmeiras (), commonly known as Palmeiras, is a Brazilian professional football club based in the city of São Paulo, in the district of Perdizes. Palmeiras is one of the most popular clubs in South America, with around ...

speculated the possibility of involving Kléberson in a trade for

Vágner Love Vágner Silva de Souza (born 11 June 1984), known as Vágner Love, is a Brazilian professional footballer who plays as a striker for Sport Recife. He is a forward who has been described by ''World Soccer Magazine'' as possessing "mobility, fla ...

, but Flamengo refused to accept the idea.

Bahia

After a poor year playing on loan for Atlético Paranaense, when the club was relegated to Série B, Kléberson signed for

Bahia Bahia ( , , ; meaning "bay") is one of the 26 Federative units of Brazil, states of Brazil, located in the Northeast Region, Brazil, Northeast Region of the country. It is the fourth-largest Brazilian state by population (after São Paulo (sta ...

on a two-year contract in July 2012. He scored his first goal for Bahia on his debut, against his former club Flamengo.

Later career in the U.S.

Kléberson was acquired on loan by the

Philadelphia Union The Philadelphia Union are an American professional soccer club based in Chester, Pennsylvania. The Union compete in Major League Soccer (MLS) as a member of the Eastern Conference. Founded on February 28, 2008, the club began playing in 201 ...

Major League Soccer Major League Soccer (MLS) is a men's professional soccer league sanctioned by the United States Soccer Federation, which represents the sport's highest level in the United States. The league comprises 29 teams—26 in the U.S. and 3 in Canada ...

(MLS) on 25 March 2013. He scored the game-winning goal in the 95th minute from a free kick against

Toronto FC Toronto Football Club (commonly known as Toronto FC or TFC) is a Canadian professional soccer club based in Toronto. The club competes in Major League Soccer (MLS) as a member of the Eastern Conference. The team plays its home matches at BMO ...

on 10 October 2013. On 25 March 2014, Kléberson reportedly signed a two-year deal with

Indy Eleven Indy Eleven is an American professional soccer team based in Indianapolis, Indiana. Founded in 2013, the team made its debut in the North American Soccer League in 2014, before moving to the United Soccer League in 2018. The franchise plays it ...

of the

North American Soccer League The North American Soccer League may refer to: *North American Soccer League (1968–1984), a former Division I league *North American Soccer League (2011–2017) The North American Soccer League (NASL) was a professional men's soccer league b ...

(NASL). Kléberson was released by Indy Eleven in December 2015 after two seasons at the club. Kléberson signed with NASL side

Fort Lauderdale Strikers Fort Lauderdale Strikers may refer to: *Fort Lauderdale Strikers (1977–1983), member of North American Soccer League from 1977 to 1983 *Fort Lauderdale Strikers (1988–1994), member of American Soccer League from 1988 to 1989 and American Profes ...

on 4 January 2016.

International

Kléberson made his first international appearance for

in a friendly match against

Bolivia , image_flag = Bandera de Bolivia (Estado).svg , flag_alt = Horizontal tricolor (red, yellow, and green from top to bottom) with the coat of arms of Bolivia in the center , flag_alt2 = 7 × 7 square p ...

on 31 January 2002. He also marked his debut by scoring Brazil's fourth goal in a 6–0 win. He also scored against

Iceland Iceland ( is, Ísland; ) is a Nordic island country in the North Atlantic Ocean and in the Arctic Ocean. Iceland is the most sparsely populated country in Europe. Iceland's capital and largest city is Reykjavík, which (along with its s ...

in March 2002. He was subsequently selected by Luiz Felipe Scolari for Brazil's squad for the

. He was initially relegated to the bench for the first four matches in the tournament. He was brought into the starting line-up for Brazil's game against

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

, with Scolari feeling his tenacity would help counter the high work-rate of the English side. His tackle on his future teammate

Paul Scholes Paul Scholes (born 16 November 1974) is an English football coach, pundit, former player, and co-owner of Salford City. He spent his entire professional playing career with Manchester United, for whom he scored over 150 goals in more than 700 ...

led to Brazil's equaliser before Brazil ended up winning 2–1. He then was included in the starting lineup for the rest of the tournament. Brazil defeated

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

in the final, with Kléberson setting up one of the two Brazilian goals, as Brazil won the World Cup for a record fifth time. After the World Cup, Kléberson retained his starting position in Brazil's team under the new coach

Carlos Alberto Parreira Carlos Alberto Gomes Parreira (born 27 February 1943) is a Brazilian former football Coach (sport), manager who holds the record for attending the most FIFA World Cup final tournaments as manager with six appearances. He also managed five differ ...

and was also included in Brazil's squad for

2003 FIFA Confederations Cup The 2003 FIFA Confederations Cup football tournament was the sixth FIFA Confederations Cup, held in France in June 2003. France retained the title they had won in 2001, but the tournament was overshadowed by the death of Cameroon player Marc-Vivie ...

, where Brazil were eliminated in the group stage. That summer, Kléberson moved to Europe to join Manchester United. He failed to achieve regular playing time with his club, and as a result he lost his position in the national team. He managed to be included in Brazil's squad for the

2004 Copa América The 2004 Copa América was the 41st edition of the Copa América, the South-American championship for international association football teams. The competition was organized by CONMEBOL, South America's football governing body, and was held in P ...

. He made five appearances in the tournament, starting in every match he played as Brazil went on to win the tournament. After more than four years in the international wilderness, Kléberson was recalled to the national team by

Dunga Carlos Caetano Bledorn Verri (born 31 October 1963), known as Dunga (), is a Brazilian football manager and former professional player who played as a defensive midfielder. Under his captaincy, Brazil won the 1994 FIFA World Cup and he lifted ...

on 28 May 2009. He was recalled to replace

Anderson Anderson or Andersson may refer to: Companies * Anderson (Carriage), a company that manufactured automobiles from 1907 to 1910 * Anderson Electric, an early 20th-century electric car * Anderson Greenwood, an industrial manufacturer * Anderson Ra ...

in two matches for

2010 World Cup qualification Qualifying for the 2010 FIFA World Cup was a series of tournaments organised by the six FIFA confederations. Each confederation — the AFC (Asia), CAF (Africa), CONCACAF (North, Central America and Caribbean), CONMEBOL (South America), OFC (Oce ...

and the

2009 FIFA Confederations Cup The 2009 FIFA Confederations Cup was the eighth Confederations Cup, and was held in South Africa from 14 June to 28 June 2009, as a prelude to the 2010 FIFA World Cup. The draw was held on 22 November 2008 at the Sandton Convention Centre in Joh ...

in South Africa. After recovering from his shoulder surgery, once again Kléberson was called up for the national team on 9 February 2010 for a friendly match against the

Republic of Ireland Ireland ( ga, Éire ), also known as the Republic of Ireland (), is a country in north-western Europe consisting of 26 of the 32 counties of the island of Ireland. The capital and largest city is Dublin, on the eastern side of the island. A ...

on 2 March in London. Kléberson was then called up to Brazil's 2010 World Cup squad by Dunga on 11 May. The 23-man squad was almost exactly the same as the squad against Ireland but included one additional player,

Heurelho Gomes Heurelho da Silva Gomes (born 15 February 1981) is a Brazilian former professional footballer who played as a goalkeeper. He played for Premier League clubs Tottenham Hotspur and Watford, having previously made a name for himself at Dutch club ...

. His only appearance in the 2010 World Cup was in the round of 16 game against

Chile Chile, officially the Republic of Chile, is a country in the western part of South America. It is the southernmost country in the world, and the closest to Antarctica, occupying a long and narrow strip of land between the Andes to the east a ...

Management career

In 2017, Kléberson rejoined the

as a coach in the youth academy. In 2022, he was promoted to assistant coach of

Philadelphia Union II Philadelphia Union II is an American professional soccer team based in Chester, Pennsylvania competing in MLS Next Pro. Founded in 2015 as Bethlehem Steel FC, the team is the official affiliate of the Philadelphia Union of Major League Soccer. T ...

for their inaugural season in

MLS Next Pro MLS Next Pro is a men's professional soccer league in the United States and Canada that is affiliated with Major League Soccer. It launched in 2022 with 21 teams and will expand to 28 in 2023. The league comprises 27 reserve sides for MLS club ...

Personal life

After Kleberson's starring role at the 2002 World Cup, Europe's top sides competed to sign him, but he chose to stay in Brazil for another year so he could marry his 15-year-old fiancée when she reached the age of consent, having met her when she was 14.

Career statistics

Club

International

Appearances by national team and year :''Scores and results list Brazil's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Kléberson goal''.

Honours

;Atlético Paranaense *

* Paraná State League: 2000, 2001 ;Manchester United *

FA Cup The Football Association Challenge Cup, more commonly known as the FA Cup, is an annual knockout football competition in men's domestic English football. First played during the 1871–72 season, it is the oldest national football competi ...

: 2003–04 ;Beşiktaş *

Turkish Cup The Turkish Cup ( Turkish: ''Türkiye Kupası'') is a football cup competition in Turkish football, run by the Turkish Football Federation since 1962. During a brief sponsorship period with Fortis, its sponsored name was ''Fortis Türkiye Kupası ...

: 2005–06 *

Turkish Super Cup The Turkish Super Cup ( Turkish: ''TFF Süper Kupa''), as it is currently known, is the annual super cup football match contested between the previous season's Süper Lig champions and the Turkish Cup winners in Turkey. It was originally known a ...

2006 File:2006 Events Collage V1.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2006 Winter Olympics open in Turin; Twitter is founded and launched by Jack Dorsey; The Nintendo Wii is released; Montenegro 2006 Montenegrin independence referendum, votes to declare ...

;Flamengo *

2009 File:2009 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: The vertical stabilizer of Air France Flight 447 is pulled out from the Atlantic Ocean; Barack Obama becomes the first African American to become President of the United States; 2009 Iran ...

;Brazil *

FIFA World Cup The FIFA World Cup, often simply called the World Cup, is an international association football competition contested by the senior men's national teams of the members of the ' ( FIFA), the sport's global governing body. The tournament ha ...

2002 File:2002 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The 2002 Winter Olympics are held in Salt Lake City; Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother and her daughter Princess Margaret, Countess of Snowdon die; East Timor gains East Timor independence, indepe ...

FIFA Confederations Cup The FIFA Confederations Cup was an international association football tournament for men's national teams, held every four years by FIFA. It was contested by the holders of each of the six continental championships ( AFC, CAF, CONCACAF, CONMEBOL, ...

Copa América The Copa América ( en, America Cup) or CONMEBOL Copa América, known until 1975 as the South American Football Championship (''Campeonato Sudamericano de Fútbol'' in Spanish and ''Campeonato Sul-Americano de Futebol'' in Portuguese), is the t ...

2004 2004 was designated as an International Year of Rice by the United Nations, and the International Year to Commemorate the Struggle Against Slavery and its Abolition (by UNESCO). Events January * January 3 – Flash Airlines Flight 6 ...

;Individual * Bola de Prata: 2001

References

External links

* *
José Kléberson
at ManUtd.com {{DEFAULTSORT:Kleberson, Jose 1979 births Living people Sportspeople from Paraná (state) Brazilian footballers Brazilian expatriate footballers Brazilian expatriate sportspeople in the United States Club Athletico Paranaense players Manchester United F.C. players Beşiktaş J.K. footballers CR Flamengo footballers Esporte Clube Bahia players Philadelphia Union players Indy Eleven players Fort Lauderdale Strikers players 2002 FIFA World Cup players 2003 FIFA Confederations Cup players 2004 Copa América players 2009 FIFA Confederations Cup players 2010 FIFA World Cup players FIFA World Cup-winning players Copa América-winning players FIFA Confederations Cup-winning players Brazil international footballers Campeonato Brasileiro Série A players Premier League players Süper Lig players Major League Soccer players Designated Players (MLS) North American Soccer League players Expatriate footballers in England Brazilian expatriate sportspeople in Turkey Expatriate footballers in Turkey Expatriate soccer players in the United States Association football midfielders New York City FC non-playing staff