Rafael (footballer, Born 1990)
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Rafael Pereira da Silva (; born 9 July 1990), commonly known as Rafael or Rafael da Silva, is a Brazilian former professional
footballer A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby lea ...
who last played for
Campeonato Brasileiro Série A The Campeonato Brasileiro Série A (; English: "Brazilian Championship A Series"), commonly referred to as the Brasileirão (; English: "Big Brazilian" or "Great Brazilian"), the Série A or the Brazilian Série A (to distinguish it from the I ...
club
Botafogo Botafogo (local/standard alternative Brazilian Portuguese pronunciation: ) is a beachfront neighborhood (''bairro'') in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. It is a mostly upper middle class and small commerce community, and is located between the hills of M ...
. He normally played as a
right-back In the sport of association football, a defender is an outfield player whose primary role is to stop attacks during the game and prevent the opposition from scoring. Defenders fall into four main categories: centre-backs, full-backs, sweepers ...
, but he has also been deployed as a
midfielder In the sport of association football, a midfielder takes an Glossary of association football terms#O, outfield position primarily in the middle of the pitch. Midfielders may play an exclusively defensive role, breaking up attacks, and are in t ...
. Rafael and his twin brother,
Fabio Fabio is a given name descended from Latin ''Fabius'' and very popular in Italy and Latin America (due to Italian migration). The name is written without an accent in Italian and Spanish, but is usually accented in Portuguese as ''Fábio'' (with t ...
, began their careers with
Fluminense Fluminense Football Club () is a Brazilian sports club based in the neighbourhood of Laranjeiras, in Rio de Janeiro, being the oldest football club in the state since its foundation in 1902. It competes in the Campeonato Brasileiro Série A, th ...
before joining
Manchester United Manchester United Football Club, commonly referred to as Man United (often stylised as Man Utd) or simply United, is a professional association football, football club based in Old Trafford (area), Old Trafford, Greater Manchester, Engl ...
in January 2008. After seven years in England that included three
Premier League The Premier League is a professional association football league in England and the highest level of the English football league system. Contested by 20 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the English Football Lea ...
titles, Rafael joined Lyon in August 2015 for a fee of up to £2.5 million. Rafael has two caps for
Brazil Brazil, officially the Federative Republic of Brazil, is the largest country in South America. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by area, fifth-largest country by area and the List of countries and dependencies by population ...
, having made his debut in a 3–1 victory over
Denmark Denmark is a Nordic countries, Nordic country in Northern Europe. It is the metropole and most populous constituent of the Kingdom of Denmark,, . also known as the Danish Realm, a constitutionally unitary state that includes the Autonomous a ...
on 26 May 2012. He has also played for Brazil at under-17 level and was part of the silver medal-winning under-23 side at the
2012 Summer Olympics The 2012 Summer Olympics, officially the Games of the XXX Olympiad and also known as London 2012, were an international multi-sport event held from 27 July to 12 August 2012 in London, England, United Kingdom. The first event, the ...
.


Early life

Rafael was born in
Petrópolis Petrópolis (), also known as the Imperial City, is a municipality in the Southeast Region of Brazil. It is located in the state of Rio de Janeiro, northeast of the city of Rio de Janeiro. According to the 2022 Brazilian census, Petrópolis mun ...
, approximately one hour's drive away from
Rio de Janeiro Rio de Janeiro, or simply Rio, is the capital of the Rio de Janeiro (state), state of Rio de Janeiro. It is the List of cities in Brazil by population, second-most-populous city in Brazil (after São Paulo) and the Largest cities in the America ...
in
Rio de Janeiro state Rio de Janeiro () is one of the 27 federative units of Brazil. It has the second largest economy of Brazil, with the largest being that of the state of São Paulo. The state, which has 8.2% of the Brazilian population, is responsible for 9.2% of ...
, and began playing football from the age of five. He began his career with amateur side Boa Esperança, playing as a striker. He and his identical twin,
Fabio Fabio is a given name descended from Latin ''Fabius'' and very popular in Italy and Latin America (due to Italian migration). The name is written without an accent in Italian and Spanish, but is usually accented in Portuguese as ''Fábio'' (with t ...
, were then spotted by a representative of
Fluminense Fluminense Football Club () is a Brazilian sports club based in the neighbourhood of Laranjeiras, in Rio de Janeiro, being the oldest football club in the state since its foundation in 1902. It competes in the Campeonato Brasileiro Série A, th ...
playing
five-a-side ''Five-A-Side'' is the debut album by the pop rock band Ace, released by Anchor Records in 1974. The album landed on the ''Billboard'' 200 chart, reaching No. 11 in 1974. The single " How Long" reached No. 3 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 in t ...
in their neighbourhood; he invited them to join the club and they began living there when they were 11 years old.


Club career


Fluminense

Upon joining
Fluminense Fluminense Football Club () is a Brazilian sports club based in the neighbourhood of Laranjeiras, in Rio de Janeiro, being the oldest football club in the state since its foundation in 1902. It competes in the Campeonato Brasileiro Série A, th ...
, Rafael was converted to play at full-back by the youth team coach. The club then took part in the 2005 Nike Premier Cup in Hong Kong, where Rafael was spotted by
Manchester United Manchester United Football Club, commonly referred to as Man United (often stylised as Man Utd) or simply United, is a professional association football, football club based in Old Trafford (area), Old Trafford, Greater Manchester, Engl ...
scout
Les Kershaw Les Kershaw is the former chief scout and Academy Director for Manchester United. Kershaw studied at Manchester Metropolitan University before being recruited by United manager Alex Ferguson. He had previously acted as a part-time scout for Arsen ...
, who remarked that the twins reminded him of "two little whippets". Kershaw then telephoned Manchester United manager
Sir Alex Ferguson Sir Alexander Chapman Ferguson (born 31 December 1941) is a Scottish former professional football manager and player, best known for managing Manchester United from 1986 to 2013. He is widely regarded as the greatest manager of all time and ...
and recommended that the club sign the Silva twins. Manchester United got in touch with Fluminense and asked permission for the twins to travel to Manchester to train with them in 2005. Shortly afterwards, a scout claiming to represent
Arsenal An arsenal is a place where arms and ammunition are made, maintained and repaired, stored, or issued, in any combination, whether privately or publicly owned. Arsenal and armoury (British English) or armory (American English) are mostly ...
visited the twins and asked them to come to England to train with Arsenal without the permission of Fluminense; however, they were dissuaded from this by their mother, who reminded them that they had been with Fluminense since they were 11, and that they should show the club some loyalty. Therefore, they decided to sign for Manchester United over Arsenal, and the two clubs agreed a deal in February 2007; the twins moved to Manchester in January 2008 without ever having played for the Fluminense first team.


Manchester United


2008–09 season

The twins decided to sign for Manchester United, and a deal was agreed between the two clubs in February 2007. The twins moved to Manchester in January 2008, but were unable to play in matches until they turned 18 in July 2008. Rafael made his first appearance for the club in a 2–0 friendly win over
Peterborough United Peterborough United Football Club is a professional association football club based in Peterborough, Cambridgeshire, England. The team compete in League One, the third level of the English football league system. Peterborough United formed in ...
on 4 August. Rafael was then registered in the club's senior squad for the 2008–09 season and was assigned the number 21 shirt. Rafael made his competitive debut for Manchester United on the opening day of the 2008–09 Premier League season, replacing Fraizer Campbell in their 1–1 home draw against
Newcastle United Newcastle United Football Club is a professional association football club based in Newcastle upon Tyne, Tyne and Wear, England. The club competes in the Premier League, the top tier of English football league system, English football. Since th ...
on 17 August. Rafael's first start for Manchester United came on 23 September in their 3–1 home victory over
Middlesbrough Middlesbrough ( ), colloquially known as Boro, is a port town in the Borough of Middlesbrough, North Yorkshire, England. Lying to the south of the River Tees, Middlesbrough forms part of the Teesside Built up area, built-up area and the Tees Va ...
in the Third Round of the League Cup. Rafael made first start in European competition in United's 3–0 away win over
Aalborg BK Aalborg Boldspilklub is a Danish sports club based in the city of Aalborg. The club is also known as AaB for short (cf. logo) or Aalborg BK. Through time the club has had branches in cricket, tennis, ice hockey, handball, and basketball, but curr ...
in the
UEFA Champions League The UEFA Champions League (UCL) is an annual club association football competition organised by the UEFA, Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) that is contested by List of top-division football clubs in UEFA countries, top-divisio ...
on 30 September. Rafael made his first
Premier League The Premier League is a professional association football league in England and the highest level of the English football league system. Contested by 20 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the English Football Lea ...
start in Manchester United's 4–0 home win over
West Bromwich Albion West Bromwich Albion Football Club (), commonly known as West Brom or The Albion, is a professional association football club based in West Bromwich, West Midlands, England. They compete in the EFL Championship, the second level of the Englis ...
on 18 October. On 8 November, Rafael scored his first goal for Manchester United, netting a 90th minute consolation goal in a 2–1 defeat to Arsenal at the
Emirates Stadium The Emirates Stadium (known as Arsenal Stadium for UEFA competitions) is a association football, football stadium in Holloway, London, England. It has been the home stadium of Arsenal F.C., Arsenal Football Club since its completion in 2006. ...
. On 19 April 2009, in the
FA Cup The Football Association Challenge Cup, more commonly known as the FA Cup, is an annual Single-elimination tournament, knockout association football, football competition in domestic Football in England, English football. First played during ...
semi-final against Everton, Rafael and his twin brother Fábio started a match together for Manchester United for the first time. United, however, lost the match 4–2 on penalties. At the end of Rafael's first professional season, he and his Manchester United teammate
Jonny Evans Jonathan Grant Evans (born 3 January 1988) is a Northern Irish former professional Association football, footballer who played as a centre-back. Evans started his career at Manchester United F.C., Manchester United, having progressed throug ...
were shortlisted as nominees for the
PFA Young Player of the Year The Professional Footballers' Association Young Player of the Year (often called the PFA Young Player of the Year, or simply the Young Player of the Year) is an annual award given to the young player who is adjudged to have been the best of the ...
award. The two of them, however, were beaten to the award by
Aston Villa Aston Villa Football Club (commonly referred to as simply Villa) is a professional football club based in Aston, Birmingham, England. The club, founded in 1874, compete in the Premier League, the top tier of English football. The team have p ...
's
Ashley Young Ashley Simon Young (born 9 July 1985) is an English professional footballer who plays as a winger, midfielder, or full-back. He is currently a free agent. Young started his career as a winger at Watford and made his first senior appearance i ...
. In recognition of his successful first season in English football, Rafael was handed a two-year extension to his Manchester United contract, tying him to the club until 2013.


2009–10 season

On 27 October 2009, Fábio, Rafael's twin brother, was booked for a foul committed by Rafael in United's 2–0 League Cup victory over
Barnsley Barnsley () is a market town in South Yorkshire, England. It is the main settlement of the Metropolitan Borough of Barnsley and the fourth largest settlement in South Yorkshire. The town's population was 71,422 in 2021, while the wider boroug ...
. Manchester United appealed and
The FA The Football Association (the FA) is the governing body of association football in England and the Crown Dependencies of Jersey, Guernsey and the Isle of Man. Formed in 1863, it is the oldest football association in the world and is responsibl ...
agreed it was a case of mistaken identity, transferring the card over to Rafael. On 30 December, Rafael scored the second goal of his Manchester United career and the first at
Old Trafford Old Trafford () is a football stadium in Old Trafford, Greater Manchester, England, and is the home of Manchester United. With a capacity of 74,197, it is the largest club football stadium (and second-largest football stadium overall after W ...
in a 5–0 league win over
Wigan Athletic Wigan Athletic Football Club is a professional association football club based in Wigan, Greater Manchester, England. The team competes in the EFL League One, the third level of the English football league system. Founded in 1932, they have p ...
. On 7 April 2010, Rafael was sent off for the first time in his United career, receiving two yellow cards either side of half-time against
Bayern Munich Fußball-Club Bayern München e. V. (FCB, ), commonly known as Bayern Munich (), FC Bayern () or simply Bayern, is a German professional sports club based in Munich, Bavaria. They are most known for their men's professional football team, ...
in the second leg of the Champions League quarter-final tie. Despite United winning the game, they were eliminated from the competition due to the
away goals The away goals rule is a method of tiebreaking in association football and other sports when teams play each other twice, once at each team's home ground. Under the away goals rule, if the total goals scored by each team are equal, the team that ...
rule when the aggregate score was 4–4. Despite this red card, Sir Alex Ferguson praised Rafael for his performance and stated that "he absolutely dominated
Franck Ribéry Franck Henry Pierre Ribéry (; born 7 April 1983) is a French former professional footballer who primarily played as a winger, preferably on the left side, and was known for his pace, energy, skill, and precise passing. He is regarded as one ...
".


2010–11 season

On 16 January 2011, Rafael was sent off for a second occasion, collecting two bookings in a 0–0 league draw against
Tottenham Hotspur Tottenham Hotspur Football Club, commonly referred to as simply Tottenham (, , , ) or Spurs, is a professional Association football, football club based in Tottenham, North London, England. The club itself has stated that it should always ...
at
White Hart Lane White Hart Lane was a Association football, football stadium in Tottenham, North London and the home of Tottenham Hotspur F.C., Tottenham Hotspur Football Club from 1899 to 2017. Its capacity varied over the years; when changed to all-seater i ...
. Rafael received an £8,000 fine and a warning about his future conduct by The FA following his red card. Rafael suffered a concussion in United's 3–2 away victory over
Blackpool Blackpool is a seaside town in Lancashire, England. It is located on the Irish Sea coast of the Fylde peninsula, approximately north of Liverpool and west of Preston, Lancashire, Preston. It is the main settlement in the Borough of Blackpool ...
on 25 January, the match following his one-game ban, and was taken to hospital for
X-ray An X-ray (also known in many languages as Röntgen radiation) is a form of high-energy electromagnetic radiation with a wavelength shorter than those of ultraviolet rays and longer than those of gamma rays. Roughly, X-rays have a wavelength ran ...
s before later being released. Rafael collided with Blackpool's
Marlon Harewood Marlon Anderson Harewood (born 25 August 1979) is an English former professional footballer who played as a striker. Harewood started his career at Nottingham Forest. During his career there, he had loan spells at Haka and Ipswich Town befor ...
during the second half, which resulted in ten minutes of stoppage time, and forced Rafael out of United's FA Cup tie away to
Southampton Southampton is a port City status in the United Kingdom, city and unitary authority in Hampshire, England. It is located approximately southwest of London, west of Portsmouth, and southeast of Salisbury. Southampton had a population of 253, ...
on 29 January.


2011–12 season

Rafael made his first competitive start of the season since the Community Shield victory back in August against
Crystal Palace Crystal Palace may refer to: Places Canada * Crystal Palace Complex (Dieppe), a former amusement park now a shopping complex in Dieppe, New Brunswick * Crystal Palace Barracks, London, Ontario * Crystal Palace (Montreal), an exhibition buildin ...
in the League Cup on 20 November 2011, a game which United lost 2–1 in extra time. On 31 December, Rafael started his first league game of the season against
Blackburn Rovers Blackburn Rovers Football Club is a professional football club based in Blackburn, Lancashire, England, which competes in the , the second level of the English football league system. They have played home matches at Ewood Park since 1890. Th ...
, playing in an unusual defensive midfield role with
Park Ji-sung Park Ji-sung (; born 30 March 1981) is a South Korean former professional association football, footballer who played as a midfielder. Born in the South Korean capital Seoul, Park is regarded as one of the greatest and most successful Asian pe ...
before moving to right-back for the second half. He was later replaced by Will Keane in the 85th minute.


2012–13 season

On 2 July 2012, Rafael signed a new four-year contract to keep him at the club until 2016. For the 2012–13 season, he was given the number 2 shirt, previously worn by
Gary Neville Gary Alexander Neville (born 18 February 1975) is an English football pundit, former coach and player, and co-owner of English Football League club Salford City. As a player, Neville was a right-back and spent his entire career with Manches ...
, who retired in 2011. After missing the opening game of the season, he returned to play against
Fulham Fulham () is an area of the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham in West London, England, southwest of Charing Cross. It lies in a loop on the north bank of the River Thames, bordering Hammersmith, Kensington and Chelsea, London, Chelsea ...
on 25 August 2012, and scored United's third goal (and his third for the club) in a 3–2 win. On 23 September 2012, Rafael scored the equalising goal in a 1–2 United win at
Anfield Anfield is a Association football, football stadium in the area of Anfield (suburb), Anfield, Liverpool, England, which has been the home of Liverpool F.C. since its formation in 1892. The stadium has a seating capacity of 61,276, making it the ...
over
Liverpool Liverpool is a port City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. It is situated on the eastern side of the River Mersey, Mersey Estuary, near the Irish Sea, north-west of London. With a population ...
. After receiving a layoff from Shinji Kagawa, he cut inside onto his left foot and curled a shot past Pepe Reina and into the top corner. On 23 October 2012, Rafael made his 100th appearance for United in a 3–2 win over Portuguese side
Braga Braga (; ) is a cities of Portugal, city and a Municipalities of Portugal, municipality, capital of the northwestern Portugal, Portuguese Braga (district), district of Braga and of the historical and cultural Minho Province. Braga Municipality ...
. On 23 February 2013, Rafael scored United's first goal in a 2–0 league win away to
Queens Park Rangers Queens Park Rangers Football Club, commonly abbreviated to QPR, is a professional association football club based in Shepherd's Bush, West London, England. The team currently compete in the EFL Championship, the second level of the English f ...
, hitting the ball on the half-volley from 25 yards out, through a crowd of players and into the top corner of the goal. On 5 May, Rafael was sent off against Chelsea for a challenge on
David Luiz David Luiz Moreira Marinho (born 22 April 1987) is a Brazilian professional Association football, footballer who plays as a Defender (association football), defender for Campeonato Brasileiro Série A club Fortaleza Esporte Clube, Fortaleza. H ...
.


2014–15 season

On 27 September 2014, Rafael was named man of the match for his performance in the 2–1 victory over
West Ham United West Ham United Football Club is a professional Association football, football club based in Stratford, London, Stratford, East London, England. The club competes in the Premier League, the top tier of English football league system, English f ...
.


Lyon

On 3 August 2015, Rafael joined French club
Lyon Lyon (Franco-Provençal: ''Liyon'') is a city in France. It is located at the confluence of the rivers Rhône and Saône, to the northwest of the French Alps, southeast of Paris, north of Marseille, southwest of Geneva, Switzerland, north ...
on a four-year contract for an undisclosed fee.


İstanbul Başakşehir

On 8 September 2020, Turkish club İstanbul Başakşehir announced the signing of Rafael on a free transfer, on a two-year contract with the option of a third year.


Botafogo

On 8 September 2021, Rafael joined Brazilian club
Botafogo Botafogo (local/standard alternative Brazilian Portuguese pronunciation: ) is a beachfront neighborhood (''bairro'') in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. It is a mostly upper middle class and small commerce community, and is located between the hills of M ...
on a two-and-a-half-year contract. He and his twin brother Fábio supported the club when they were young. In July 2023, Rafael suffered a serious injury to his left knee in the classic against Vasco, at the Nilton Santos Stadium, in the Brazilian Championship. Rafael underwent surgery the day after the classic. In October 2023, still out of action, the right-back submitted a renewal with Botafogo until the end of 2024. Rafael only returned to play for Botafogo in March 2024, after more than eight months out due to injury. In April 2024, after a series of injuries for Botafogo, Rafael announced his retirement at the end of the year. In the first half of April, the right-back was diagnosed with a fracture in the patella of his left knee and the athlete began treatment. Botafogo informed that the deadline for return was eight weeks.


International career

Rafael played for Brazil's national under-17 team at the
2007 FIFA U-17 World Cup The FIFA U-17 World Cup 2007, the twelfth edition of the tournament, was held in South Korea between 18 August and 9 September 2007. For this event, the number of teams had been expanded from 16 to 24, with the top two of each group and the four ...
in South Korea. He was approached by Portugal national team head coach
Carlos Queiroz Carlos Manuel Brito Leal de Queiroz (; born 1 March 1953) is a Portuguese football manager. He has served as the manager of his native Portugal's national team, the United Arab Emirates, South Africa, Iran, Colombia, Egypt and Qatar, leading ...
and asked to play for Portugal's senior side, as both Rafael and Fábio hold Portuguese citizenship. Rafael indicated a willingness to take Queiroz up on his offer if he did not end up playing for
Brazil Brazil, officially the Federative Republic of Brazil, is the largest country in South America. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by area, fifth-largest country by area and the List of countries and dependencies by population ...
, while Fábio remained set on playing for Brazil. On 26 July 2010, Rafael was called up to the Brazilian senior team for the first time, as he was included in new coach
Mano Menezes Luiz Antônio Venker Menezes (born 11 June 1962), known as Mano Menezes, is a Brazilian professional football Coach (sport), coach, currently the head coach of Grêmio FBPA, Grêmio. Menezes managed the Brazil national football team, Brazil na ...
' first squad for their friendly against the
United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...
on 10 August. Rafael was originally left out of the Brazil squad for their friendlies in May and June 2012, but was later called up to replace the injured
Dani Alves Daniel "Dani" Alves da Silva (; born 6 May 1983) is a Brazilian former professional footballer who played as a right-back. Widely regarded as one of the best full-backs of all time, he is also one of the most decorated players with 43 trophies ...
.
Porto Porto (), also known in English language, English as Oporto, is the List of cities in Portugal, second largest city in Portugal, after Lisbon. It is the capital of the Porto District and one of the Iberian Peninsula's major urban areas. Porto c ...
right back
Danilo Danilo is a given name found in Italian, Portuguese, Spanish and Serbian. Notable people with the name Danilo include: Athletes Footballers * Danilo (footballer, born 1979), Brazilian footballer Danilo de Andrade * Danilo (footballer, born ...
was selected ahead of Rafael for the game against
Denmark Denmark is a Nordic countries, Nordic country in Northern Europe. It is the metropole and most populous constituent of the Kingdom of Denmark,, . also known as the Danish Realm, a constitutionally unitary state that includes the Autonomous a ...
on 26 May, but he did eventually come on as a substitute to make his senior international debut. On 26 July 2012, Rafael scored Brazil under-23's first goal at the
2012 Olympics The 2012 Summer Olympics, officially the Games of the XXX Olympiad and also known as London 2012, were an international multi-sport event held from 27 July to 12 August 2012 in London, England, United Kingdom. The first event, the ...
in a 3–2 victory over
Egypt Egypt ( , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a country spanning the Northeast Africa, northeast corner of Africa and Western Asia, southwest corner of Asia via the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Mediterranean Sea to northe ...
. In December 2013, ''
The Times ''The Times'' is a British Newspaper#Daily, daily Newspaper#National, national newspaper based in London. It began in 1785 under the title ''The Daily Universal Register'', adopting its modern name on 1 January 1788. ''The Times'' and its si ...
'' reported that he had considered representing
England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...
at international level, however he decided against it. He was not eligible for England as he had earlier represented Brazil in 2007 at U17 level in a
FIFA The Fédération Internationale de Football Association (), more commonly known by its acronym FIFA ( ), is the international self-regulatory governing body of association football, beach soccer, and futsal. It was founded on 21 May 1904 to o ...
-recognised "official competition", meaning that the only national teams he could choose between would be Brazil and Portugal, the nations he was eligible to represent at the time he played in the
2007 South American Under-17 Football Championship The 2007 South American Under-17 Football Championship was played in Ecuador from 4 to 25 March 2007. The seven venues of the competition were the cities of Ambato, Ecuador, Ambato, Azogues, Cuenca, Ecuador, Cuenca, Ibarra, Ecuador, Ibarra, Latacu ...
.


Style of play

Along with his brother Fábio, Rafael has been praised for his energetic style, and has been described as an "excellent footballer" by Sir Alex Ferguson.
Les Kershaw Les Kershaw is the former chief scout and Academy Director for Manchester United. Kershaw studied at Manchester Metropolitan University before being recruited by United manager Alex Ferguson. He had previously acted as a part-time scout for Arsen ...
, the former Manchester United academy manager who spotted them, described the pair as being like "two little
whippet The Whippet is a British breed of dog of sighthound type. It closely resembles the Greyhound and the smaller Italian Greyhound, and is intermediate between them in size. In the nineteenth century it was sometimes called "the poor man's raceh ...
s", praising how "when they got knocked down, they just got straight back up again and got on with it. They were like bouncing balls... very, very quick". ''The Times'' has called them "Brazil's answer to the Neville brothers ( Gary and
Phil Neville Philip John Neville (born 21 January 1977) is an English association football, football manager and former player who is the current head coach of Major League Soccer club Portland Timbers. He is also the co-owner of Salford City F.C., Salford ...
)".


Personal life

Rafael's twin brother Fábio is also a professional footballer; both twins signed for Manchester United at the same time in 2008. The twins' elder brother, Luiz Henrique Pereira da Silva, used to play for América-MG in Brazil and
Brescia Brescia (, ; ; or ; ) is a city and (municipality) in the region of Lombardy, in Italy. It is situated at the foot of the Alps, a few kilometers from the lakes Lake Garda, Garda and Lake Iseo, Iseo. With a population of 199,949, it is the se ...
in Italy, but moved with his wife to England when the twins signed for Manchester United. After a six-week wait for international clearance, Luiz Henrique signed for Radcliffe Borough, but he and his wife returned to Brazil in early 2009 in preparation for the birth of their child, where he returned to England few months later. Despite starting their careers at Fluminense, both Fábio and Rafael are actually supporters of their local rivals
Botafogo Botafogo (local/standard alternative Brazilian Portuguese pronunciation: ) is a beachfront neighborhood (''bairro'') in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. It is a mostly upper middle class and small commerce community, and is located between the hills of M ...
. Rafael is married to Carla. On 4 January 2012, the couple had their first child, a girl named Eduarda.


Career statistics


Honours

Manchester United *
Premier League The Premier League is a professional association football league in England and the highest level of the English football league system. Contested by 20 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the English Football Lea ...
: 2008–09,
2010–11 1 (one, unit, unity) is a number, numeral, and glyph. It is the first and smallest positive integer of the infinite sequence of natural numbers. This fundamental property has led to its unique uses in other fields, ranging from science to sp ...
, 2012–13 *
Football League Cup The English Football League Cup, often referred to as the League Cup and currently known as the Carabao Cup for sponsorship reasons, is an annual Single-elimination tournament, knockout competition in men's domestic football in England. Orga ...
: 2009–10 *
FA Community Shield The Football Association Community Shield (formerly the Charity Shield) is Football in England, English football's annual match contested at Wembley Stadium between the champions of the previous Premier League season and the holders of the FA ...
:
2008 2008 was designated as: *International Year of Languages *International Year of Planet Earth *International Year of the Potato *International Year of Sanitation The Great Recession, a worldwide recession which began in 2007, continued throu ...
,
2011 The year marked the start of a Arab Spring, series of protests and revolutions throughout the Arab world advocating for democracy, reform, and economic recovery, later leading to the depositions of world leaders in Tunisia, Egypt, and Yemen ...
,
2013 2013 was the first year since 1987 to contain four unique digits (a span of 26 years). 2013 was designated as: *International Year of Water Cooperation *International Year of Quinoa Events January * January 5 – 2013 Craig, Alask ...
*
FIFA Club World Cup The FIFA Club World Cup (FIFA CWC) is an international men's association football competition organised by the ''Fédération Internationale de Football Association'' (FIFA), the sport's global sports governing body, governing body. The compe ...
:
2008 2008 was designated as: *International Year of Languages *International Year of Planet Earth *International Year of the Potato *International Year of Sanitation The Great Recession, a worldwide recession which began in 2007, continued throu ...
Botafogo *
Campeonato Brasileiro Série B The Campeonato Brasileiro Série B (commonly referred to as the Brasileirão Série B, the Série B or the Brazilian Série B to distinguish it from the Italian and the Ecuadorian Serie B), and currently officially called Brasileirão Série B ...
:
2021 Like the year 2020, 2021 was also heavily defined by the COVID-19 pandemic, due to the emergence of multiple Variants of SARS-CoV-2, COVID-19 variants. The major global rollout of COVID-19 vaccines, which began at the end of 2020, continued ...
*
Copa Libertadores The CONMEBOL Libertadores, also known as Copa Libertadores de América (), is an annual continental club football competition organized by CONMEBOL since 1960. It is the highest level of competition in South American club football. The tournam ...
:
2024 The year saw the list of ongoing armed conflicts, continuation of major armed conflicts, including the Russian invasion of Ukraine, the Myanmar civil war (2021–present), Myanmar civil war, the Sudanese civil war (2023–present), Sudane ...
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Campeonato Brasileiro Série A The Campeonato Brasileiro Série A (; English: "Brazilian Championship A Series"), commonly referred to as the Brasileirão (; English: "Big Brazilian" or "Great Brazilian"), the Série A or the Brazilian Série A (to distinguish it from the I ...
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2024 The year saw the list of ongoing armed conflicts, continuation of major armed conflicts, including the Russian invasion of Ukraine, the Myanmar civil war (2021–present), Myanmar civil war, the Sudanese civil war (2023–present), Sudane ...
Brazil U17 *
South American Under-17 Football Championship The South American U-17 Championship (; ), branded as CONMEBOL Sub 17, is a football competition held every two years for South American under-17 teams. The tournament was born in 1985 out of a need for a classification tournament for the newly cre ...
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2007 2007 was designated as the International Heliophysical Year and the International Polar Year. Events January * January 1 **Bulgaria and Romania 2007 enlargement of the European Union, join the European Union, while Slovenia joins the Eur ...
Brazil U23 * Olympic Silver Medal:
2012 2012 was designated as: *International Year of Cooperatives *International Year of Sustainable Energy for All Events January *January 4 – The Cicada 3301 internet hunt begins. * January 12 – Peaceful protests begin in the R ...


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* {{DEFAULTSORT:Rafael 1990 births Living people Identical twin males Brazilian twins Brazilian people of Portuguese descent Sportspeople of Portuguese descent Sportspeople from Petrópolis Footballers from Rio de Janeiro (state) Men's association football defenders Manchester United F.C. players Olympique Lyonnais players İstanbul Başakşehir F.K. players Botafogo de Futebol e Regatas players Premier League players Ligue 1 players Süper Lig players Campeonato Brasileiro Série A players Expatriate men's footballers in England Expatriate men's footballers in France Expatriate men's footballers in Turkey Brazilian expatriate men's footballers Brazilian expatriate sportspeople in England Brazilian expatriate sportspeople in France Brazilian expatriate sportspeople in Turkey Brazilian men's footballers Brazil men's international footballers Brazil men's youth international footballers Footballers at the 2007 Pan American Games Footballers at the 2012 Summer Olympics Medalists at the 2012 Summer Olympics Naturalised citizens of Portugal Olympic footballers for Brazil Olympic medalists in football Olympic silver medalists for Brazil Pan American Games competitors for Brazil 21st-century Brazilian sportsmen Copa Libertadores–winning players