What’s the first thing that comes to mind when you hear the name Kleberson?
Is this the moment he pocketed Paul Scholes to help knock England out of the 2002 World Cup in the quarter-finals?
Or perhaps the display of virtuosity in Brazil’s 2-0 victory over Germany in the final, when he hit the crossbar from 30 yards out and then created Ronaldo’s second goal?
No, be honest. It’s neither of those things. We remember that Kleberson was completely useless at Manchester United.
On August 12, 2003, the Red Devils unveiled two players alongside Sir Alex Ferguson on the hallowed turf of Old Trafford.
One had braces and many considered him one of the most promising players in world football. The other was Cristiano Ronaldo.
Kleberson’s performances at the 2002 World Cup caught the eye of Barcelona, Newcastle, Leeds and Celtic – but it was United who secured his services in a £6.5million deal with Atlético Paranaense.
And why wouldn’t they? 2002 World Cup-winning Brazilian coach Luis Felipe Scolari described Kleberson as the “driving force” behind one of the greatest teams in history.
“He was always the first name on the team list, ahead of players like Ronaldo,” Scolari said.
Just to be clear, ‘players like Ronaldo’ is a generic term for Rivaldo, Ronaldinho, Gilberto Silva, Cafu and Roberto Carlos.
Scolari added: “Kleberson will have no problem adjusting to the Premiership.”
Spoiler alert: he did. But before we get to that, let’s take a look back at the peak of Kleberson’s career, which lasted about a week.
Scolari saw something in Kleberson during his time at Paranaense, where he won the Brazilian Serie A title in 2001.
Nonetheless, the young midfielder was relatively unknown outside of South America and a surprise name in the squad for pre-tournament favourites.
Despite sitting on the bench for the early stages of the 2002 World Cup campaign in Brazil, a 23-year-old Kleberson would be given an opportunity against Sven Goran-Eriksson’s Three Lions in the Round of 16.
The history books will remember Ronaldinho lobbing David Seaman from distance, but Scholes, another generational player, may not have seen it from Kleberson’s back pocket.
He retained his place in the squad for the 1-0 win over Turkey in the semi-finals, but it was in the final against Germany that the midfielder really came to life.
Kleberson was denied a famous goal when he hit the crossbar from 30 yards out, despite providing the crucial assist for Ronaldo’s second.
In true Samba style, Rivaldo allowed Kleberson’s ball to pass between his legs and while Ronaldo did the rest, the midfielder looked genuinely at home in the most elite company.
But, unfortunately for Sir Alex and United, it was all window dressing.
It was in fact Ronaldinho who convinced Kleberson to sign for the Red Devils, amid rumors the superstar striker could also be on his way to Manchester.
However, new Barcelona president Joan Laporta promised fans a marquee signing and missed out on Beckham when he left United for Real Madrid.
Instead, the Catalans replaced Ronaldinho, leaving Kleberson at United with no friends and no command of the English language.
Ultimately, Kleberson lacked the quality and composure to thrive in the Premier League and left Old Trafford after 20 top-flight appearances over two seasons.
A dislocated shoulder in his second game didn’t help – and it was ironically Ronaldo who came on as his replacement that day, as he has throughout Kleberson’s United career.
The Brazilian scored twice for the Red Devils and showed a glimpse of the dynamic midfielder he could be, but only on rare occasions.
His struggles left everyone stunned, including his midfield partner and captain Roy Keane.
Eric Djemba-Djemba, another midfield flop signed for United on the same day as Kleberson, recently lifted the lid on a spirited exchange.
He said: “Keane got the better of Kleberson! Kleberson looked like he didn’t want to mess with his body language and wanted to play slowly.
“I remember a Champions League game at Old Trafford, we went into the locker room and Roy Keane was yelling at him!
“He said ‘You have to wake up! You have to give your all, you have to tackle! Why don’t you want to play? You just won the World Cup! What happened? You have to play better! ‘
“It was really scary for Kleberson. He was still smiling and smiling when Keane attacked him, which would have made Keane even angrier.
Kleberson was sold to Besiktas for less than £2million in 2005 – and his time in Turkey was even more unfortunate.
Looking back, he admitted the Premier League was too much for him.
Speaking to Manchester Evening News in 2019, Kleberson said: “During my time at United there was a great squad with world class players. I came with a lot of changes in the squad, there were five or six new players and the club lost some good players.
“We came in strong mentally to try to help the team, and of course we were fine, so the team is fine; players adapt to this and bring their best performance.
He added: “When the team isn’t doing well it’s hard to change my style, I couldn’t do it, when I came to Man United I tried to change the player I was , more passes, more aggression, more tackles, but it’s too difficult and it was not the goal of my game.
“From 17 to 24, I was playing this flowing Brazilian style, moving the ball quickly and receiving it in space. At Man United I often had difficult moments, I had a lot of injuries and I I struggled a lot.
“It was a tough time, and when you see a lot of evaluations of your performance at top teams, the criticism can be very high, especially at Man United.”
Brazil are among the favorites at Qatar 2022 – and United midfielders Casemiro and Fred will be hoping to play their part.
Maybe they should talk to Kleberson before they get on the plane.
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