A former midfielder, he previously played for Brazil 32 times between 2002 and 2010, scoring two goals, and was part of the squad that won the 2002 FIFA World Cup.

His performances for Atlético Paranaense led to Luiz Felipe Scolari calling him up to the Brazil national team for the 2002 FIFA World Cup in South Korea and Japan.

He scored two league goals in his time at Manchester United, both coming in home wins against Blackburn Rovers[2] and Everton.

[4] Kléberson signed with Flamengo on 27 September 2007 as a free agent,[6] but he was unable to play for the club until February 2008, due to problems related to his resignation from Beşiktaş.

After returning to the first team, Kléberson's good spell in 2009 was interrupted on 12 August, in a friendly match against Estonia, where he suffered a foul and fell, causing him a dislocated shoulder.

[citation needed] In the 2010 pre-season, Palmeiras speculated the possibility of involving Kléberson in a trade for Vágner Love,[9] but Flamengo refused to accept the idea.

[10] After a poor year playing on loan for Atlético Paranaense, when the club was relegated to Série B, Kléberson signed for Bahia on a two-year contract in July 2012.

[14] On 25 March 2014, Kléberson reportedly signed a two-year deal with Indy Eleven of the North American Soccer League (NASL).

He was brought into the starting line-up for Brazil's game against England, with Scolari feeling his tenacity would help counter the high work-rate of the English side.

[19] 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 on 2 March in London.

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.