A former Manchester United star has revealed how Brazil legend Ronaldinho tricked him into signing for the Red Devils.
During Sir Alex Ferguson's reign, Manchester United attracted some of football's biggest names and were desperate to sign Brazilian magician Ronaldinho.
In 2002, after Brazil's World Cup-winning campaign, Ronaldinho was in talks with Manchester United about joining from Paris Saint-Germain, but moved to Barcelona instead.
This decision would change the course of his career, propelling him to even greater heights. Meanwhile, the Red Devils ended up with another Brazilian, Kleberson, in the summer of 2023.
Kleberson recalled the excitement of potentially joining Manchester United with his international teammate Ronaldinho:
"There were two clubs interested in signing me: Manchester United and Leeds. It was an easy choice, but there's a funny story about it, too.
"Ronaldinho told me, 'They want to sign both of us' and I said, 'OK, let's go, then! I was so glad that he would be coming with me."
However, Ronaldinho's decision to join Barcelona left Kleberson to join Manchester United alone. He was unveiled alongside Cristiano Ronaldo, but his time at Old Trafford didn't go as planned.
He made just 20 Premier League appearances in a largely forgettable spell for the Red Devils.
Reflecting on his time at Manchester United, Kleberson joked: "I went back to Brazil and kept negotiating with United, but then Ronaldinho fooled me and went to play in the warm weather at Barcelona! He sent me to Manchester... That's a joke between us until today. He knows that he owes me one."
Kleberson's Manchester United stint ultimately ended in 2005, when he moved to Besiktas, and later returned to Brazil to play for Flamengo, Bahia, and Paranaense.
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