|
By Lim Say Heng
GOALKEEPERS
Club: Almeria
Date of birth: 24 Jun 1985
Description: He is the first-choice goalkeeper at La Liga club Almeria and managed to keep the likes of Raul and Ruud van Nistelrooy at bay when his club beat Real Madrid in February this year.
Club: Internacional
Date of birth: 24 Jan 1985
Description: Renan has been with Brazilian club Internacional since 2005 and was an unused substitute when they beat Barcelona for the Fifa Club World Cup in 2006.
DEFENDERS
- Marcelo Vieira da Silva Junior
Club: Real Madrid
Date of birth: 12 May 1988
Description: The left wing-back packs a powerful shot and has often been compared with Roberto Carlos. He took over Carlos' place as Real's left wing-back after Carlos left for Turkish side Fenerbahce, and helped Real win the La Liga title. He also scored on his senior debut against Wales in 2006.
- Ilsinho Pereira Dias Junior
Club: Shakhtar Donetsk
Date of birth: 12 Oct 1985
Description: The right-back began his professional career at Palmeiras in 2006 before moving to Sao Paulo in the same year. He then moved on to Shakhtar last year on a $21.5 million transfer.
- Marcio Rafinha Ferreira de Souza
Club: Schalke 04
Date of birth: 7 Sep 1985
Description: The right-back was an important member of the Brazil U-20 team that won the bronze medal at the 2005 Fifa World Youth Championship, and scored two goals during the tournament.
Club: Fluminense
Date of birth: 22 Sep 1984
Description: The centre-back has rejuvenated his career since signing for Fluminense in 2006 after stints with Porto and Dynamo Moscow were blighted with injuries and illness.
Club: Sao Paulo
Date of birth: 10 Mar 1985
Description: The centre-back is the younger brother of Benfica player Luisao, who plays for the senior team. Alex Silva also has two senior caps to his name, making his debut against Ecuador last July.
Club: Bayern Munich
Date of birth: 13 Oct 1989
Description: The centre-back is highly rated and had attracted much interest from the likes of Real Madrid, AC Milan, Juventus and Fiorentina before he signed for the German club last December.
MIDFIELDERS
Club: Liverpool
Date of birth: 9 Jan 1987
Description: The defensive midfielder attracted attention from major European clubs after a successful season at Gremio in 2006, but Liverpool beat off competition from the likes of AC Milan, Manchester United and Juventus to sign him.
- Ramires Santos do Nascimento
Club: Cruzeiro
Date of birth: 24 Mar 1987
Description: The defensive midfielder was recently called up after striker Robinho dropped out of the team due to a groin injury. Sporting Lisbon are said to be interested in the player, who only joined Cruzeiro permanently six months ago after spending a year on loan with the Brazilian club.
- Anderson Luis de Abreu Oliveira
Club: Manchester United
Date of birth: 13 Apr 1988
Description: The former Gremio player achieved cult status at the club for netting the solitary goal against Nautico that helped Gremio gain promotion to Brazil's Serie A in 2005. He then joined Porto in 2006 before joining Manchester United before the start of last season, and scored one of the penalties to help United to win the European Champions League title.
- Anderson Hernanes de Carvalho Andrade Lima
Club: Sao Paulo
Date of birth: 29 May 1985
Description: The attacking midfielder is equally good on both legs and is capable of packing a venomous shot from outside the penalty box. Hernanes is currently being pursued by Barcelona and AC Milan.
Club: AC Milan
Date of birth: 21 Mar 1980
Description: Better known as Ronaldinho, the playmaker is one of the few to represent Brazil at every level - U-15, U-17, U-20, U-23 and the senior team. His former club Barcelona had disallowed his involvement in the Olympics, but he has since received clearance to play for the Olympic team by his new club Milan.
Club: Werder Bremen
Date of birth: 28 Feb 1985
Description: Diego made his name with boyhood club Santos, scoring 21 goals in 64 matches from 2001 to 2004. The attacking midfielder then spent two unhappy years at Porto, where a fallout with coach Co Adriaanse limited his playing time before a move to Werder Bremen revived his international career.
Club: Fluminense
Date of birth: 27 Feb 1985
Description: Touted as the next 'Pavel Nedved' by his fans, the attacking midfielder was voted the Brazilian league's best player last season after scoring 12 goals in 33 games from midfield. The Fluminense No. 10 has since attracted interest from Manchester United, Roma and Milan, among other European clubs.
FORWARDS
- Alexandre Rodrigues da Silva
Club: AC Milan
Date of birth: 2 Sep 1989
Description: The teenage striking sensation adopted the nickname 'Alexandre Pato' in honour of his hometown Pato Branco ('White Duck' in English). Pato became the youngest ever player to score in a Fifa-sanctioned competition when he netted Internacional's second goal against Al-Ahly Cairo in the 2006 Fifa Club World Cup semi-final.
Club: Real Betis
Date of birth: 17 Jun 1985
Description: Rafael Sobis' short career so far has been blighted with injuries. The young striker scored 19 goals in 35 games during his debut season for former club Internacional in 2005, but spent most of his sophomore season on the treatment table before he was sold to Real Betis for $51.5m in 2006. His time at the Spanish club has been plagued by injury, and loss of form as well.
- Joao Alves de Assis Silva
Club: Manchester City
Date of birth: 20 Mar 1987
Description: Known simply as Jo, the 21-year-old hitman turned quite a few heads by scoring 44 goals in 77 games since moving to CSKA Moscow in 2005. The deep-lying striker was recently snapped up by Thaksin Shinawatra's Manchester City for a club record fee, in the region of ????pounds;18m ($48.5m), beating off suitors like Real Madrid, Inter Milan and AC Milan.
This story was first published in The New Paper on July 24, 2008.
| 
