Flamengo or Fluminense? I asked a Brazil World Cup winner who can shock Europe’s elite

In international football, Brazil are synonymous with the World Cup, even if they have been stuck on five wins since 2002. The expanded Club World Cup may offer fewer chances of success, given how much of the financial and footballing power rests in Europe. And yet Brazil has outnumbered everyone else in one respect. No other country provides as many of the 32 clubs who are converging on the United States. In Palmeiras, Flamengo, Fluminense and Botafogo, it provides a quartet, the last four winners of the Copa Libertadores.

For a World Cup winner, the 2022 champions of South America are the likeliest to last longest in North America. “The best team in Brazil for now is Flamengo just because they have the best players,” said Kleberson, part of that 2002 side. “A lot of the players come [back] from Europe, they play in the big leagues and the Champions League and they have a really good quality. In my opinion, the club that can go most far is Flamengo.”

How far? In a tournament with 12 European clubs, the context has changed. In the old Club World Cup, South American sides made six of the last 10 finals, but lost each. Now perhaps a quarter-final appearance would represent a cause for satisfaction. “If they got in a semi-final, it is really special for clubs in Brazil,” said Kleberson. “Paris Saint-Germain won the Champions League and we can see how far they are from a club from Brazil.” There is also a test of staying power. “The difficulty is before the clubs from Brazil won this tournament, they prepare to play three games,” added Kleberson. “Now it is a little bit different, you have to be more smart to play more games.”

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He has, though, identified a potential advantage. Flamengo’s first two matches, including a clash with Chelsea, are in Philadelphia; not quite home soil for some of their supporters but not far off. “The thing Flamengo and Botafogo have is they have great fans and a lot who live in New York or the USA,” Kleberson said. “They can travel and watch the game and push their team and give a little bit of energy for the clubs.”

And Flamengo have decorated players. Besides their band of Copa Libertadores winners, Danilo is a Champions League winner from his time at Real Madrid. A man who collected his medal with Chelsea in 2021 is a new signing: Jorginho, a Euro 2020 winner with Italy but a Brazilian by birth.

“It is an amazing deal,” said Kleberson, himself a former Flamengo midfielder. “Jorginho is a top, top player in Europe for a long time. He participates in a lot of good trophies. Even the quality he can bring for Flamengo, he is going to give a lot of confidence to the players because he is going to be a leader on the team now and every fan is excited to see Jorginho play. He is a mini Brazilian; he was born in Brazil and his dream is to come and play in Brazil.”

Perhaps Jorginho reflects a trend. Many a South American player in his prime can be found on the other side of the Atlantic; indeed, nine European clubs have at least one Brazilian in their Club World Cup squad. So those plying their trade in their homeland can sometimes be nearer the start or end of their careers.

Two may be of particular interest to Chelsea. Another of their 2021 Champions League winners is Thiago Silva who will, at 40, anchor the Fluminense defence. “Of course, he is not the Thiago Silva when he is 25 years old but the quality he has, the vision he has, the experience he has in the world, playing in the top level, he can push Fluminense to compete in a good level,” said Kleberson.

At the other end of the age spectrum, the 18-year-old Estevao Willian has been bought by Chelsea and will link up with them after playing for Palmeiras in the United States. “I am really curious how he is going to go in the Premier League because he has a lot of potential,” added Kleberson.

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The teenager’s goals helped Palmeiras set the pace in the Brazilian Serie A. Flamengo then replaced them at the top but only temporarily, as the four teams headed to the United States will have games postponed. If European sides could be exhausted at the end of domestic campaigns, their South American counterparts have a different scenario. “Brazil always go to the World Cup with players from Brazil who are in the middle of their season,” said Kleberson; he speaks from experience after winning the 2002 tournament while at Atletico Paranaense.

Since then, still more leading South American players have headed for Europe. If the money from the Club World Cup could be transformative, Kleberson argued there is already money in Brazilian football. “They have a lot of good budgets,” he said.

And he puts himself in the position of Brazilian footballers heading to the Club World Cup. “I don’t think they just think about the money,” he said. “Imagine for the players to play in this tournament, it is an amazing opportunity, it is a mini World Cup, you can get close to the players you are probably never going to see again. It is really cool for the players.”

Kleberson was speaking ahead of the upcoming FIFA Club World Cup 2025. You can sign up to DAZN to watch every Club World Cup game for free