| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Képler Laveran Lima Ferreira | ||
| Date of birth | 26 February 1983 | ||
| Place of birth | Maceió, Brazil | ||
| Height | 1.87 m (6 ft 2 in) | ||
| Playing position | Centre back | ||
| Club information | |||
| Current club | Real Madrid | ||
| Number | 3 | ||
| Youth career | |||
| 1995–2001 | Corinthians-AL | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps† | (Gls)† |
| 2001–2002 | Marítimo B | 10 | (1) |
| 2002–2004 | Marítimo | 63 | (3) |
| 2004–2007 | Porto | 64 | (6) |
| 2007– | Real Madrid | 94 | (3) |
| National team‡ | |||
| 2007– | Portugal | 37 | (2) |
| * Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 21:04, 17 December 2011 (UTC). † Appearances (Goals). |
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Képler Laveran Lima Ferreira (born 26 February 1983), commonly known as Pepe, is a Brazilian-born Portuguese footballer who plays for Real Madrid in La Liga, mainly as a central defender.
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Born in Maceió, Alagoas, Pepe started playing football with local Sport Club Corinthians Alagoano. At the age of 18, alongside teammate Ezequias, he moved to Portugal and signed with C.S. Marítimo in the island of Madeira, spending the vast majority of his first season with the B team.
Definitely promoted to the main squad for the 2002–03 season, under Russian manager Anatoliy Byshovets, Pepe rarely missed a match, playing in several positions, but was most regularly deployed as an attacking midfielder.
During the pre-season of 2003–04, Pepe was given permission to train with Sporting Club de Portugal for two weeks, after which a deal could be negotiated for his transfer. However, neither club could agree on terms and the move broke down, with the player returning to help Marítimo finish sixth and qualify to the UEFA Cup, having contributed with one goal in 30 games.
During the summer of 2004, Pepe signed with Portuguese first division giants F.C. Porto for €1 million plus three players: Tonel, Evaldo, and Antonielton Ferreira. A clause in the agreement also stated that Marítimo would receive 20% of any future transfer fee.
In his first season, with Spanish coach Víctor Fernández at the helm, Pepe was mostly used as a backup, playing under veterans Pedro Emanuel, Jorge Costa, and utility defender Ricardo Costa. However, in the following year, under the guidance of Co Adriaanse, he had a breakthrough season, establishing himself as one of the best defenders in the domestic competition: the Dutch often chose a 3–4–3 offensive system, with the Brazilian often pitched as the only natural stopper; Porto eventually won back-to-back leagues and the 2006 domestic cup.
On 10 July 2007, Real Madrid signed Pepe to a five-year contract, for a fee of €30 million.[1] On 15 March 2008, he scored the only (own) goal in a 1–0 away loss against Deportivo de La Coruña.[2] Eight months later, he was involved in a fight during training with teammate Javier Balboa.[3] The defender would be nonetheless called-up for Real's next match, whereas the winger was not. As the Merengues were eventually crowned La Liga champions, he delivered a Man of the match performance in a 1–0 win at FC Barcelona, almost single-handedly stopping the opposition's attacks.[4]
Pepe would be constantly hampered by injuries throughout 2008–09. Furthemore, on 21 April 2009, he was involved in an incident with Getafe CF's Javier Casquero: with the score at 2–2 and only a few minutes to play, he brought down the midfielder in the penalty area, being subsequently sent off. He then proceeded to kick the fallen opponent twice, once on his shin and once on his lower back. When being pulled away from Casquero, he also pushed his head into the turf and stamped on him several times. In the ensuing melee he also struck another Getafe player, Juan Albin, in the face. Eventually he received a 10-game ban, which effectively ended his season.[5]
During the 2009–10 season, Pepe returned to claim his place back in the starting line-ups. On 4 October 2009, he scored his first goal in the league, against Sevilla FC at the Estadio Ramón Sánchez Pizjuán, heading home from a Guti free kick in a 1–2 loss. On 12 December, however, during a game at Valencia CF (2–3 win), he landed awkwardly following an aerial challenge, and was stretchered off the pitch in the dying minutes of the first half. Scans later showed that he ruptured his right knee's anterior cruciate ligament,[6] going on to miss the rest of the season and jeopardizing his FIFA World Cup chances.
In 2010–11, Pepe was joined at Real Madrid by countrymen Ricardo Carvalho and manager José Mourinho, pairing up with Carvalho to form one of the most efficient defensive sectors in the league. On 2 October 2010, Diario AS published an article where the player was reportedly open to leave the club on a Bosman transfer.[7] According to the newspaper, "when he signed for Real Madrid in 2007, he sacrificed a part of his salary to pay for his huge transfer fee. This made him one of the lowest earners at the club, making €1.8 million a year.[8] Again, he missed several games due to injury (calf)[9] and, after exhausting negotiations,[10] finally put pen to paper on a new contract, renewing his link to the club until 2015.[11]
Pepe spent the final stretch of the season appearing as a defensive midfielder, as Real Madrid faced Barcelona four times in less than one month. On 27 April 2011, in the UEFA Champions League semi-final first leg, he was sent off for a controversial late challenge on Daniel Alves, in an eventual 0–2 home loss.[12]
On 12 July 2011, Pepe extended his contract again, until 2016.[13] On 6 November, he broke the 1–1 home draw against CA Osasuna, in an eventual 7–1 win.[14]
Pepe never represented his native Brazil in any youth category. He received Portuguese citizenship in August 2007 and, on the 30th, was named in the Portuguese squad for the first time, in view of a UEFA Euro 2008 qualifier against Poland.[15] An injury while training for his club prevented the debut for his adopted country, which would materialize almost four months later, in Portugal's last qualifier against Finland (0–0 home draw) on 21 November.
In the tournament's final stages, Pepe played in all of the national side's matches, scoring once in a 2–0 win against Turkey on 7 June 2008.[16] Portugal eventually exited in the quarterfinals.
During the 2010 FIFA World Cup qualifying campaign, Pepe was often used as a defensive midfielder by national coach Carlos Queiroz. After his serious knee injury while playing for Real Madrid, he was eventually selected for the squad that participated in the finals in South Africa, appearing against Brazil in the group stage (0–0) and eventual champions Spain in the round of 16 (0–1 loss).
| Goal | Date | Venue | Opponent | Score | Result | Competition |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | 7 June 2008 | Stade de Genève, Geneve, Switzerland | Turkey | 1–0 | 2–0 | UEFA Euro 2008 |
| 2. | 9 September 2009 | Stadium Puskás Ferenc, Budapest, Hungary | Hungary | 0–1 | 0–1 | 2010 World Cup qualification |
| Club | Season | League | Cup1 | Europe | Total | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Marítimo | 2001–02 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 |
| 2002–03 | 29 | 2 | 1 | 0 | – | 30 | 2 | ||
| 2003–04 | 30 | 1 | 2 | 0 | – | 32 | 1 | ||
| Total | 63 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 66 | 3 | |
| Porto | 2004–05 | 15 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 21 | 1 |
| 2005–06 | 24 | 1 | 4 | 0 | 5 | 2 | 33 | 3 | |
| 2006–07 | 25 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 8 | 0 | 34 | 4 | |
| Total | 64 | 6 | 6 | 0 | 18 | 2 | 88 | 8 | |
| Real Madrid | 2007–08 | 19 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 25 | 0 |
| 2008–09 | 26 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 32 | 0 | |
| 2009–10 | 10 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 6 | 0 | 17 | 1 | |
| 2010–11 | 26 | 1 | 4 | 0 | 8 | 0 | 38 | 1 | |
| 2011–12 | 13 | 1 | 4 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 20 | 1 | |
| Total | 94 | 3 | 13 | 0 | 25 | 0 | 132 | 3 | |
| Career total | 221 | 12 | 22 | 0 | 43 | 2 | 286 | 14 | |
1 Includes Supercopa de España
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