Rafael Pereira da Silva is one half of a pair of Brazilian twins who joined Manchester United aged just seventeen in January 2008. He and his twin brother Fabio had been on the books of Rio de Janeiro based club Fluminense since they were eleven years old, but had yet to represent the first team.
They had both, however, already won caps for the Brazilian national U-17 team and represented their country at the 2007 FIFA U-17 World Cup in South Korea. Indeed Fabio captained the team and scored three times in their opening Group B wins against New Zealand (7-0) and North Korea (6-1) before they lost 2-1 to England in the group decider. They were eliminated in the second round with a 1-0 defeat to Ghana.
Rafael integrated the senior Manchester United squad for the start of the 2008-09 season and Sir Alex Ferguson handed him his debut in a pre-season friendly win against his son Darren Ferguson’s Peterborough United. Six days later he was on the bench at Wembley for the Community Shield. He remained an unused substitute during the 0-0 draw against Portsmouth but the subsequent 3-1 win on penalties gave him his first medal in English football. Plenty more were to follow.
As reigning English and European champions, United were competing on many fronts that season. Rafael wasn’t involved in the European Super Cup defeat to Zenit at the end of August, but by then he had already made his Premier League debut. He soon began to get regular first team action, competing with thirty-three-year-old club captain Gary Neville for the right-back spot.
Trophy-laden first season
Rafael went on to make sixteen Premier League appearances that season, including twelve starts, as United retained their title finishing two points ahead of Chelsea. His first United goal came as a late consolation in a 2-1 defeat to Arsenal at the Emirates Stadium in early November. United won their Champions League group in the Autumn and then travelled to Japan just before Christmas to play in the FIFA Club World Cup. Rafael was a starter in the final against LDU Quito of Ecuador and helped keep a clean sheet despite Nemanja Vidic’s red card just after half time. A Wayne Rooney goal gave United a 1-0 win and the right to call themselves world champions.
They continued to go from strength to strength in the second half of the season, winning the League Cup at Wembley with a penalty shoot-out victory against Spurs, although Rafael missed the final due to an ankle ligament injury, having featured in all the previous rounds of the competition. He was fit again by mid-April, in time for the title run-in and final stages of the other cups as United chased an unprecedented quintuple.
Wembley woes follow Wembley win
Back at Wembley, Rafael played the full 120 minutes of the goalless FA Cup semi-final against David Moyes’ Everton. It was the first time that he and his brother Fabio started a match together for United, but unfortunately they suffered the heartbreak of a penalty shoot-out defeat. They bounced back from that disappointment with a two-legged dismissal of Arsenal in the Champions League semi-finals to set up a final against the mighty Barcelona at the Stadio Olimpico in Rome. Irishman John O’Shea got the nod ahead of Rafael for the right-back slot against Barça, so he had to watch from the bench as his team mates went down 2-0.
Nevertheless, it was a fine first season for the Brazilian, with 28 appearances across all competitions and four trophies in the bag. He was also shortlisted for the PFA Young Player of the Year award, but ended up missing out to Aston Villa’s Ashley Young, who would soon become his team mate at Old Trafford.
Villa vanquished and League Cup retained
The 2009-10 season proved to be much less successful for both Rafael and Manchester United. Injuries and form restricted him to only sixteen appearances across all competitions as United failed to retain their title, finishing a point behind Chelsea. There was, however, a comic case of mistaken identity when his twin brother, Fabio, was booked for a foul that Rafael had committed by in a League Cup match against Barnsley.
That League Cup campaign was the highlight of the season and Rafael was in the starting line-up for the two-legged semi-final victory over rivals Manchester City and for the final itself against Aston Villa. Back at Wembley once again, United fell behind early on but quickly drew level through Michael Owen before Wayne Rooney scored a second half winner. Rafael was replaced by club captain Gary Neville at right-back just after the hour mark.
An up and down two years
Yet another trophy followed in the 2010-11 season as United recaptured the Premier League title, finishing a resounding nine points ahead of Chelsea. On a personal level, it was a much more consistent campaign for Rafael during which he managed 28 appearances for the Red Devils and was included in the Brazil squad for the first time by coach Mano Menezes. United made it all the way to the UEFA Champions League final against Barcelona at Wembley Stadium, but Rafael wasn’t included in the squad for the occasion, having only recently returned from a hamstring injury. He had to watch the 3-1 defeat from the stands as his brother was preferred for the right-back slot.
Having turned 21 during the inter-season break, Rafael featured as a substitute in the 2011 Community Shield win against Manchester City (3-2), but didn’t make a Premier League appearance until New Year’s Eve. He also sat out the whole of United’s dismal 2011-12 Champions League campaign. He got a bit more game time during the second half of the season but only mustered 18 appearances in all competitions. The title race went down to the wire, but United were dramatically pipped by Manchester City on the final day and had to relinquish the trophy.
Olympic Medallist in London
Less than a fortnight after that disappointment, however, Rafael had the honour of making his debut for the Brazil national team in a 3-1 friendly win against Denmark at the Volksparkstadion in Hamburg. He played the last 18 minutes as a substitute for Danilo. Two weeks later, he got his second (and final) cap in a friendly against Argentina at the MetLife Stadium in New Jersey. This time he was in the starting line-up but ended up on the wrong end of a 4-3 thriller.
Despite that match marking the end of his career with the full Brazilian national team, Rafael did go on to enjoy more international football that summer as he was included in the Brazil squad for the London 2012 Olympic Games. Officially an U-23 tournament, each country was allowed to select three over-age players. With Thiago Silva, Marcelo and Hulk as their over-age picks and rising stars such as Neymar and Lucas Moura in the squad, Brazil were hotly tipped as one of the pre-tournament favourites.
Rafael started every match for the Seleção and even scored their opening goal of the competition in a 3-2 win against Egypt at the Millennium Stadium in Cardiff. They progressed serenely to the final at Wembley, where they faced Mexico, but it proved to be a bridge too far. A brace from Oribe Peralta put the Mexicans two goals ahead and Brazil could only manage a late response through Hulk, so they had to settle for the silver medals.
A third league title
A new four-year contract and the number two shirt vacated by the now retired Gary Neville were the reward for the maturing Rafael ahead of the 2012-13 season. This was the first campaign during which he really made the right-back slot his own, with forty appearances across all competitions and three goals. It was Sir Alex Ferguson’s last season in charge of Manchester United and he masterminded their charge to the title, finishing eleven points clear of Manchester City. That was to be Rafael’s third and final Premier League winner’s medal.
The following season under David Moyes was a disappointment with United failing to mount a serious defence of their title and slumping to a seventh place finish. Rafael suffered a series of minor injuries that restricted him to just 29 appearances. The 2014-15 campaign was even worse from his point of view as a groin strain followed by a fractured fibula and then a fractured rib kept him on the sidelines for prolonged periods under new manager Louis Van Gaal.
Initially Rafael did appear to be part of the Dutch manager’s plans, and he was given a run of six consecutive Premier League starts in September and October before the injuries took their toll. Briefly fit again over the festive period, he made his final United start in an FA Cup Third Round tie at Yeovil Town before another two month hiatus. His final United appearance was as a late substitute in a 3-0 Premier League win against Tottenham at Old Trafford on the 15th of March 2015.
Old Trafford Exit: Destination Lyon
The Ecuadorian winger Luis Antonio Valencia had by now been converted to a right-back and was ahead of Rafael in the pecking order so, with one year remaining on his contract, the Brazilian was allowed to leave the club in the summer of 2015. Having made 170 appearances and scored five goals for Manchester United over the course of seven seasons, he signed for Olympique Lyonnais for €3.2 million a few days after his 25th birthday.
Lyon manager Hubert Fournier put Rafael straight into the first team for the opening Ligue 1 fixture of the season, against Lorient at the Stade de Gerland. He played in his natural right-back position and helped his new team to a clean sheet in a goalless draw. A hamstring injury caused him to miss a few matches in September and October but he came back with a bang, scoring his first goal for Lyon on his return in a 1-1 draw at Monaco.
Despite Rafael’s efforts, Lyon struggled during the first half of the season, finishing bottom of their Champions League group and were languishing in ninth place in Ligue 1 at Christmas. As a consequence, Fournier received his marching orders and was replaced as manager by Bruno Genesio.
That wasn’t the only major change at Lyon during the winter break. The newly constructed Groupama Stadium was ready for the start of 2016, so the team had a shiny new home for the second half of the season. Unfortunately, injuries kept Rafael out of both the final match at Gerland and the opening game at the Groupama. He was back in action by late February and helped Lyon put together a ten-game unbeaten run to secure second place in Ligue 1 and Champions League qualification.
Life in Ligue 1
The 2016-17 season would prove to be Rafael’s most consistent campaign in a Lyon shirt. He enjoyed a largely injury free season and racked up 41 appearances across all competitions. It wasn’t a particularly memorable domestic campaign, with Lyon finishing fourth and exiting both cup competitions in the early rounds, but they did perform impressively in Europe. A third place finish in their Champions League Group saw them drop into the Europa League where they swept aside AZ Alkmaar, Roma and Besiktas before narrowly losing out to Peter Bosz’s Ajax in the semi-finals.
There was increased competition for Rafael’s first-team place in the 2017-18 season following the arrival of Dutch right-back Kenny Tete from Ajax. As a consequence, Rafael found himself on the bench for much of the first half of the season, before regaining his starting place in January. In the end, he made a respectable 31 appearances in all competitions as Lyon finished third to get back into the Champions League, but failed to make any impact in the cups.
The 2018-19 season began well enough for Rafael. He was a regular starter in the first team once again and even made a triumphant return to Manchester on matchday one of the Champions League group phase. He kept Raheem Sterling quiet in a memorable 2-1 win for Lyon at the Etihad Stadium, which set them on course to qualify for the knockout stage.
Facing Fabio: égalité, fraternité
On the 29th of September, a small piece of history was made when he came up against his twin brother Fabio for the first time in a competitive match. Fabio had recently signed for Nantes and was playing at right-back for them when they visited the Groupama Stadium for a Ligue 1 encounter. Rafael started on the bench but entered the fray in the 75th minute with the score at 1-1. The twins shared the pitch for nineteen minutes before Fabio was himself replaced in stoppage time, and it finished a goal apiece.
Rafael’s run in the team came to an abrupt halt in late November when he was sent off for a rash challenge on Saint-Étienne’s Yann M’Vila in the 72nd minute of a 1-0 derby win at the Groupama Stadium. He was subsequently injured and didn’t feature again until the 3rd of March. In fact, he only featured in the starting line-up three times in the second half of the season, bringing his total to a meagre 18 appearances (including eleven starts) in Ligue 1 for 2018-19, as Lyon again finished third. He did, however, sign a two-year contract extension in the close season.
Covid curtails chaotic campaign
The 2019-20 season would prove to be Rafael’s swansong at Lyon and it began with the club in a state of flux. Bruno Genesio had moved on from his post as manager at the start of the summer and his surprise replacement was the Brazilian Sylvinho. It was Sylvinho’s first job as a head coach and his inexperience was quickly exposed. A poor run of form in Ligue 1 meant that the pressure was mounting ahead of a trip to Saint-Étienne for the derby in early October.
Rafael had yet to feature in the team under his compatriot prior to that fateful trip to the Stade Geoffroy-Guichard, but he was handed a start as a right wing-back against Les Verts. Lyon were still holding on to a goalless draw when he was replaced with Kenny Tete in the 70th minute, but they suffered the last minute hammer blow of a Saint-Étienne winner that sealed the fate of Sylvinho after only eleven games in charge.
Rudi Garcia was swiftly brought in as a replacement and he soon steadied the ship, with Rafael getting a run of appearances in the league. Lyon had been slowly but surely climbing the table before the Covid-19 pandemic sent France into lockdown and Ligue 1 was suspended after matchday 28 on the 8th of March 2020. Controversially, and in contrast to most other European countries, the French authorities ultimately decided to abandon the season at that point rather than complete the schedule at a later date. Therefore, Lyon were denied the chance to resume their climb up towards the European qualification spots and had to settle for seventh place in the frozen table.
Leaving Lyon: almost a glorious finale
Fortunately the cup competitions did eventually recommence and Lyon had been faring much better in knockout football that season. They reached the semi-finals of the Coupe de France where they faced PSG in what turned out to be Rafael’s final home appearance for the club. Sadly, they were hammered 5-1 on that occasion but they did still have the final of the last ever Coupe de la Ligue and the last sixteen of the Champions League to look forward to.
After a hiatus of four and a half months, a lull in the pandemic at the end of July finally enabled the resumption of competitive football. PSG were the opponents again for the final of the Coupe de la Ligue with only 5,000 spectators allowed into the Stade de France. Rafael started on the bench, but came on for Léo Dubois in the 86th minute with the game still goalless. He helped preserve the clean sheet through extra time and take the game towards penalties before receiving a very harsh red card for a foul on Ángel Di María in the 119th minute.
Unfortunately Lyon lost the resultant penalty shoot-out 6-5 and it proved to be Rafael’s final appearance in Lyon colours. A disappointing way to end his five years at the club. There was still the small matter of the Champions League final stages. Lyon saw off Juventus and Manchester City before valiantly losing to Bayern Munich in the semi finals, but Rafael remained on the bench during those encounters. Therefore, he signed off from Lyon with a grand total of 139 appearances and two goals.
Going to Turkey and returning to Old Trafford
In September 2020 he moved to the Turkish capital, to join reigning Süper Lig champions İstanbul Başakşehir on a free transfer. He signed a two-year contract with the option for a third year. Manager Okan Buruk handed Rafael his debut as a late substitute in the opening Süper Lig match of the season against Hatayspor. He went on to make a total of 21 league appearances despite a series of injuries that greatly restricted his availability in the second half of the season.
Başakşehir finished a disappointing twelfth in the league and didn’t fare any better in their first ever Champions League group phase participation. They were drawn into a tough group alongside RB Leipzig, PSG and Manchester United and unsurprisingly finished bottom of the table. The double-header against United in November 2020 was the first time that Rafael had faced his former club since departing in 2015 and he played the entirety of both matches.
The first, at home in the Başakşehir Fatih Terim Stadium, but behind closed doors due to the ongoing pandemic, produced a 2-1 victory for Başakşehir and ultimately cost United a place in the knock-out phase of the Champions League. Three weeks later, Ole Gunnar Solskjær’s team got a measure of revenge with a 4-1 win on Rafael’s return to Old Trafford, also behind closed doors.
Botafogo bound
Rafael made his final appearance for Başakşehir in a 0-0 draw away at Sivasspor in May 2021 and terminated his contract at the end of the season to return to Brazil and sign for Botafogo. It was a dream move for the thirty-one year old as he’d always hoped to one day represent the club that he supported as a boy in Rio de Janeiro.
At the time, Botafogo were languishing in Série B, having finished rock bottom of Série A the previous season and been relegated. When Rafael arrived, they were half way through the campaign and occupied fourth place in the table. He didn’t get much playing time (just four substitute appearances) in what remained of the season, as the club embarked on a ten game unbeaten run to clinch top spot and an immediate return to the top flight.
Rafael made his first start for Botafogo in the opening game of the 2022 season, a Carioca championship match away at Boavista SC. However, disaster struck just before half time when he ruptured the Achilles tendon in his left foot in a tussle with Boavista defender Diogo Rangel. He underwent surgery that evening at the Barra da Tijuca hospital in Rio and faced at least six months on the sidelines.
Meanwhile, there were some major developments in the boardroom at Botafogo with American businessman John Textor buying the club in February 2022. The Crystal Palace co-owner would soon also add Lyon and RWD Molenbeek to his portfolio of clubs in the Eagle Football Group and played a major role in reviving the fortunes of ‘Fogo’ over the following two years.
Injury woes worsen
The injury kept Rafael out of the remainder of the Campeonato Carioca campaign as well as the Copa do Brasil and the first half of the Série A season. He eventually returned in late August and managed seven appearances as Botafogo finished in a respectable eighth place. 2023 began in a much more positive vein, with Rafael fit and playing regularly in the Campeonato Carioca and then the Taça Rio, which they won 7-3 on aggregate against Audax in early April.
Things were still going well in late June. Botafogo had qualified unbeaten from their Copa Sudamericana group and were on a great run of form in Série A where they sat seven points clear at the top of the table after twelve rounds. However, matchday 13 proved to be unlucky for Rafael as he again fell victim to a serious injury.
Botafogo faced their bitter cross-town rivals Vasco da Gama at the Estádio Olímpico Nilton Santos with Rafael picked in his customary right-back slot by manager Cláudio Caçapa. The game was still deadlocked at 0-0 when Rafael went down in the 31st minute with what was later diagnosed as a ruptured patellar tendon in his left knee. He underwent surgery the following day but faced the prospect of another eight months on the sidelines. During his absence, Botafogo’s title challenge fell away and they eventually finished 5th in Série A.
Retirement beckons
Rafael returned to the Botafogo matchday squad in March 2024, having missed the entirety of the Carioca championship group phase. He was on the bench for the Taça Rio semi-final second leg and then played in both legs of the final as Fogo beat Boavista 6-0 on aggregate to retain their trophy. Three days later, he made his first ever Copa Libertadores appearance, coming off the bench for the last eleven minutes of a 3-1 home defeat to Junior of Colombia in the opening round of the group phase.
In an interview with the Botafogo club podcast in the week following that match, Rafael announced that he would be retiring from football at the end of the season. He cited the huge physical and mental toll that his injury problems had taken over the previous couple of years as the main reason for hanging up his boots. Ironically, he sustained a recurrence of his knee injury just a few days after giving that interview. This time his left patella was itself fractured and he was absent for another eight months.
Glorious Goodbye to ‘O Glorioso’
Sadly, he had to watch from the sidelines as Botafogo enjoyed the best season in their 120 year history. They won the Copa Libertadores for the first time ever, beating Clube Atlético Mineiro 3-1 in the final at the Estadio Monumental in Buenos Aires and then they clinched the Série A title, finishing six points clear of Palmeiras. Fittingly, Rafael was brought off the bench in the 90th minute of the final Série A match of the season to make a farewell appearance in front of the Botafogo fans in the Estádio Olímpico Nilton Santos. It was his only Série A action of the season, but he still managed to contribute to a dramatic finale as his team mate Gregore fired home in the second minute of stoppage time to turn a 1-1 draw into a 2-1 home win.
And so, after a career spanning more than sixteen years at the top level, the thirty-four year old fullback went out in a blaze of glory with two new additions to his palmarès. His injury woes may have restricted him to a paltry 40 appearances during his three and a half years with Botafogo, but they couldn’t prevent him from finally realising his boyhood dream of lifting a trophy with the team that he grew up supporting.
Legacy
Rafael will be remembered as a combative and energetic fullback, who loved to get forward and support the attack. He had the ability to dribble past an opponent and deliver a decent cross into the box, although his goal output could have been higher – he only managed eight in total. His defending could be slightly erratic at times and he was guilty of a number of rash challenges throughout his career that resulted in eleven red cards and eighty-nine bookings from his 387 senior appearances, as well as several penalties conceded. Nevertheless, the eight major honours that he collected along the way are testament to a distinguished career in the upper echelons of the global game.