Brazilian World Cup veteran Kleberson has been pretty much a bust for Philadelphia this year. There really is no other way to spin it – even though manager John Hackworth kept doing just that.
Kleberson just could not get on the field. He wasn’t fit. Or he wasn’t healthy. Or he just wasn’t agile enough at his advanced age (relatively speaking, of course) to get the job done. A Designated Player in Major League Soccer who cannot get on the field is a fiasco for any club.
Or, he was a fiasco. Now we can all debate about whether one moment, just one massive goal, is enough to justify what the Union is paying him this year. Because it really was powerfully meaningful and dramatic goal.
Kleberson’s free kick in stoppage time Saturday was the difference in a 1-0 win over Toronto – and it was the goal that just may get Philadelphia into the playoffs.
We’re pretty safe in saying this if Hackworth’s men can, in fact, fight their way into the post-season: they wouldn’t have gotten their without his right-footed beauty at PPL Park.
Oh, Kleberson’s 95th minute strike came with his team a man down. Fabinho had been ejected in the 77th minute.
Here is Kleberson’s goal:
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