Gilberto da Silva Melo Biography | Gilberto da Silva Melo News

Description

Gilberto, full name Gilberto da Silva Melo, (born April 25, 1976 in Rio de Janeiro) is a football player from Brazil.

Gilberto is a midfielder with Tottenham Hotspur and the Brazilian national team, although he has played left back for the majority of his career. Gilberto's brothers, Nélio and Nildeson de Mello, are also football players.

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Career

Club Career
Having started his career in his native Brazil, playing for América FC, Flamengo and Cruzeiro, Ronaldo recommended him to Italian Serie A club Inter, who responded by buying him. However, he soon left for Vasco da Gama. After spells with Grêmio and São Caetano, Gilberto returned to Europe in 2004 with Hertha BSC Berlin.

Gilberto signed for Tottenham Hotspur from Hertha on 31 January 2008. After an initial period out injured, he made his Spurs debut against PSV Eindhoven in the UEFA Cup on 6 March 2008, but was replaced by Jamie O'Hara at half-time, after he had made a mistake that allowed PSV to score the game's only goal. Spurs manager Juande Ramos stated after the match that Gilberto was substituted not because of the error, but rather because he is still recovering from his calf injury. Nevertheless, in playing, he became the first Brazilian to play for Spurs at first-team level, with their previous Brazilian players Rodrigo Defendi and Diego Bortolozzo only featuring in the reserve team.In Spurs' next game, Gilberto came on as a substitute to score the team's third goal in a 4-0 win over West Ham United in the Premier League.

Gilberto played his first full Spurs match against Bolton Wanderers at White Hart Lane on 26th April 2008.

International Career
He played for Brazil in the 2006 FIFA World Cup in Germany and scored against Japan in the group stages, his first goal for the national side, having made his debut for the team against Nigeria on 11 June 2003.

Club Career Having started his career in his native <a href='/Teams/Brazil'>Brazil</a>, playing for América FC, <a href='/Teams/Flamengo'>Flamengo</a> and <a href='/Teams/Cruzeiro'>Cruzeiro</a>, <a href='/Players/Ronaldo_1'>Ronaldo</a> recommended him to Italian Serie A club <a href='/Teams/Inter'>Inter</a>, who responded by buying him. However, he soon left for <a href='/Teams/Vasco_da_Gama_1'>Vasco da Gama</a>. After spells with Grêmio and São Caetano, Gilberto returned to Europe in 2004 with <a href='/Teams/Hertha_Berlin'>Hertha BSC</a> Berlin.Gilberto signed for <a href='/Teams/Tottenham'>Tottenham Hotspur</a> from Hertha on 31 January 2008. After an initial period out injured, he made his Spurs debut against <a href='/Teams/PSV_Eindhoven'>PSV Eindhoven</a> in the UEFA Cup on 6 March 2008, but was replaced by <a href='/Players/Jamie_O\Hara'>Jamie O'Hara</a> at half-time, after he had made a mistake that allowed PSV to score the game's only goal. Spurs manager Juande Ramos stated after the match that Gilberto was substituted not because of the error, but rather because he is still recovering from his calf injury. Nevertheless, in playing, he became the first Brazilian to play for Spurs at first-team level, with their previous Brazilian players <a href='/Players/Rodrigo_Defendi'>Rodrigo Defendi</a> and <a href='/Players/Diego_Bortolozzo'>Diego Bortolozzo</a> only featuring in the reserve team.In Spurs' next game, Gilberto came on as a substitute to score the team's third goal in a 4-0 win over <a href='/Teams/West_Ham'>West Ham United</a> in the Premier League.Gilberto played his first full Spurs match against <a href='/Teams/Bolton'>Bolton Wanderers</a> at White Hart Lane on 26th April 2008.International Career He played for Brazil in the 2006 FIFA World Cup in <a href='/Teams/Germany'>Germany</a> and scored against <a href='/Teams/Japan'>Japan</a> in the group stages, his first goal for the national side, having made his debut for the team against <a href='/Teams/Nigeria'>Nigeria</a> on 11 June 2003.

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