Ten things you should know about Keirrison

by Xaviniesta

1 - He was born as Keirrison de Souza Carneiro on December 3,1988 in Dourados, Brazil to former footballer father Adir, and mother Alzira.

2 - He was named Keirrison as a tribute to musician Jim Morrison of The Doors (he has an older brother Kimarrison). It became somewhat of a controversy within the family but his father was adamant: "No Joseph or John, his name will be Keirrison. It is best noted because I will not repeat it." He would later on admit he wrote down his son's name so he wouldn't forget.

3 - He and his father Adir own a football club and training centre called Centro de Futebol Keirrison (CFK-9). Based in Campo Grande, the club trains young talents and competes in state championships. Adir used to coach Brazilian club Centro Esportivo Nova Esperança (CENE) where Keirrison played as a youth player.

4 - Palmeiras team mate and former Barcelona player Edmilson compares him to Valencia player Fernando Morientes: "He would be a player like Morientes in good form, with more shooting and a bit more speed and acceleration. In front of the goal he is very calm. His shots are very strong, he plays very well with both feet and he is very good in the air." Watch some of his goals here.

5 - His footballing hero is former Barcelona player Romário whose first touch shooting he admires:"He played a simple brand of football, just like me. I do not spend much time thinking about what to do in the box. I like to shoot as fast as possible."

6 - Claiming to be a Barcelona fan since childhood, he had a special clause inserted into his contract with Traffic, the company that owns 80 per cent of his playing rights. The clause provided that while every other team would have to pay a 50 million euro buy-out clause, Barça would only have to pay 15 million.

7 - From his youth club CENE, he moved to Brazilian second division club Coritiba scoring 67 goals in 101 appearances for the club. He was league top scorer when Coritiba won the Série B championships in 2007.

8 - He suffered his worst injury on February 12, 2006 when a tackle left him with a raptured anterior cruciate ligament on the knee. After a 12-month recovery period, he returned and scored 2 goals against Portuguesa thus sealing Coritiba's return to the Brazilian first division. Watch the match highlights here.

9 - His 21 goals for Coritiba in the 2007-2008 season won him league top scorer honors, the youngest top scorer in the Campeonato Brasileiro Série A history.

10 - He has not been capped for the Brazilian national team but he once played in a friendly with the U-23 team in 2007.



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