New York Red Bull are keen to sign Brazilian defender Clebao on loan for the rest of the season.

Red Bull general manager Erik Soler told The Post that the club was keen to secure the services of the centre-half who has played with Uniao Sao Joao Araras in the Campeonato Paulista Serie A2 in Brazil.

"We will see if we can do a loan deal for the rest of the season, to secure our central defense a little bit more. We believe that he could be a good option,'' said Solerof the little known Brazilian who has been trialling with New York.

"We're discussing it. We think he can be something because he's got a very physical presence. He's a defender; he keeps it very nice and easy when he has the ball. But he's a very strong, big guy. When you look at our team we need more depth because of suspensions, you have Carlos (Mendes) who has really been injured. He's coming back but you never know how long it's going to last.

"(Roy) Miller, (Mike) Petke is not 18 years anymore, and he's playing and working hard. Tim Ream is of course a rookie. So we need a little bit more depth at that position. Kevin (Goldthwaite) has been out for more than 12 months; we can't count on him.''