José Clayton

José Cláyton Menezes Ribeiro ( ; born 21 March 1974), known as José Clayton or just Clayton, is a Tunisian former professional football who played as a left-back.

Born in Brazil, he became a naturalised Tunisian citizen, and represented their national football team.

Career Born in Brazil, Clayton spent a large part of his club career in Tunisia playing for Étoile du Sahel and Espérance de Tunis.

He had a brief spell with Sakaryaspor in the Turkish Süper Lig. He also spent time with Qatari-based side Al Sadd. He won the Q-League title in 2006. In 2006, he left Al Sadd for Turkish club Sakaryaspor.

International career Clayton became a naturalized citizen in time for the 1998 FIFA World Cup. He played for Tunisia twice in that tournament, as well as one match in 2002.

He was an over-age player on the Tunisian 2004 Olympic football team that exited in the first round, finishing third in Group C, behind group and gold medal winners Argentina and runners-up Australia. He was part of the squad that won the 2004 African Cup of Nations.

He made 39 appearances scoring four goals for Tunisia.

Career statistics Scores and results list Tunisia's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Clayton goal.

Personal life Born in Brazil, Clayton spent most of his career in Tunisia, where he converted to Islam and lives, marrying a woman from Sousse. He obtained Tunisian citizenship in 1998.

Honours Tunisia Africa Cup of Nations: 2004