Sean Klaiber
Full nameSean Desmond Klaiber[1]
Birth date31 July 1994 (age 32)
Birth placeNieuwegein, Netherlands
Height1.84 m
PositionRight-back
CurrentclubBrøndby
Clubnumber31
Youthclubs 1VVIJ
Youthyears 22005–2006
Youthclubs 2Ajax
Youthclubs 3JSV Nieuwegein
Youthclubs 4SV Geinoord
Youthyears 52007–2013
Youthclubs 5Utrecht
Years 12013–2020
Clubs 1Utrecht
Caps 1122
Goals 18
Years 22015
Clubs 2→ Dordrecht (loan)
Caps 212
Goals 22
Years 32016–2017
Clubs 3Jong Utrecht
Caps 37
Goals 30
Years 42020–2022
Clubs 4Ajax
Caps 415
Goals 40
Years 52022–2023
Clubs 5Utrecht
Caps 530
Goals 51
Years 62023–
Clubs 6Brøndby
Caps 662
Goals 64
Nationalyears 12013
Nationalteam 1Netherlands U20
Nationalcaps 11
Nationalgoals 10
Nationalyears 22015
Nationalteam 2Netherlands U21
Nationalcaps 24
Nationalgoals 20
Nationalyears 32021
Nationalteam 3Suriname
Nationalcaps 33
Nationalgoals 30
Club-update16:42, 22 May 2026 (UTC)

Sean Desmond Klaiber (born 31 July 1994) is a professional footballer who plays as a right-back for Danish Superliga club Brøndby. Born in the Netherlands, he represents the Suriname national team. He formerly played for Utrecht, Dordrecht and Ajax. He is a former Dutch youth international.[2]

Club career

Utrecht

Born in Nieuwegein, Klaiber played in the academies of VVIJ, Ajax, JSV Nieuwegein and SV Geinoord before joining the FC Utrecht youth academy in 2007.[3] On 29 October 2013, Klaiber made his first appearance for the Utrecht first team in an official match. That day, the Domstedelingen played in Werkendam against Kozakken Boys in the KNVB Cup; a match which ended in a 1–2 away win after extra time in which Klaiber made an appearance as a 116th minute substitute for Kai Heerings.[3] He made his debut in the Eredivisie some months later, on 23 February 2014, as a starter in a 1–0 win over FC Groningen.

During the second half of the 2014–15 season, Klaiber was loaned out to FC Dordrecht who also competed in the Eredivisie.[4] He made 12 appearances for the side in which he scored two goals, as they suffered relegation.

In the 2016–17 season, after returning from Dordrecht, Klaiber made seven appearances for the reserves, Jong FC Utrecht. The following season, he grew out to become a regular starter for the first team. He scored his first goal for Utrecht on 20 July 2017 in a UEFA Europa League qualifier against Maltese side Valletta, which ended in a 3–1 win.[3]

Ajax

On 1 October 2020, Klaiber signed a three-year contract with Ajax, with an optional additional year.[5] The move reunited him with his former Utrecht coach Erik ten Hag,[6] as he was set to replace Sergiño Dest at right back, after the latter had joined FC Barcelona some days earlier.[7]

On 18 October, he made his debut for Ajax as a substitute in the home match against sc Heerenveen. His first start for the club came on 24 October in a 13–0 win over VVV Venlo; an Eredivisie record.[8][9] During the season, Klaiber was set to compete with Noussair Mazraoui for the right back position.[10] On 27 October, Klaiber made his debut in the UEFA Champions League as a substitute during the away game against Italian club Atalanta.[11]

Return to Utrecht

On 29 August 2022, Klaiber returned to Utrecht and signed a three-year contract.[12] He made his return debut for the Domstedelingen on 2 September, replacing Hidde ter Avest in the 63rd minute and providing an assist 14 minutes later to Anastasios Douvikas' goal, helping the team to a 4–3 away victory against Fortuna Sittard.[13][14] On 20 October, he scored his first return goal for the club in a KNVB Cup win against Sportlust '46.[15] Three days later, he also scored for Utrecht in the Eredivisie, a deflected shot from distance giving Utrecht the 3–0 lead in an eventual 3–1 victory against Sparta Rotterdam.[16]

Brøndby

On 1 September 2023, Danish Superliga club Brøndby signed Klaiber for a reported fee of €1.1 million, on a two-year contract.[17][18][19] He made his debut for the club a few weeks later on 17 September in a 3–0 league win away against AGF.[20] Klaiber scored his first goals on 26 November, contributing to a 3–3 away draw against Lyngby.[21]

On 1 April 2024, Klaiber scored the winning goal in stoppage time in a 2–1 derby victory against Copenhagen away at Parken.[22]

In spring 2026 he was removed from first team by Steve Cooper together with Benjamin Tahirović, allegedly due to the manager deeming their behaviour unprofessional and disliking their reaction to not being picked for the starting 11.[23]

International career

Born in the Netherlands, Klaiber is of Surinamese descent.[24] Having played for the youth teams of the Netherlands, on 13 June 2021 it was announced that Klaiber had opted to represent Suriname internationally.[25] On 25 June he was called up to represent the team at the 2021 CONCACAF Gold Cup.[26]

On 12 July 2021, Klaiber made his debut in the group stage match against Jamaica. The match ended in a 2–0 loss, in Suriname's Gold Cup debut, which saw Klaiber being cautioned in the 25th minute.[27]

Career statistics

Club

[28]

Appearances and goals by club, season and competition
ClubSeasonLeagueNational cup[a]EuropeOtherTotal
DivisionAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoals
Utrecht2013–14Eredivisie201000—30
2014–15Eredivisie1000——10
2015–16Eredivisie17020——190
2016–17Eredivisie14010—4[b]0190
2017–18Eredivisie361106[c]13[b]0462
2018–19Eredivisie37220—4[b]0432
2019–20Eredivisie244502[c]0—314
2020–21Eredivisie2100——21
Total1338120811101649
Dordrecht (loan)2014–15Eredivisie122———122
Jong Utrecht2016–17Eerste Divisie70———70
Ajax2020–21Eredivisie150106[d]0—220
Utrecht2022–23Eredivisie30131—2[b]0352
2023–24Eredivisie20———20
Total32131—20372
Brøndby2023–24Danish Superliga23430——264
2024–25Danish Superliga260403[e]0—330
2025–26Danish Superliga130000000130
Total624703000724
Career total2611523117113031417
  1. ^ Includes KNVB Cup, Danish Cup
  2. ^ Appearances in Eredivisie Europa League play-offs
  3. ^ Appearances in UEFA Europa League
  4. ^ Three appearances in UEFA Champions League, three appearances in UEFA Europa League
  5. ^ Appearances in UEFA Conference League

International

[28]

Appearances and goals by national team and year
National teamYearAppsGoals
Suriname202130
Total30

Honours

Ajax[29]

Individual

References

  1. ^ "Sean Desmond Klaiber" (in Dutch). Eredivisie.nl. Archived from the original on 14 February 2022. Retrieved 14 February 2022.
  2. ^ "Sean Klaiber". Archived from the original on 28 September 2022. Retrieved 23 January 2021.
  3. ^ "9 Weetjes over 100 keer Sean Klaiber" (in Dutch). fcutrecht.nl. FC Utrecht. 26 January 2019. Archived 4 October 2020 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved 4 October 2020.
  4. ^ "FC Dordrecht haalt bij FC Utrecht derde versterking in januari op" (in Dutch). voetbalzone.nl. 6 January 2015. Retrieved 4 October 2020.
  5. ^ "Ajax signs Sean Klaiber". ajax.nl. Ajax. 1 October 2020. Archived 1 October 2020 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved 4 October 2020.
  6. ^ de Bont, Stef (30 September 2020). "Sean Klaiber kiest meer voor Erik ten Hag dan voor Ajax" (in Dutch). Voetbal International. Retrieved 4 October 2020.
  7. ^ "Ajax set to sign Sean Klaiber as Sergino Dest's replacement". Marca. 1 October 2020. Retrieved 4 October 2020.
  8. ^ "Opstellingen VVV en Ajax: Eerste basisplaats Klaiber, Post terug bij VVV" (in Dutch). soccernews.nl. 24 October 2020. Retrieved 23 November 2020.
  9. ^ "Ajax hammer VVV-Venlo in Eredivisie record 13-0 win". BBC. 24 October 2020. Retrieved 23 November 2020.
  10. ^ "Duidelijke boodschap voor Mazraoui na komst Klaiber" (in Dutch). soccernews.nl. 30 September 2020. Retrieved 23 November 2020.
  11. ^ "Champions League-debuut voor Sean Klaiber" (in Dutch). RTV Utrecht. 28 October 2020. Retrieved 23 November 2020.
  12. ^ "Sean Klaiber keert terug bij FC Utrecht" (in Dutch). Utrecht. 29 August 2022. Retrieved 29 August 2022.
  13. ^ "Fortuna Sittard – FC Utrecht 3:4 (Eredivisie 2022/2023, 5. Round)". WorldFootball.net. HEIM:SPIEL. Retrieved 2 September 2023.
  14. ^ Senden, Twan (2 September 2022). "FC Utrecht laat Fortuna in tumultueus duel zonder punten achter" (in Dutch). ZO-NWS. Retrieved 2 September 2023.
  15. ^ "FC Utrecht met enige moeite langs Sportlust'46, Sparta komt met de schrik vrij" (in Dutch). NOS. 20 October 2022. Retrieved 2 September 2023.
  16. ^ "Het Utrecht van Fraser stuit opmars Sparta, de oude club van Fraser" (in Dutch). NOS. 23 October 2022. Retrieved 2 September 2023.
  17. ^ "Brøndby IF skriver kontrakt med Sean Klaiber" (in Danish). Brøndby IF. 1 September 2023. Archived 2 September 2023 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved 2 September 2023.
  18. ^ Abolhosseini, Farzam (1 September 2023). "B.T. afslører: Brøndby betaler otte millioner kroner for Sean Klaiber" (in Danish). B.T.. Archived 1 September 2023 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved 2 September 2023.
  19. ^ Nelausen, Raymund (1 September 2023). "Officielt: Brøndby henter Utrecht-back" (in Danish). bold.dk. Retrieved 2 September 2023.
  20. ^ Bech, Malthe (17 September 2023). "BIF bænker Mensah og giver ny back debut mod AGF" (in Danish). bold.dk. Archived 1 April 2024 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved 1 April 2024.
  21. ^ Kargo, Frederik Josephsen (26 November 2023). "- Det er katastrofalt, siger Brøndby-profil" (in da-DK). TV 2 Sport. Archived 27 November 2023 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved 1 April 2024.
  22. ^ Halkier, Emil (1 April 2024). "Brøndby leverer stort comeback i derby mod FCK" (in da-DK). DR. Archived 1 April 2024 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved 1 April 2024.
  23. ^ Emil Bellaiche (18 March 2026). "Cooper har smidt to Brøndby-stjerner af holdet" (in Danish). tipsbladet. Retrieved 23 March 2026.
  24. ^ de Bruijn, Thijs (19 November 2019). "Zo kan het nationaal elftal van Suriname eruit gaan zien" (in Dutch). elfvoetbal.nl. ELF Voetbal. Retrieved 4 October 2020.
  25. ^ "Champions League-debuut voor Sean Klaiber" (in Dutch). ESPN. 13 June 2021. Retrieved 16 June 2021.
  26. ^ Surinamese Football Federation (25 June 2021). "The 2️⃣3️⃣ That Will Represent Us At The CONCACAF Gold Cup". No. 1408477656702664710. Retrieved 12 July 2021.
  27. ^ "Champions League-debuut voor Sean Klaiber" (in Dutch). AD. 13 July 2021. Retrieved 13 July 2021.
  28. ^
  29. ^ "Sean Klaiber - Career Honours". Soccerway.
  30. ^ "Neres' stoppage-time goal seals Dutch Cup win". Ajax website. 18 April 2021. Retrieved 18 April 2021.
  31. ^ "Månedens Hold i Superligaen – september" (in Danish). Tipsbladet. 3 October 2023. Retrieved 16 April 2024.