Weligton Robson Pena de Oliveira, known simply as Weligton, is a Brazilian retired footballer who played as a central defender. He started playing professional football already well in his 20s, and spent the vast majority of his career with Málaga. He also competed in Portugal and Switzerland.
Football career
Born in Fernandópolis, São Paulo, Weligton started his professional career with Paraná Clube at the age of already 23, joining Portugal's F.C. Penafiel on 13 August 2003 with the club in the second division. After helping it achieve promotion to the Primeira Liga, he was an automatic first-choice for a further two seasons, with relegation befalling in 2006. Subsequently, Weligton signed with Grasshopper Club Zürich. After just one season in Switzerland, he was loaned to Spanish second level side Málaga CF, and was an essential defensive unit in another career promotion, only missing four league games out of 42; on 18 June 2008, the move was made permanent as he penned a four-year deal, and he scored his first goal for the Andalusians on 17 May of the following year against Sporting de Gijón, in a 1–2 away loss. An undisputed starter again in 2009–10, Weligton suffered a serious ankle injury on 14 March 2010 in a 0–1 loss at UD Almería, going on to miss the rest of the campaign. He made his 100th league appearance for the club on 16 October, alongside teammate Apoño, in a 1–4 home defeat against Real Madrid. After the summer signing of Joris Mathijsen, Weligton found himself more often than not as a substitute. His first league appearance in 2011–12 was on 11 December 2011, in a 1−1 home draw against CA Osasuna; on 15 May 2012, he renewed his contract for a further year. In the 2013 pre-season, Weligton broke his collarbone in a friendly with Aston Villa after a shoulder barge from opposing player Christian Benteke. He was sidelined for several weeks, and on 8 October he agreed to a further two-year extension to keep him at the La Rosaleda Stadium until June 2015. Weligton missed the vast majority of the 2016–17 season, due to a meniscus injury to his right knee. In May 2017, the 37-year-old announced his retirement from football.
