 In December 2013, "The Times" reported that he had considered representing England at international level, however he decided against it.He was not eligible for England as he had earlier represented Brazil in 2007 at U17 level in a FIFA-recognised "official competition", meaning that the only national teams he could choose between would be Brazil and Portugal, the nations he was eligible to represent at the time he played in the 2007 South American Under-17 Football Championship.Along with his brother Fábio, Rafael has been praised for his energetic style, and has been described as an "excellent footballer" by Sir Alex Ferguson.