From 1954 to 1965, during his professional period at Grêmio, he formed a solid midfield partnership with "the German" Elton. Milton himself calls himself the "workhorse" of a team that won five consecutive Rio Grande do Sul state championships. He claims he held the fort in midfield so that the infernal Gessy and "Tank" Juarez could shine in attack.

The nickname "Little Ant," coined by journalist Mendes Ribeiro, stuck like a curse. It's still there today. It could be due to his concern for the team and awareness of his role on the field. But the idea was to illustrate how much he ran during games. Milton Kuelle never stopped.

"I ran like a horse, marking everyone," he confirms. "Technically, my level was average. But in terms of stamina, nobody could beat me."

In the 1950s, under the command of the legendary coach Oswaldo Rolla, he already played a style of football far ahead of his time. A right-footed left midfielder with great movement, he helped in defense, sometimes becoming almost another defender, orchestrated the game and, possessing a keen goal-scoring instinct, arrived in the opponent's area to make the net ripple, so much so that he is the eighth highest scorer in Grêmio's history, with 129 goals.

Born in Porto Alegre, Milton Martins Kuelle turns 87 this December 22nd. He played 502 matches for Grêmio, a number that makes him the sixth player who has worn the club's shirt the most times – the only one he ever wore. He started as a youth player in 1952, at the age of 19. From 1953 to 1965 he was nine times Gaúcho champion. He formed, along with Marino, Gessy, Juarez, and Viera, one of the most celebrated and idolized attacking lines in Grêmio's history. All five players are among the 11 top scorers in Grêmio's history. Milton was one of the players most trusted by Oswaldo Rolla, nicknamed Foguinho, who used to say: “To play on my team, it’s not enough to be good. You have to run.” Possessing excellent physical conditioning, Milton ran. And played. And defended. And marked. And orchestrated plays. And scored goals. And ran some more. It was no coincidence that journalist Mendes Ribeiro nicknamed him Ant.