Man Utd sign Anderson and Nani

From BBC Sport:

Quote:

---

Man Utd swoop for Anderson & Nani

Manchester United have agreed "in principle" deals to sign Anderson from FC Porto and Nani from Sporting Lisbon.

The Premiership champions are set to make 19-year-old Brazilian Anderson and 20-year-old Portuguese winger Nani their first signings of the summer.

"Terms are agreed with both players and an announcement will take place once a medical and other procedures are done," said a statement on United's website.
United are also on the brink of signing Owen Hargreaves from Bayern Munich.


Anderson has been named in Brazil coach Dunga's squad for the Copa America in Venezuela next month, but not Friday's friendly with England at Wembley.

He joined Porto from Gremio in December 2005 and played against United in a pre-season friendly last August at the Amsterdam Tournament.

Nani had also been linked with a move to Tottenham, but recently said he would only leave Portugal to play for a club like United.

Nani has been compared to his compatriot Cristiano Ronaldo in his homeland, with pace and trickery similiar to that of the Footballer of the Year.

He has played five times for Portugal, scoring once in the process.

---

Nani is a great player and looks set to be a replacement for Giggs. Don't know much about Anderson.

Anderson is the better of the 2 signings. Anderson WILL be the best player in the World and has more natural talent than C. Ronaldo.

Nani is a good player but I can see him being on the bench a lot next season learning his trade.

Anderson going to be Scholes's replacement. He is a real world beater.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Steve Bruce

Anderson WILL be the best player in the World

---

FACT?

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Risteard

FACT?

---

Obviously an opinion that I strongly believe as do many observers of continental football oh pedantic one:rolleyes:

Hey. Get those eyes out of the sky and go easy on 2007s most overused word.
Just haven't heard much of him and it seems a bit unreliable and biased coming from a Man U fan.
Now where are these many other observers of continental football who think he'll be the best footballer in the world?

If i'm to over do the <scholastic, high and mighty> thing then WILL suggests FACT. COULD would've been more apt.

Don't know much about Anderson, but he is supposed to be one of the fastest players in the world. Can anyone tell me if this is true?

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Risteard

Hey. Get those eyes out of the sky and go easy on 2007s most overused word.
Just haven't heard much of him and it seems a bit unreliable and biased coming from a Man U fan.
Now where are these many other observers of continental football who think he'll be the best footballer in the world?

If i'm to over do the <scholastic, high and mighty> thing then WILL suggests FACT. COULD would've been more apt.

---

I'll produce some sources when I get home from work, unfortunately my web surfing is restricted in my work.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Soper

Don't know much about Anderson, but he is supposed to be one of the fastest players in the world. Can anyone tell me if this is true?

---

faster than alan o'brien??

look forward to seeing how they fare. 30M is a lot though.........then again any club which spends over 10m on Carrick must be doing ok financially.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by shakermaker1982

look forward to seeing how they fare. 30M is a lot though.........then again any club which spends over 10m on Carrick must be doing ok financially.

---

We spend what we can afford. Unfortunately we don't have billionairs to fund our team. But we're doing alright:)

Who are Anderson & Nani?
By Charlie Henderson

Manchester United have moved fast in the transfer market this summer, with Anderson and Nani set to be the latest arrivals at Old Trafford.

Sir Alex Ferguson's assistant Carlos Queiroz is credited for a big role in securing the services of Porto's Brazilian midfielder Anderson and Sporting flyer Nani, who are tipped for the top.

"They're both top players and among the top five in Portugal with Simao Sabrosa, Joao Moutinho and Ricardo Quaresma," Portuguese football journalist Miguel Padayda told BBC Sport.

But what more do we know about them? BBC Sport gives the lowdown on United's latest signings.

ANDERSON

Anderson

Full name: Anderson Luis De Abreu Oliveira
Nationality: Brazilian
Age: 19 (Born: 13 April 1988)
Position Attacking midfielder
Fee: Reports vary between £15m and £20m

Still a teenager, the dreadlocked Brazilian has made a huge impact, is already in Brazil's national squad and is considered the heir apparent to Ronaldinho as his country's star player.

Born in the same town as Barcelona's buck-toothed wonder, Porte Alegre, Anderson also started his career at Gremio where he is held in high regard after scoring the goal that sent them back into the top flight in a brutal match against Nautico in 2005.

He moved to Europe later that year and made his Porto debut a little over 12 months ago in March 2006, helping the club land the Portuguese double.

This season his progress has been hampered by a fractured leg in October, but he returned to action to help Porto successfully defend their title.

BBC Sport columnist and south American football pundit Tim Vickery has described the strong, left-footed midfielder as having the acceleration of the Millennium Falcon.

And Manchester United have stolen a march on suitors such as Real Madrid and Chelsea to land a player many have already labelled as the long-term replacement for Old Trafford stalwart Paul Scholes.

Padayda's verdict: "He is very young, very skilled in the pass, very intelligent and very fast. Unfortunately, this season he had an injury that allowed him to play only half of the season, but he was still a very important figure at Porto. He could definitely go straight into the United first XI."

Anderson says: "I could not imagine I would ever get to work with a manager like Sir Alex Ferguson but it has happened. It is a dream the size of the world."

They say: "New players will show they deserve a chance to represent Brazil and we'll all see that as it happens. Anderson, like many other Brazilian players, is a valuable player and will get his chance in future for sure."
Brazil head coach Dunga

You say: "Anderson has the potential to be something special. When he's worth £30m on his own in two years this deal will look like a bargain."
EdWindchester on the 606 messageboards
606: Comment, create & debate

Did you know? He was named player of the tournament at the 2005 Under-17 World Cup. Previous winners of the award include Arsenal's Cesc Fabregas and former Liverpool striker Florent Sinama-Pongolle.

NANI

Nani

Full name: Luis Carlos Almeida da Cunha
Nationality: Portuguese
Age: 20 (Born: 17 April 1986)
Position Attacking midfielder
Fee: Anything between £11.5m and £17m say the reports

Nani has long been linked with a move to Manchester United ever since he stated it would be a "dream" to play with Cristiano Ronaldo.

However, Quieroz needed to move quickly when it became clear Tottenham were also stepping up their interest in the predominantly wide player.

Born on the Cape Verde Islands off the west coast of Africa, he came through the Sporting Academy, a route previously taken by Ronaldo and Luis Figo, once his family had upped sticks for Lisbon.

Having made his debut as an 18-year-old, Nani became a part of the first-team squad at the start of the 2005/06 season and soon got his chance to impress.

Since then the fleet-footed livewire, who celebrates goals with a back flip, has gone from strength to strength with club and country.

He scored on his first appearance for Portugal against Denmark in September and also caught the eye with a wonderful effort in the Champions League against Spartak Moscow this season.

Padayda's verdict: "He plays more or less in the same position of the pitch as Ronaldo does but he is not as fast. He had some problems this year at Sporting because he thought he was underpaid and wanted more money, but now he has a big contract. He will have to adapt to the English game and will need to wait a few months until he gets his chance."

Nani says: "The Premier League is one of the best leagues in the world and it will be a big challenge. I am prepared to go to England because I believe I will progress there."

They say: "He's one of the most gifted young players in Europe, and what's more, he's stronger than I thought he was."
Former Bayern Munich manager Felix Magath

You say: "Bringing Nani into the team will definitely give us more width across the pitch and in time will be a suitable replacement for Ryan Giggs."
wolverine001 on the 606 messageboards
606: Comment, create & debate

Did you know: Everton midfielder Manuel Fernandes is a friend since childhood and the pair used to kick a ball about together on the streets of Lisbon.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by shakermaker1982

look forward to seeing how they fare. 30M is a lot though.........then again any club which spends over 10m on Carrick must be doing ok financially.

---

Carrick is another one of those players that people will knock whatever he does. When he was playing at Spurs everyone was raving about him, but just cos he has moved to United people are having a go at him. He had a very good season this season and is played to thread balls through to the forwards, which he does very well. He has also scored way more goals this season than he ever did for Spurs. He is NOT a Roy Keane type midfielder that will go around tackling and winning the ball and I dont think he was bought as such. It would be much better if people looked at how players actually played rather than jumping on a band wagon and rhyming off the same old thing.

I don't know how they managed to keep these signings under wraps. At Celtic you know what every single signing target is eating for breakfast ffs. :D

As for Carrick. Man Utd wouldn't have won the league if he was as poor as people say. He's not playing on the fringes. He plays the most important role in the team.

Anderson's dedication remains to be seen as far as I'm concerned, I've only watched him a hand full of times but from what I hear he tends to drift in and out of games, could easily end up a technically better Klerberson. Nani I do think is already a very good player, and should take Giggs role when he leaves at the end of next season

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by eirebhoy

I don't know how they managed to keep these signings under wraps. At Celtic you know what every single signing target is eating for breakfast ffs. :D

As for Carrick. Man Utd wouldn't have won the league if he was as poor as people say. He's not playing on the fringes. He plays the most important role in the team.

---

John O'Shea could do what Carrick does at Man Utd. Receive ball from Rio, look up and pass sideways to Scholes. Critics rave about him but he went missing this year in all of Man Utd's big games including the Milan away leg and FA Cup final.

I hope Man Utd sell him back to Spurs or New Utd. I want my midfield engine room to have a spark and not shy away from the ball or let others take control when the going gets tough.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by shakermaker1982

John O'Shea could do what Carrick does at Man Utd. Receive ball from Rio, look up and pass sideways to Scholes.

---

He could in his bloody arse. :D

One of the most important things in a player is intelligence. By that I mean positional sense, decision making, etc. If you can't appreciate that in a player than obviously you're not going to appreciate Carrick. To put it into perspective what seperates a Thomas Gravesen from a Roy Keane is intelligence. Gravesen is technically superb but tactically inept.

Carrick will always be in the best possible position to receive a pass. It also takes someone like him a millisecond to make a decision.

Look at Andrea Pirlo. He doesn't score any goals from open play. He wouldn't set much up either because of the position he plays. To add to that he's not great off the ball, he's a poor tackler, he's weak and he's slow. He hasn't got the aggressiveness or leadership qualities of a Roy Keane. All this and he's still arguably the best deep lying playmaker in the world? He plays the game with his brain and too many people don't appreciate intelligence in a player.

Positional sense is all well and good but that alone does not win you games. I accept he's a decent passer of the ball and can read the game but too many times this season he has let Paul Scholes do everything in central midfield. He does not take any responsibility whatsoever when it comes to moving the ball forward whereas Pirlo is the heartbeat of the Milan team. He sets the tempo, he gets the ball moving forward and will always look for that killer pass to Kaka or Inzaghi. Carrick acts as if he doesn't want to make any mistakes which in turn means he never takes a risk. He receives and gets rid of the ball asap to Scholes or Giggs. Maybe he'll feel more confident in a Man Utd shirt next season but with Hargreaves being bought and Scholes looking as good as ever he might not get that many opportunities.

I just think a lot of his work goes unnoticed. For example the game against Milan he ran more miles than any other player on the pitch.

Hargreaves is brought in to play the Gattuso role which might free Carrick from a lot of his defensive duties.