Bebe to feature for Reserves
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I bought Bebe in blind faith! Fergie admits he spent £7.4m before seeing new kid play
Dream move: Bebe is Fergie's third summer signing
ALEX FERGUSON has revealed he broke the habit of a lifetime to complete Bebe's fairytale move to Manchester United.
The 20-year-old became Ferguson's third signing of the summer when he joined in a £7million deal from Vitoria Guimaraes. But it was the fact Bebe spent time on the streets as a youngster and used to play for a team organised by CAIS — the organisation responsible for Portugal's Homeless World Cup Team — which made headlines. He then ended up joining the Red Devils after spending only five weeks with Vitoria after impressing United's Portugal-based scout.
Bebe was virtually unknown 12 months ago as he turned out for Portugal third division team Estrela Amadora. But with Real Madrid and a number of top clubs in Portugal starting to take a keen interest, Ferguson decided to make a move, even though he had never seen the striker play, even on video.
The United boss said: "On this occasion I didn't watch him. It is the first time I have done it. "Normally I see plenty of video footage but our scouting department is very good and sometimes you have to go on instinct.
"Our scout in Portugal was adamant we must do something quickly. "You look at the material. You look at their age and whether they're bringing pace, balance, desire to play. "You've got to trust your staff at times, so I sent David Gill down there to do the deal."
New faces: Fergie with Bebe (far left), Javier Hernandez and Chris Smalling (right)
Bebe will likely have to wait until a Carling Cup third-round clash next month before getting an opportunity to make his debut. And for a player whose previous biggest game was a cup-tie against Benfica, following the path so successfully navigated by Cristiano Ronaldo is not going to be easy.
But with fellow countryman Nani already at Old Trafford and another Portuguese speaker on hand in Anderson, the settling in process should be made simpler.
When asked what his greatest strengths were, Bebe revealed: "I am fast, I kick well and I score a lot of goals."
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"When asked what his greatest strengths were, Bebe revealed: "I am fast, I kick well and I score a lot of goals.""
hopefully this is true.....
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Originally posted by s0nic:
"When asked what his greatest strengths were, Bebe revealed: "I am fast, I kick well and I score a lot of goals.""
hopefully this is true.....
he better be.
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self praise is no praise. And he has not been tested at the highest level....I'm surprised that fergie is so brave.
Reminds me of how brian little bought savo milosevic purely on video performance for 7m pounds, quite a big sum in the early 90s.
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dam bebe got such a big nose.
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if he is as pacy and clinical as hernandez, then its an excellent buy. hope he doesnt turn out to be david bellion, pacy but with little or no skills.
btw where is david bellion now? in french lique 1 right
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Originally posted by Rooney9:
if he is as pacy and clinical as hernandez, then its an excellent buy. hope he doesnt turn out to be david bellion, pacy but with little or no skills.
btw where is david bellion now? in french lique 1 right
David Bellion currently plays for Bordeaux ! -
Yeah, hope he can score many important goals...
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never watch a player but depend on recommendation will come to 2 ways.
one is he cannot make it and is sold off after a few seasons. the other is he will slowly and gradually make good like ronaldo or nani. Nani took a few seasons, as he struggled with his passing and crossing and decision making and likes to play solo, like what ronaldo did with his step overs and lousy crossing and decision making when he first joined.
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Originally posted by Rooney9:
never watch a player but depend on recommendation will come to 2 ways.
one is he cannot make it and is sold off after a few seasons. the other is he will slowly and gradually make good like ronaldo or nani. Nani took a few seasons, as he struggled with his passing and crossing and decision making and likes to play solo, like what ronaldo did with his step overs and lousy crossing and decision making when he first joined.
nani has a big big shadow on his back that he needs to step out of b4 he excels. and last season, he is slowly maturing.
this fella is practically unknown. Not sure whether it is business sense to snap him with RM sniffing around or pure footballing sense.
don't think he will turn out to be david bellion as he doesn't really look that pacy to me, but would be glad if he can do more of drogba, mix power and shooting..
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Summer signing Bebe will pull on the United shirt for the first time tonight when he lines up for the Reserves against Aston Villa at Moss Lane, Altrincham.
The Portugal Under-21 international arrived at Old Trafford in August but his involvement so far has been restricted to the training pitch at Carrington. Tonight, however, he looks set to start for Ole Gunnar Solskjaer's second-string against a strong Villa side. The visitors' 16-man squad boasts nine players with senior experience, including Nathan Delfouneso and Barry Bannan.
There's more good news for United fans, with Gabriel Obertan also named in Solskjaer's side. The Frenchman hasn't featured at any level since injuring his ankle during the Reds' pre-season tour. The Reserves have played three Manchester Senior Cup fixtures already this season – against Manchester City, Oldham Athletic and Stockport County – but tonight marks the beginning of United's league campaign.
The action kicks off at 19:00 BST – you can watch live on MUTV and see highlights on MUTV Online from 21:30 BST.
United: Sam Johnstone, Scott Wootton, Ritchie De Laet, Corry Evans, Reece Brown, Oliver Gill, Gabriel Obertan, Ravel Morrison, William Keane, Magnus Eikrem, Bebe, Marnick Vermijl, Conor Devlin, Robert Brady, Nick Ajose, John Cofie
Villa: Elliott Parish, Eric Lichaj, Derrick Williams, Ciaran Clark, Shane Lowry, Jonathan Hogg, Moustapha Salifou, Isaiah Osbourne, James Collins, Nathan Delfouneso, Barry Bannan, Durrell Berry, Andy Marshall, Arsenio Halfhuid, Daniel Johnson, Danny Devine