If asked, you can rest assured that Manchester United Brazilian midfielder Anderson will be the first to admit that he’s a very a lucky man. Instead of preparing for the new season with his team mates at Carrington, he could just as easily be lying in a hospital bed in Portugal…or worse. He was fortunate not to suffer serious injury last month when he had to be dragged unconscious from the blazing wreckage of his high powered sports car in the early hours of the morning after allegedly spending the previous night in a nightclub.
That accident only served to confirm in the minds of some critics that the 22 year old does not have the necessary professional mindset to take his career up to the next level following his £17m move from Porto to Old Trafford three years ago. But the midfielder has vowed to get his act together after a year in which nothing seemed to go right. His aim is to win a regular place in Sir Alex Ferguson’s midfield despite the fierce competition that he’s up against.
Anderson lost his place in the side after the first leg of the Carling Cup semi final against Manchester City in January then on his recall a month later, saw his season come to a premature end when he damaged cruciate ligaments against West Ham. Having survived that horrific car crash just a few weeks ago, the Brazil international is back in full training and with a touch of luck could be available for first team duty within a month.
“I’ve been really excited to be back. I’ve been so happy ever since I got back to Carrington and I just can’t wait to play again” Anderson told ManUtd.com “I’m feeling good. I’ve been training for two weeks and I’m very happy. I think maybe very soon I’ll come back again and start playing normally with the rest of the team. I have had no problems at all with the injury. I’m just running and training now really hard so I can come back and train normally with the team.”
The return of Anderson could have consequences for Darron Gibson who is on the wanted list of Stoke City. Manager Tony Pulis has confirmed that he is determined to add to his midfield options at the Britannia Stadium and has enquired about the availability of Gibson. Anderson’s return to fitness has raised the possibility of Pulis succeeding in his attempts to sign the Irish youngster on a six month loan deal.
Despite the injury set back, Anderson’s determination is matched by his confidence that United can regain the title despite his frustration at being confined to the sidelines throughout the United preparation “The new season will be very difficult because a lot of teams are becoming strong. But in pre season we have looked good. I think we will come again this season and we will aim to win everything.”
Anderson’s positive fitness update less than three weeks after his involvement in that car crash in Portugal comes as a boost for Sir Alex due to ongoing concerns over Owen Hargreaves’s failure to overcome long term knee problems. Even if Ferguson decides that he can afford to send Gibson to Stoke on a short term loan, there will still be a wealth of midfield talent available in Anderson, Darren Fletcher and Michael Carrick to compliment veterans Paul Scholes and Ryan Giggs. And that’s without taking into account some of the outstanding talent coming through the famous Ferguson youth system.
Will Anderson justify his £17m transfer from Porto this season?
