04 Sep 2010 – 00:55:20Manchester United RSS news feed
Sir Alex Ferguson sent a local scout to the Estadio Cidade de Barcelos to watch his new striker Bebe make his debut as Portugal’s Under-21 lost 1-0 at home to England on Friday night.
The Manchester United boss did not see the 20-year-old play before paying £7.4million for his services this summer and, on this evidence, Ferguson will be waiting a while before he sees Bebe blossom. The forward is far from a completeplayer, but the signs are encouraging.
United we stand: Bebe was up against his Manchester United team-mate Chris Smalling in Portugal
Furthermore, Ferguson will be patient and Bebe will have time to develop and improve at United.
Shorn of the dreadlocks he once sported, he started energetically and looked lean as he set about chasing the frequent long balls that came his way. Support was often slow in coming, but he showed an impressive burst of pace.
Indifferent: Bebe certainly has the work ethic, but his touch often let him down
If Chris Smalling has not become familiar with his new club-mate after the Portuguese player’s first weeks at United, he soon was here. The pair often went head-to-head as Bebe operated through the middle on the shoulder of the last man.
The kid schooled on the streets of Lisbon was certainly not afraid to put himself about. Yet Smalling won almost all of the aerial battles and Bebe blocked team-mate Castro’s shot by mistake.
Bebe’s first touch was not that of the magician his youth coaches claim to have seen.
The ball once ran straight under his foot as he went to trap it and another attempt to control ballooned high in the air. Nerves or excitement also led to a couple of stray passes.
Ferguson’s scout will have much to ponder after watching Bebe step on to the biggest stage of his career. There is surely much more to come.
Bebe blunder! Manchester United could have had £7.4m signing for £125kThe incredible rise of a lost street kid who is now… United’s new Bebe United new boy Bebe will be a world beater once he’s fit, claims Sir AlexPortugal U21 0 England U21 1: Bebe flops but Sturridge hands Pearce hope
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