Oliveira Anderson

A Brazilian midfield player at Manchester United.

Blessed with great flair and ability, he also boasts terrific strength and pace and a fantastic work rate, qualities that have seen him converted from an attacking midfielder once dubbed ‘the new Ronaldinho’ to more of an all-rounder, regularly employed in a dynamic box-to-box role.

A legend at his hometown club Gremio after stepping up from the youth ranks and scoring the goal that secured the Porto Alegre club’s promotion back to the Brazilian top flight in 2005, Anderson was soon spotted by Portuguese side Porto and made the move to Europe at just 17 years of age.

He only made 22 appearances in eighteen months with Porto, thanks in part to a spell on the sidelines with a broken leg, but he showed enough to secure an £18m move to United in the summer of 2007 and settled quickly, earning selection for some of the Red Devils’ most important matches en route to a Champions League win and brace of Premier League titles.

Injuries have stymied his progress over the past couple of seasons, but his impressive performances early last term suggest that, if injury-free, he is well-placed to push on as a regular in the United midfield.

Named best player at the 2005 FIFA Under-17 World Cup and a member of the bronze-medal winning U23 side at the 2008 Beijing Olympics, Anderson has so far represented Brazil eight times at senior level.