Manchester United have expanded their scouting network in South America with the appointment of former Brazil chief scout Paulo Henrique Xavier, according to Express. Xavier became available after being sacked by Brazil following the national team’s failure to reach the Under-20 World Cup last month.
The move comes after Manchester United’s continual inability to unearth South American talents, especially Brazilian players. A host of Brazilian youngsters are impressing all over the world and United don’t have any Brazilian players in their squad currently.
The likes of Neymar, Douglas Costa, Coutinho, and Firmino are all world-beaters and Manchester United hierarchy will surely be aware of the amount of potential Brazil has. This has prompted them to appoint Paulo Henrique Xavier as their scout in the South American nation.
The latest Brazilian talent to have come out is Gabriel Jesus, who joined Manchester City this season. He made a stunning start to his Premier League career when he scored 3 goals and 2 assists in 5 appearances, eventually displacing fellow South American Sergio Aguero out of the starting line-up. However, Gabriel was later injured and was ruled out for the rest of the season.
This is a really smart move from Manchester United as they don’t have a great history in bringing up Brazilian players in their squad.
United infamously signed Brazilian youngsters Kleberson and Anderson under manager Sir Alex Ferguson, with neither of the players making any particular impact at Old Trafford.
Brazilian brothers Rafael and Fabio Da Silva both made the first team at United but former manager Louis van Gaal signed off on their departures.
United’s only Brazilian player, a 21-year-old Andreas Pereira, is currently on loan at La Liga outfit Granada. He has scored four goals in 27 appearances for the Spanish side this season.
However, Manchester United do have success in bringing other South Americans to Old Trafford, with Argentine Carlos Tevez and Ecuador’s Antonio Valencia both being highly influential in bringing glory to the red half of Manchester.
It is safe to say that Manchester United fans can hope for some exciting Brazilian talents to come through the ranks at Old Trafford and grace the world with their historic Brazilian flair.
