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This is a Portuguese name; the first family name is de Abreu and the second is Oliveira.

Anderson

Personal information
Full name	Anderson Luís de Abreu Oliveira
Date of birth	13 April 1988 (1988-04-13) (age 21)
Place of birth	Porto Alegre, Brazil
Height	5 ft 9 in (1.76 m)[1]
Playing position	Midfielder
Club information
Current club	Manchester United
Number	8
Youth career
1993–2004	Grêmio
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps†	(Gls)†
2004–2005	Grêmio	19	(6)
2005–2007	Porto	18	(2)
2007–	Manchester United	49	(1)
National team‡
2008	Brazil U-23	6	(1)
2007–	Brazil	8	(0)
Honours Competitor for  Brazil Men's Football Bronze 2008 Beijing Team Competition
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 19:46, 31 October 2009 (UTC). † Appearances (Goals). ‡ National team caps and goals correct as of 13:50, 3 May 2009 (UTC)

Anderson Luís de Abreu Oliveira (born 13 April 1988), best known as Anderson, is a Brazilian footballer, currently playing for Manchester United. His regular position is as an attacking midfielder, but he can also operate on the left wing.

[edit] Club career

[edit] Grêmio

Born in Porto Alegre, Anderson joined Grêmio as a youth player and in 2004 he made his first appearance for the team, playing 5 Brazilian Série B games in the second half of the year, as well as playing in the 2005 Gaúcho State Championship in the first half. He earned himself iconic status by scoring the goal that lifted Grêmio back into Serie A in a promotion playoff against Nautico. This goal was particularly memorable because Grêmio only had seven players on the pitch at the time and had just seen the opposition have a penalty saved. The goal gave Grêmio a 1-0 victory in the most unlikely of circumstances.^{[citation needed]}

[edit] Porto

He joined Porto in December 2005 after only five first team appearances at a national level with Grêmio, and made his league debut on 5 March 2006, playing a part in helping the team seal the Portuguese Championship that season. The following season, he made his UEFA Champions League debut in Porto's first group game against CSKA Moscow.^[2] However, Anderson was forced to miss five months of the 2006-07 season due to a broken leg, as a result of a tackle by Benfica's player Kostas Katsouranis.^[3]

[edit] Manchester United

On 30 May 2007, the Manchester United website confirmed that the club had agreed in principle to sign Anderson from Porto for an undisclosed fee, reported to be approximately £18 million.^[4] On 29 June 2007, he was granted a work permit to play in the United Kingdom, and the move was completed on 2 July, with Anderson signing a five-year contract to become United's second Brazilian player after the disappointing Kléberson.^[5]

Anderson against Cesc Fàbregas

Anderson was friends with Portuguese-speaking team-mates, Cristiano Ronaldo and Nani prior to joining the club.^[6] He was handed the number 8 shirt previously worn by Wayne Rooney and made his Manchester United debut on 3 August 2007, playing 45 minutes of a pre-season friendly against Doncaster Rovers, which United won 2-0.

Anderson made his competitive debut for Manchester United against Sunderland on 1 September 2007, before he was substituted at half time and replaced by Louis Saha. Anderson made his Champions League debut against Sporting CP on 19 September 2007, coming on as a substitute for Ryan Giggs in the 76th minute. He played the full 90 minutes in the League Cup match against Coventry City on 26 September 2007, in a team consisting almost entirely of youth and reserve team players.

In the 2008 UEFA Champions League Final in Moscow, Anderson was brought on as a substitute in the final minute of extra time to replace Wes Brown, and converted United's sixth attempt in the penalty shootout.

Anderson (right) with Cristiano Ronaldo and Carlos Tévez

In the 2009 League Cup final against Tottenham Hotspur, Anderson was brought on in the 56th minute replacing Danny Welbeck. He went on to score the winning penalty in the penalty shootout, winning his first League Cup.^[7] On 18 May 2009, in the penultimate game of the season against Arsenal, United only needed 1 point to seal their third successive Premier League title and Anderson's second in two years at the club. Anderson was brought on for Wayne Rooney in the final minute, helping United lift the title at home to their fierce rivals.^[8]

Anderson scored his first goal for Manchester United in the Audi Cup friendly tournament against Boca Juniors on 29 July 2009. After United were awarded a free kick on the right side of the penalty area, Anderson stepped up and curled the ball into the far top corner of the goal with his left foot.^[9] On 12 September 2009, Anderson went on to score his first competitive goal for Manchester United against Tottenham Hotspur on his 78th appearance for the club. He latched onto a loose ball at the edge of the area and hammered the ball into the bottom right corner with his left foot, scoring United's second goal of a 3-1 win at White Hart Lane.^[10]

[edit] International career

In April 2005, he played for Brazil in the South American U-17 Championship. The following October he featured in the 2005 FIFA U-17 World Championship along with Marcelo of Real Madrid and Denílson of Arsenal and he won the Adidas Golden Ball as Brazil took silver.^[11]

When Brazil were in trouble of going out of the tournament after their opening game defeat against Gambia, Anderson helped to turn their fortunes around in the next match against the Netherlands. Anderson played well against the Dutch, contributing crosses and runs that aided his side. Anderson kept up his level of performance after that, scoring one goal and playing a key role in others, notably setting up Ramon for the first strike against Korea DPR in the quarter-final. After helping to lead Brazil into the final after a 4-3 semi-final victory over Turkey, Anderson lasted only 15 minutes of the final with Mexico, being stretchered off.

Anderson made his international debut for the Brazil national football team on 27 June 2007 in their 2-0 loss against against Mexico in Copa América, coming on as a substitute.^[12] He made his first start for Brazil on 1 July 2007 against Chile in a 3-0 victory.

Anderson (right) with Argentina's Lionel Messi and Marcelo (left) at the Olympics.

In July 2008, Brazil coach Dunga named Anderson to the 18-man squad for the 2008 Summer Olympics.^[13] He scored Brazil's first goal in its second group match against New Zealand, a match it went on to win 5-0.^[14] On 22 August 2008, Brazil won the bronze medal as they defeated Belgium 3-0.

[edit] Career statistics

Statistics accurate as of match played 28 November 2009^[16]

[edit] Honours

[edit] Club

Grêmio

• Campeonato Brasileiro Série B (1): 2005

Porto

• Portuguese Liga (2): 2005–06, 2006–07
• Taça de Portugal (1): 2005–06
• Portuguese SuperCup (1): 2005–06

Manchester United

• Premier League (2): 2007–08, 2008–09
• Football League Cup (1): 2008–09
• UEFA Champions League (1): 2007–08
• FIFA Club World Cup (1): 2008

[edit] International

• Copa América (1): 2007
• 2005 FIFA U-17 World Cup: Best Player of Tournament
• South American U-17 Championship (1): 2005

[edit] References

[edit] External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Anderson

• Anderson career stats at Soccerbase
• Anderson PortuGOAL profile
• Profile at ManUtd.com

Brazil squads v • d • e Brazil squad – Copa América 2007 Winners (8th Title) 1 Helton • 2 Maicon • 3 Alex • 4 Juan • 5 Mineiro • 6 Gilberto • 7 Elano • 8 Gilberto Silva • 9 Vágner Love • 10 Diego • 11 Robinho • 12 Doni • 13 Daniel Alves • 14 Alex Silva • 15 Naldo • 16 Kléber • 17 Josué • 18 Fernando • 19 Júlio Baptista • 20 Anderson • 21 Afonso Alves • 22 Fred • Coach: Dunga v • d • e Brazil squad – 2008 Olympic Bronze Medalists 1 Diego Alves • 2 Rafinha • 3 Alex Silva • 4 Thiago Silva • 5 Hernanes • 6 Marcelo • 7 Anderson • 8 Lucas • 9 Pato • 10 Ronaldinho • 11 Ramires • 12 Renan • 13 Ilsinho • 14 Breno • 15 Diego • 16 Thiago Neves • 17 Rafael Sóbis • 18 Jô • Coach: Dunga