Abby Brammell

By Ian Ladyman

What a hit: Danny Gabbidon can't stop Nani scoring United's second


Of all the words spoken in the wake of Cristiano Ronaldo's £80million move to Real Madrid last year, those spoken by Portuguese compatriot Nani perhaps offered the least comfort to Manchester United fans.

'My opportunity has come,' said Nani. 'The time has come for United to put their trust in me.' Those words sounded hollow, such had been Nani's modest contribution up to that point.

A year on, however, and Nani finally looks the kind of player who can make a lasting impact, as he illustrated in United's convincing 3-0 win over West Ham.



It now looks as though he can help United and manager Sir Alex Ferguson through what looks a challenging season.

Ferguson needs his supporting cast to step forward because Wayne Rooney is not at his best after a dispiriting World Cup and veterans Paul Scholes and Ryan Giggs cannot be expected to play every week.

Nani was excellent on Saturday. Having missed the World Cup with a shoulder injury, the 23-year-old looks fresh and appears to have developed an awareness of the game that is so important at the highest level.


Step it up: West Ham No 2 Zeljko Petrovic speaks to Carlton Cole at half-time


Having missed an important penalty at Fulham a week earlier, Nani perhaps owed his team a decent performance - and he didn't disappoint.

He scored a fine second-half goal to make sure there would be no West Ham fightback and then provided a super cross for Dimitar Berbatov's spectacular third.


The opener: 'Dishevelled' Wayne Rooney slots home United's penalty


Nani lived with Ronaldo after joining United three years ago and the two remain friends. Comparisons are inevitable, if not necessarily welcomed.

'I don't like to compare us,' said Nani recently. 'I respect Cristiano and he respects me a lot. He's an unbelievable player.

'I try to be the best I can and I am working every day to get better. I hope he can be the best at what he does and me the best at what I do.


'I am not jealous. We have one year in age between us but he started to play professionally earlier than me. I saw him come to Manchester so early and he gave us a lot of courage in our play.

'It was fantastic to live together because we are quite similar in personality. We played jokes on each other and we played everything; table tennis, snooker, swimming. It was competition all the time.'

Playing on the right on Saturday - the position Ferguson revealed the left-footed winger prefers - Nani produced the stand-out performance in a United display that could have buried a dismal West Ham.

Rooney took his penalty well but remains unrecognisable from last season. United assistant manager Mike Phelan suggested the club's star man had returned from the World Cup 'dishevelled' and it is easy to see what he means.



source: dailymail