Sunday, July 18, 2021 at 11:06• Rian Rosendaal

Rafael Da Silva, in his upcoming autobiography, opens up about compatriot Anderson, with whom he played for Manchester United for several years. According to the fullback, now employed by Istanbul Basaksehir, the midfielder had the potential to become the best player in the world. Anderson, however, did not have the attitude and mentality to reach the absolute top, or so it sounds.

Anderson was taken over from FC Porto in 2007 and expectations were immediately high. Despite this, he made only 118 appearances in 8 seasons at Old Trafford. In Da Silva’s view, the Brazilian was still completely fit in his years with the Red Devils. “Sometimes we were on the team bus and when we drove on the highway, Anderson sometimes jumped up very impulsively to shout: “McDonalds, McDonalds!”, according to a pre-publication of the Daily Mirror. “He was crazy sometimes, but I loved him.”

“Give him a football and he plays with so much freedom. Sometimes, when he was on a strong run of games, he could compete with anyone in the Premier League,” Da Silva continues, looking back on working with Anderson. “If he was in top form, we played really brilliant football with Manchester United.” However, Anderson never managed to maintain the high level for any length of time. “He regularly had to deal with serious injuries and his eating problems only made the problems worse. It is no coincidence that his best period came when he played a lot of duels in a row, because then there was little opportunity for him to eat much. .”

“I’ll tell you about Anderson. If he had behaved like a real professional at Manchester United, he could have become the best player in the world,” sighs Da Silva, who was active for the English superpower between 2008 and 2015. “I say that in all seriousness. I don’t know if Anderson ever took anything seriously, because he was a real bon vivant. In one way or another that was another quality of his, he was also very popular with his fellow players and inside the club. But he could eat the best whatever you presented him.” Anderson played in the Brazilian league for several years after his departure from Manchester United. Last year he finished his career with the Turkish Adana Demirspor.