Living with the Da Silva twins and Ronaldo's guidance - the story of Manchester United's Brazilian football factory
manchestereveningnews.co.ukThere is no nation in world football which is synonymous with success quite like Brazil. The kits are iconic, the rich tapestry of players is unrivalled, and their influence on the modern game is unmatched.
Seleção have won an unprecedented five World Cup titles and are the only country to have participated in every World Cup tournament there has ever been.
It is no surprise, then, that Manchester United were eager to get the first chance of signing the next generation of samba stars back in November 2008. READ MORE: "This is real football now" - Manchester United starlet lifts lid on loan success and Michael Carrick guidance The United team under Sir Alex Ferguson was already sprinkled with Brazilian talent in the shape of Anderson, the Da Silva twins and Rodrigo Possebon and club officials were eager to ensure they had first refusal on the next batch of South American starlets coming through.
Academy chief Brian McClair, former Academy boss Les Kershaw and South American recruitment officer John Calvert Toulmin put their minds together to set about searching for a feeder club they could work with in order to nurture the brightest young talent.
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