In the latest of our ‘Returning Players’ series, we look at Portuguese winger, Nani, who started his career with Sporting in 2005 before returning to the club on a permanent basis in 2018. He also spent one season on loan with Primeira Division side at the end of his Manchester United tenure.
Returning Players – Nani
First Spell at Sporting
Born Luis Carlos Almeida da Cuna in 1986, Nani is a much-travelled winger in his football career and it all began at Real Massama in Portugal before his senior breakthrough in 2005 after joining Sporting.
His Sporting debut came in the Champions League against Italian side Udinese. Nani ended on the losing side but he didn’t have to wait too long before grabbing his first goal for the club, which came in a 2-2 draw against Boavista in the Primeira Division.
It would be the Champions League that would bring the name of Nani to the attention of a wider audience when he scored against Spartak Moscow in a 2006 group stage match, and in 2007 he made a huge move to Manchester United where he joined up with his Portugal teammate Cristiano Ronaldo. His first spell in Portugal ended with 11 goals from 76 appearances and one Taça de Portugal (Portuguese Cup.)
Teams That Nani Played for in Between
Nani arrived in the Premier League in June 2007 and claimed his first trophy with his new club when United won the Charity Shield, beating Chelsea 3-0 in a penalty shoot-out.
His first goal in the Premier League was a screamer of a shot from 30-yards against Tottenham Hotspur, but it was in 2009 that he finally got his chance to enter the limelight when Ronaldo departed for La Liga giants Real Madrid. Nani was seen as being a direct replacement for his compatriot but his start to life after Ronaldo was full of struggles, leading to a public attack on manager Sir Alex Ferguson, when he said the manager needed to show more confidence in him.
Nani did still get chances to play under Ferguson delivering an energetic performance in the League Cup semi-final win over rivals Manchester City. He then blotted his record by getting sent off against Aston Villa for a wild lunge at Stiliyan Petrov, meaning he would miss the final.
Despite his Inconsistent performances, Nani signed a new four-year deal that would keep him at Old Trafford until 2014. It was in April of that year that Nani delivered one of his best performances for United as he scored twice against Bayern Munich in the Champions League, but it wasn’t enough to see them remain in the competition as they went out on the away goals rule.
When Ferguson decided to bring Marco Rojo into the club, Nani returned to Sporting on a season-long loan in 2014, despite having only just signed a new contract with United.
However, Nani’s Manchester United tenure ended with four Premier League titles, two League Cups, four Community Shields, one Champions League and one Club World Cup.
Loan at Sporting Followed by Stints at Fenerbahce, Valencia and Lazio
In 2015, Nani helped Sporting to their first trophy since 2008 as he scored in the penalty shoot out to beat Braga in the final of the Taça de Portugal. Once his loan deal ended he did not return to United and instead signed for Turkish club Fenerbahce in a three deal for £4.25 million, an amount considerably lower than when he came to England for £25.5 million.
He joined up with former teammate Robin van Persie at the club but it was a failed experiment and he left in July 2016 for Valencia on a three-year deal. Yet again a three-year deal did not last the course and he joined Lazio on loan in 2017 before finally rejoining Sporting as his career came full circle.
His final spell in Portugal brought a third Taça de Portugal success alongside one Taça da Liga (League Cup.)
While he will, rightfully so, be remembered for his time at Manchester United, Nani scored 31 times and added 25 assists from 131 appearances for Sporting.
Nani is a player that has always been something of an enigma capable of producing breathtaking skill and great goals, in between poor performances, and he never showed consistency at any of his clubs yet still managed to win four Premier League titles in his time in England.
In many ways, he was always in the shadow of Ronaldo and the expectancy on him to be as good as his fellow countryman was never fully realised but his trophy cabinet still shows a career full of success at home and abroad.
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