The need for a good wing back for Manchester United means that they are using their vast scouting network to find some real bargains and they seem to be working their way to another Portuguese player. Everyone remembers how United did so well with the signings of Cristiano Ronaldo and Nani and will hope this new winger/wing back serves them in the same way as the other two have.
Ricardo Esgaio is the young player on show here, the 21-year-old right wing back has been linked with a big-money move and it seems that Manchester United might be in the lead to get the signature of the talented player.
Who is he?
Esgaio currently plays for Academica de Coimbra and has been on-loan from his parent club which is the former club of Ronaldo and Nani, Sporting Lisbon. He joined the youth system of the Lisbon club at the age of 12 and he made his debut with the B team in the second division in Portugal. He made his official appearance in the main squad for Sporting in December 2012.
Esgaio is something which is a bit of a rarity in football as he can play almost anywhere on the right side. He can play as a winger, wing back or a right back, he is that versatile. His best position is playing as an out and out winger but in this world of football, he needs to be able to track back and defend and that is something he has worked on for quite a while.
He is pacey and can defend well but he isn’t the best defender out there and still needs to work on that before he can be considered as a proper right-back, but he is still young and has time to develop. Hopefully, he will be playing another season or two out on loan to hone his skills. He still is not set up to play in the first team of Sporting Lisbon so moving to Manchester United and hoping to play games at the get go is not going to happen.
Esgaio hopefully will be able to make the right choice when it comes to signing for a club, he is one of the most exciting players to come out from the Portuguese league and his development has to be taken in the manner or else he could end up getting burned out even before he has been able to do something on the big stage.