Manchester United: Is Bebe the Attacking Midfielder United Need?

This has to be the most confusing signing in Manchester United's history under Sir Alex Ferguson. First of all, no one seems to know Bebe. Secondly, none of the analysts can say with certainity what position the guy can play.

Wide-ranging opinions have tipped him to be a striker, with a few talking about him being a winger who can easily switch flanks, blessed as the guy is with pace, acceleration, and pretty decent ball control. He can also pick out a good cross or pass when required, and looks to be a highly unselfish player. For all the goals he has scored in pre-season for his previous club, his finishing is still suspect and not outright polished.

These look to be the hallmarks of an emerging attacking midfielder, one who is learning his trade rather than someone who is well versed in his role.

While it was reported that the player was being tracked by several major European clubs, which is a pointer to his abilities, most United supporters will want to know why a major chunk of the transfer budget (£7.4million) was used for an unknown player's transfer when a doubling of the amount might have got United the star of the German World Cup campaign, Mesut Özil.

Özil has established himself as one of the premier attacking midfielders in the world right now, and its a credit to his abilities that Real Madrid consider him to be an alternative to Kaka in their line-up. High praise, indeed, even if in an oblique manner.

This begs the question as to why United has not yet bid for the German star, instead going for an unknown Portuguese starlet who does not even speak English and will take a few months to adapt to the language?

Maybe United will bid for Özil, who knows? However, this signing—however unbelievable it may seem—is actually one which makes a tremendous amount of sense. Allow me to explain.

At this point, United boast four attacking midfielders in their ranks - Ryan Giggs, Park Ji Sung, Tom Cleverley, and Anderson. Anderson's ruled out of action till early October due to his long-term injury, which means that whenever United will need an attacking midfielder, they will turn to the first three.

Now, Giggs is 36, which means he can't play every game. Similarly, Park is a good player, but not someone who can create a moment of magic out of nowhere. He is a hard, honest worker, but that is often not enough. For those times, there is Cleverley.

However, Giggs is close to retirement, and there are question marks over Anderson's United career. This means, at the end of this season, United would have been left with just two attacking midfielders, including one emerging talent. Bebe ups the number of talents to two, and in a manner which is very different to what is expected of such a player.

Unlike most attacking midfielders, Bebe is well-built AND fast, with good ball control. Most successful attacking midfielders have the latter two qualities, never the first. Bebe brings pace and strength to a key position, something which most people feel is a prerequisite to success in the Premier League.

This means that he does not have to spend too much time "beefing up." Once he learns to gel with the first team, he can be out on the pitch, playing for United as early as late October or early November.

Additionally, given the time Bebe will take to learn the language enough to be able to participate in games, Anderson will have had the rule run over his performances since coming back. He might have evolved his game in training to become a deeper lying anchor, or even a box-to-box midfielder. In either case, Bebe and United benefit.

Given his size and speed, Bebe, if introduced late in the game against a tiring opposition, can be the rampaging 800lb gorilla no-one wants to deal with. The destruction he can wreck, especially against the lower teams and in the cup competitions late in the season, can be decisive.

Imagine a United front three with the pace and movement of Javier "Chicharito" Hernandez, the trickery and guile of Dimitar Berbatov, and the speed and physical presence of Bebe just behind them, in the attacking midfield role. What do I see? Littered defenses, tattered confidences, and a load of goals.

Here's to a successful Manchester United campaign in all competitions in the coming season. Support the team and live the dream.