Fábio
Personal information
Full name	Fábio Pereira da Silva
Date of birth	9 July 1990 (1990-07-09) (age 18)
Place of birth	Petrópolis, RJ, Brazil
Playing position	Left back Left winger
Club information
Current club	Manchester United
Number	20
Youth career
0000–2008	Fluminense
Senior career1
Years	Club	App (Gls)*
2008–	Manchester United	0 (0)
National team
2007	Brazil U-17
1 Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 21:50, 24 January 2009 (UTC). * Appearances (Goals) Early years Born in Petrópolis, RJ, Fábio began his football career as a defensive midfielder with his local club, Boa Esperança, but he was converted to left back when he joined Fluminense of Rio de Janeiro.[2] With Fluminense, Fábio took part in the 2005 Nike Premier Cup in Tokyo, where he was spotted by Manchester United scout Les Kershaw, who remarked that the twins reminded him of "two little whippets". Kershaw then telephoned Manchester United manager Alex Ferguson and recommended that the club sign the Da Silva twins.[2] The two clubs agreed a deal in February 2007, and the twins moved to Manchester in January 2008 without ever having played for the Fluminense first team.[3] [edit] Manchester United Despite signing for the club in February 2007, Fábio was unable to be registered as a Manchester United player or play in matches for the club until his 18th birthday on 9 July 2008.[4] He made his first appearance for Manchester United on 4 August 2008, coming on as a half-time substitute for Patrice Evra in a 2–0 friendly win away to Peterborough United. His performance in that game was praised, with Today claiming that "Manchester United finally found out what they were missing".[5] He has since played in three matches for the club's reserve team, scoring one goal, and was named on the bench for United's second league game of the season against Portsmouth on 25 August 2008.[6] However, Fábio's competitive debut for the Manchester United first team was delayed by a shoulder injury, which required surgery.[3] His debut finally came in the 2–1 FA Cup Fourth Round win over Tottenham Hotspur on 24 January 2009. However, he picked up an injury to his calf shortly into the second half and had to be replaced by fellow debutant Richard Eckersley.[7] [edit] International career Fábio has played internationally for the Brazilian Under-17 team, and was captain of the Brazil team for the 2007 FIFA U-17 World Cup, where he scored twice, making him the team's joint-highest scorer.[8] He has been approached by Portuguese national coach Carlos Queiroz and asked to play for Portugal's senior side, as both he and his twin hold Portuguese citizenship.[9] [edit] Playing style Along with his brother, Fábio has been praised for his energetic style, and has been described as an "excellent footballer" by Sir Alex Ferguson.[8] Les Kershaw, the former Manchester United academy manager who spotted them, described the pair as being like "two little whippets," praising how "when they got knocked down, they just got straight back up again and got on with it. They were like bouncing balls... very, very quick".[2] The Times has called them "Brazil's answer to the Neville brothers".[10] Based on his attacking ability and instincts, it was suggested on the United website that Fábio, along with Rafael, could be deployed in the midfield rather than in defence.[8] from : http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/F%C3%A1bio_Pereira_da_Silva