Nani: from outcast to ever-present

In November of last year, Luis Nani’s Old Trafford career looked set to end with a whimper; inconsistent performances frustrated fans that were all-too-aware of the deep talent lurking somewhere inside the young Portuguese, and his outspoken rant against Sir Alex Ferguson’s coaching methods looked to be as good as signing his own death warrant: ""When he thinks something is wrong, everything is screwed." Other players have been slung out for much, much less.

However, a heart-to-heart with the manager in January led Nani to believe that he still had a role to play for United; for perhaps the exact same reasons that Nani’s career seemed to be stagnating (his prodigious, yet inconsistent ability), Ferguson was prepared to give the winger another chance to prove himself. The youngster is now repaying Ferguson’s faith – and how.

While the talking point of the weekend will undoubtedly be Nani’s cheeky tap-in to put United 2-0 up against Tottenham, to focus solely on that one event would be to ignore the match-winning performance that the winger supplied; a sumptuous assist for Nemanja Vidic’s header, tricky dribbling, and a shot that rattled the crossbar from 25 yards confirmed that this is a player who is enjoying his football.

Nani’s questionable goal effectively ended the match as a contest, but Tottenham had given up the ghost long before. The only thing more “farcical” than ‘the event’, as it should now be named, was Harry Redknapp’s decision to play a five-man midfield with no ball-winner (save for Jermaine Jenas; figure that one out) and no forward target man until an hour had passed by.

With all the talk of Wayne Rooney’s future dominating headlines, a few of the other players have, surprisingly, got on with the task of trying to win some football matches. Fans wary of seeing the young Portuguese disappear back into his shell after world-class performances against Arsenal and Bayern Munich have not been disappointed, and the winger has stood up to be counted on. No longer are his contributions a mere glimpse of what he could achieve; four goals and eight assists in the league this season confirm his new-found consistency, and follow on from an impressive finish to last season.

The key to Nani’s form seems to be the faith that Ferguson has shown in him to play a pivotal role in the post-Cristiano Ronaldo team. In his outburst a year ago, Nani commented that despite the strength of a performance, the lack of a guaranteed start next time around “shatters your confidence.”

With one Portuguese winger winning the Ballon d’Or at United whilst the other kicked his heels on the touchline, there was the feeling that Nani was simply ‘Ronaldo-lite’; a less effective imitation of the finished article. The comparisons were rightly unfair, as anyone save for a certain diminutive Argentinean would fall short of the impossibly high standards set by ‘CR7’, but Nani is fast becoming his own man, imploring: “I am Nani and not Cristiano Ronaldo.” Competition from the dependable Antonio Valencia for the right-sided position has undoubtedly improved his consistency, and the timing of the Ecuadorian’s unfortunate injury has coincided with Nani’s most impressive run on form to date.

The winger has shown that his confidence comes from playing, and the bigger the better: “I want to be one of the best. I'm not scared to play in the big games; they are the most beautiful in football.” Nani has always had an abundance of natural ability, but it seems as though he has finally learned how, and when to use it, to the disappointment of defenders and goalkeepers everywhere.

In the wake of steep debt and an uncertain future, the shadow of Ronaldo’s success may still loom over Old Trafford, but Nani is intent on stepping out from underneath it, and becoming the only Portuguese wing-wonder that United fans chant for.