Brazil's wonder kid

安德森：巴西小将成为曼联新传奇

IN football, nothing is more valuable than the wonder kid. Managers spend plenty of their time searching for these rare gems (宝石).

Anderson Luis de Abreu Oliveira is one such gem from Brazil. He won the Tuttosport Golden Boy Trophy (奖杯) on December 7. The award is given to the best player in Europe under the age of 21.

Anderson plays for Manchester United and he has already won the Premier League (英超) and the Champions League (冠军联赛) with his team. In fact, Anderson even scored a penalty (点球) in the Champions League final.

"[He is] 20, with the decision-making, position-taking intelligence of a 30-year-old. Short at 1.76m, yet muscular (强健的) and rapid enough to win most physical battles," writes Duncan Castles, reporter with Britain''s The Guardian newspaper.

And Anderson is glowing (焕发) with self-confidence. "Scared? I''ve never been scared of anything," he said. "When the subject is playing football, I''m not scared of anyone. You are there for the football; you are there to have fun, to play."

But in the eyes of Brazilian journalists, Anderson still needs time to mature (成熟). They described him as "arrogant (傲慢的)". "He rolled up to the team''s London hotel in an expensive Audi R9, R&B blaring (鸣响) from the sound system and strode (大踏步) past reporters," they said.

Anderson is honest in his attitude toward money. "Yes, I like money a lot. Who doesn''t?".

Anderson''s father died in 2001 and by the age of 14, his youth-team salary (薪水) in a local club in Brazil supported his mother, sister and two brothers. "I became used to being a man very young. I was 15, but already thinking as if I was 22, 23 or 24 and making very tough decisions about my future. I had to help the family, but that was also a responsibility. And that I still do today and hope to be able to do for my family until I am 60."

Teens 点金

核心词汇

wonder n. 奇才，奇人

He''s a wonder; he can arrange everything well without any help.

rare adj. 罕见的；珍奇的

That bird is very rare in this country.
关键字:工作求职
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