“Stayed in his flat”: United flop says Sir Alex Ferguson looked after him “a lot” at Old Trafford

Manchester United have a reputation for picking up relatively unknown talents and turning them into household names. The Red Devils have always relied on youth, and it is a strategy that INEOS has also invested in since taking charge. While some youngsters, such as Cristiano Ronaldo, have worked wonders, there have been others who failed to live up to the hype. One player who raised a lot of eyebrows and subsequently failed to deliver was Bebe. The former Portugal Under-21 international was United’s surprise signing in the summer of 2010. Bebe’s time at the Theatre of Dreams, however, was far from rosy, as the player struggled to come to terms with the rigours of the English top flight. United summer transfers: 2010/11 Season PlayerPositionAgeNat.From ClubLeague BebéLeft Winger20Cape Verde / PortugalVitória Guimarães SCLiga Portugal Chris SmallingCentre-Back20England / JamaicaFulham FCPremier League ChicharitoCentre-Forward22MexicoDeportivo Guadalajara (Chivas)Liga MX Apertura Anders LindegaardGoalkeeper26DenmarkAalesunds FKEliteserien Source: Transfermarkt. He spent most of his time out on loan, before leaving permanently to join Benfica in the summer of 2014. By then, the Cape Verde international had registered just seven appearances for the Red Devils, scoring two goals. Bebe has now reflected on his time with United. No regrets about joining United Speaking to Flashscore, Bebe insisted that he has no regrets about joining United. He said: “I went to England, where, when I arrived, it was considered one of the best teams in the world. It was very difficult for a 21-year-old kid to adapt to the country on his own, and it was very difficult for me.” “I don’t regret it, because things don’t happen twice. Luck doesn’t knock on your door twice. But I think I needed a bit more experience, a bit more games played that I didn’t have yet, but these are experiences that remain with me.” “I learned a lot with a lot of players, with the coach and these are experiences that I keep. As I didn’t have so much experience, I think it took me a while to adapt, but I think that if I had stayed in Portugal playing for one or two more seasons, I would have arrived in a different way, but things happen for a reason, and I don’t regret it.” Bebe’s only goals for United came against Wolverhampton Wanderers in the Premier League and against Bursaspor in the Champions League, both in the 2010/11 season. Proud of working under Sir Alex Ferguson The 35 year old went on to speak fondly about legendary United manager Sir Alex Ferguson. He said: “The day-to-day with me was very good. From the moment I arrived, the first year was a very interesting year because he looked after me a lot. He was always looking after me, he treated me very well during the time I was there.” “The first house I went to, I rented it from him, I stayed in his flat. He looked after me a lot, he gave me a lot of advice on what to do and what not to do.” “He always told me to look at the more experienced players, both on a day-to-day basis, as well as outside, as coaching, but I think being coached by him is like a source of pride and I think many people would like to have been coached by him and so I’m happy about that.” Bebe currently plies his trade in the Primera Federacion Group 2, with Ibiza. His team are ninth in the league table after 35 games, while the player has managed three goals and six assists from 33 games this season. Final Thoughts Bebe’s transfer will go down in United history as one that generated significant excitement among fans, but proved to be an underwhelming saga. The Red Devils have made some questionable decisions in the transfer market in the post-Ferguson era as well. However, INEOS struck gold with their recruitment last summer, and fans will hope they can repeat the trick this year. The Peoples Person has been one of the world’s leading Man United news sites for over a decade. Follow us on Bluesky: @peoplesperson.bsky.social Deepungsu Pandit Deepungsu has been a Manchester United fan since 2000. In his playing days, he was an attacking midfielder with a proclivity for the back heel. Right now, however, he prefers to operate as a regista. Deepungsu has been writing about the Red Devils, Football, and other things since 2009. He has worked for over seven years with Sportskeeda, writing football reviews, opinions and news articles. Deepungsu also maintains a blog, The Thinking Me, where he writes about life and things that interest him. His favourite Manchester United player is Paul Scholes.