Sandro earns spurs in elite company at Tottenham

Sandro earns spurs in elite company at Tottenham

When one Sandro Ranieri Guimarães Cordeiro arrived from Brazil at Tottenham last August, his vocabulary did not extend beyond two words: hello and goodbye. Yet the big smile that was permanently on his face quickly convinced club staff that the settling-in process would be smooth.

Earning his spurs: Sandro was outstanding in the holding role against AC Milan Photo: Reuters

By Jeremy Wilson 11:10PM GMT 10 Mar 2011

Further reassurance was to be found just as soon as a ball was placed at his feet. No sporting language is more universal than football and, to the rest of the squad, it was obvious that the club’s £6million investment had been astute.

Tottenham fans have had to be more patient. Sensibly, manager Harry Redknapp gradually introduced him into the Premier League and he was not selected in the initial 25-man Champions League squad. Yet there were no doubts about Sandro’s inclusion for the knockout phase and, in brilliantly shielding the defence for their two clean sheets against AC Milan, he has announced himself on the wider stage. It was still only his ninth start for Tottenham.

“He is powerful, strong and aggressive with good feet and he can pass the ball,” said Redknapp. “Like everybody he needed a little run in the team. He has an ability to run and work for 90 minutes. It was a great performance against Milan. He is a young player with a big future.”

Sandro will celebrate his 22nd birthday next Tuesday and, after narrowly missing out on the World Cup squad last year, has been establishing himself in the Brazil national team.

A product of the Internacional academy that also previously produced Falcao and Dunga, the technical skills of Sandro are obvious. Yet it is also his pace and sheer physical presence that suggests he has the potential to become one of the world’s outstanding holding midfielders.

At White Hart Lane on Wednesday, Sandro was superb in cutting off the supply to Robinho, Alexandro Pato and Zlatan Ibrahimovic. Over the two legs, he won his central midfield duel with Clarence Seedorf, a winner of four European Cups.

Given the initial language barrier, it has been natural that he should develop a particularly close relationship with Heurelho Gomes, Tottenham’s Brazilian goalkeeper. Gomes makes the comparison with Dunga, the Brazil captain when they won the 1994 World Cup.

“Sandro is a good player, really quick – it’s a great time for him,” Gomes said. “I think he looks like Dunga when he played in midfield.”

That Sandro was unfazed by such a big occasion should not come as a surprise. Last August, he helped Internacional win the Copa Libertadores — South American football’s equivalent of the Champions League — in front of 56,000 fans. The final against the Mexican club Guadalajara was to be his last match before leaving. Come May, it is just feasible that he could complete a unique double.
Telegraph.feedsportal.com