Forward of his return to Manchester United within the FA Cup this weekend, Fulham midfielder Andreas Pereira talks completely to Opta Analyst.
Laborious work comes naturally to Andreas Pereira, which might be simply as nicely given the assorted challenges he has confronted in his profession.
It hasn’t been the smoothest path to the place he’s now – within the hunt for European soccer and FA Cup glory at Fulham as one of many Premier League’s most inventive midfielders, and hoping to go to the 2026 World Cup with Brazil. When Sir Alex Ferguson satisfied him to hitch Manchester United as an adolescent approach again in 2011, he would have been forgiven for dreaming of even greater issues.
However following nearly 11 years on United’s books, it appeared as if his dream of taking part in in England is likely to be over. He had made his first-team debut in 2014, however after simply 36 begins for United and 75 aggressive appearances in complete, he lastly ended his time in Manchester in 2022. Mortgage spells in Spain, Italy and at last Brazil, the place he helped Flamengo to Copa Libertadores glory, appeared to sign that this sizzling prospect had not fulfilled the huge potential he had proven in his youthful years and must go away England behind.
However then, following Fulham’s promotion to the Premier League, got here a telephone name from Marco Silva that rescued the midfielder’s dream.
“I all the time felt a robust connection right here,” Pereira tells Opta Analyst. “I all the time needed to return again. It was the primary nation I’d left my house nation for, so it felt like a house, too.
“I all the time had the arrogance I may play right here, however it was nonetheless a particular second [to receive that phone call] as a result of Marco was the one who believed in me to start with and he was the one who gave me the chance to return again.”
It’s an opportunity that Pereira, now 29, is determined to profit from.
He has been a key a part of a Fulham crew who’ve established themselves as an actual pressure within the prime flight, barely entertaining any risk of relegation within the three seasons since promotion. The plight of the promoted golf equipment each final season and this proves simply how huge an achievement Fulham’s is. Solely Bernd Leno and Antonee Robinson have performed extra minutes or made extra appearances for Fulham in that point than Pereira.
He has performed most of these minutes as essentially the most superior of the midfield three, though the arrival of Emile Smith Rowe from Arsenal final summer time has restricted his alternatives there this time period. However, since Fulham’s promotion, solely 5 gamers in the entire Premier League have created extra possibilities than him (186).
The checklist of these 5 gamers – Bruno Fernandes, Martin Ødegaard, Bukayo Saka, Kevin De Bruyne and Mohamed Salah – is a who’s who of the Premier League’s greatest creators. Pereira confirmed precisely what he can do together with his newest help within the win at Wolves in midweek, a neat by way of ball for Ryan Sessegnon’s opening aim inside the primary minute of the sport.
“I take pleasure in creating alternatives for my teammates,” Pereira says. “It’s what I take pleasure in most on the pitch.
“I don’t actually take discover of the numbers, however I all the time need to be in that form of bracket of gamers. I don’t like to check myself, however I need to be up there with one of the best. I all the time watch movies of gamers like Bruno and De Bruyne, to try to simulate what they’re doing.
“I performed with Bruno for some time and I all the time have a look at De Bruyne’s motion, how he will get into area to create possibilities, so I all the time watch these sorts of video clips.”
If there have been to be a criticism of Pereira, it will in all probability be that he tries to drag off troublesome passes too typically, however presumably that isn’t one thing Silva needs to curb an excessive amount of for concern of dampening his total impression on video games.
A lot of Pereira’s most important inventive output, nevertheless, comes through his depraved supply at set-pieces.
Useless balls are part of the sport that haven’t all the time been essentially the most celebrated or thought-about essentially the most glamorous, and the Brazilian has his forward-thinking father, Marcos – a former skilled footballer himself – to thank for his set-piece excellence.
“It’s one thing that began for me some time in the past,” Pereira says. “My father was all the time on me, saying with the method I had I ought to take higher corners, take higher free-kicks, so I began to practise loads.”
Fulham are reaping the advantages. Pereira is prime of the pile within the Premier League for a number of various inventive set-piece metrics. Since he joined Fulham, he has created extra possibilities from corners (90) and extra possibilities from all dead-ball conditions (104) than every other Premier League participant. He’s additionally prime for the variety of his corners which have been transformed into objectives with the primary contact following his supply (9), and is second solely to Saka (20) for the overall variety of objectives his teammates have scored following his corners (18).
“Right here at Fulham, Marco put me on corners immediately, and we all the time practise them,” Pereira says. “We’re dialled in to make them work. And we even have numerous unbelievable folks going to go the ball, which makes my job simpler.”
Set-piece coaches are very a lot in vogue, however Fulham, who rank fifth within the Premier League for objectives from corners because the begin of 2022-23, make do with out one. Pereira makes creating possibilities from them sound far simpler than the picture of meticulous set-piece planning that we frequently see projected within the Premier League as of late.
“There’s no designated set-piece coach,” says Pereira. “There’s somebody that helps – an analyst who I communicate to about the place it’s potential to place the ball, the place it’s simpler to place the ball, and we work out one of the best choices – however Marco remains to be in cost. He oversees all the pieces and makes the selections.
“We have now sure areas that I do know will be harmful, however usually I communicate to at least one participant who I do know goes to run right into a sure space and I attempt to put it on his head.”
Whereas most golf equipment have a choice for inswinging corners and some lean in direction of outswingers, switching between left- and right-footers relying on which facet of the pitch the nook is on, Fulham have an nearly completely equal break up between the 2. They’re nearer to 50%-50% on this regard than every other ever-present crew since they have been promoted, and that’s just because Pereira takes their corners on each side, so helpful is his supply.
There’s far more to the trendy sport for a inventive midfielder than probability creation, although, and Pereira’s work ethic has helped him reach that regard. He had it made clear early on at United exactly what was required from him out of possession.
“Urgent is one thing that I realized once I got here to England,” he says. “I used to be taking part in within the PSV [Eindhoven] youth academy and I didn’t actually do a number of urgent there, however once I went to United, I had a coach referred to as Warren Joyce, who confirmed me movies of Wayne Rooney and Carlos Tevez and the way they ran after the ball.
“He helped me recognise I needed to simulate that kind of starvation, to be the form of participant who can provoke a press. And also you noticed what number of objectives they scored immediately from profitable the ball excessive up the pitch.
“I had the technical capacity, so I believed it will be a good suggestion to attempt to put that into my sport. From that second on I began to run extra.”
Since transferring to Fulham, Pereira ranks among the many prime 20 gamers within the Premier League for pressures, pressures within the center third of the pitch, pressures within the last third of the pitch, pressures leading to a turnover, pressures within the last third leading to a turnover, and distance coated whereas urgent. His tactical understanding and skill to guide a press is one thing Silva has spoken about publicly, and when he doesn’t play, it’s typically obvious that Fulham are much less efficient with their press.
Silva obsesses over each little element when his crew performs – “a perfectionist”, as Pereira places it – and clearly likes the Brazilian partially for his capacity to hold out his directions with out the ball, however he additionally needs his attackers to play with some freedom. He has completed an distinctive job, and has Fulham heading in the right direction for considered one of their best ever seasons, ninth within the Premier League and simply 4 factors off fifth place.
The Opta supercomputer offers them a 3.2% probability of ending within the prime 5 which, as issues stand, is prone to be sufficient for Champions League qualification.
“3.2%? So, there’s a probability!” says Pereira. “We all know Champions League [qualification] can be troublesome, however we dream of a European spot, we need to push for that. We simply push sport to sport, however it’s undoubtedly at the back of our minds, for positive.”
Extra instantly, Fulham face the small matter of a visit to United within the FA Cup fifth spherical this weekend, which implies a return to his former membership for Pereira.
“It’s all the time a particular feeling to return to Outdated Trafford, the place I referred to as house for lots of years,” he says. “It’s all the time a particular sport for me.”
Does he really feel he has one thing to show there?
“I don’t assume I obtained my full probability to play and present my high quality once I was there. Fulham gave me that chance, they did all the pieces for me, and I need to do all the pieces for them. So, at any time when I play at Outdated Trafford, I need to present that United made a mistake.”
It’s a daring assertion, notably given Fulham have such a horrible file towards the present FA Cup holders. Regardless of their present malaise, United have nonetheless managed to do the league double over Fulham this season, recording 1-0 wins in August and January.
However there nonetheless might by no means be a greater time to face United, who’ve misplaced 13 video games in all competitions this season and are struggling terribly with accidents in the meanwhile, a state of affairs that wasn’t helped by Patrick Dorgu’s crimson card towards Ipswich in midweek and subsequent three-match ban. What’s extra, Fulham arguably didn’t need to lose both assembly with United and can take confidence from these video games regardless of shedding each.
With so many huge groups already out of the FA Cup this season, a door has been opened to somebody like Fulham springing an upset. It will be the membership’s first main trophy, however why shouldn’t this be the 12 months they lastly finish their wait?
“We take into consideration going far within the FA Cup,” Pereira says. “We all know it’s going to be troublesome, however it’s undoubtedly one thing we dream of.”
This present crop is a vastly thrilling Fulham crew that has followers questioning if they will do one thing actually particular this season. It will be a really historic achievement, however one which Pereira has helped make potential.
In the event that they beat United on Sunday, these goals will transfer that bit nearer to actuality.
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