Anderson will come good

Sir Alex Ferguson is confident Brazilian midfielder Anderson will be a success at Old Trafford despite enduring a somewhat subdued debut.

The 19-year-old, who has already been compared to international team-mate Ronaldinho, made his first competitive appearance for the Reds in the 1-0 win over Sunderland at the weekend, but struggled to make an impact during his 45-minute run-out.

Sir Alex has no doubts about Anderson's talent, insisting he simply needs a little more time to settle into England's top flight.

"He'll take time. He's 19 years of age and is a player with great skill, I'm sure he'll be okay," said the Reds' manager.

"I thought he found it difficult against Sunderland because of the speed of the game and the way they set their stall out made it difficult for us.

"Also if you look at the four that played - Anderson, Eagles, Tevez and Nani - they've never played with each other.

"But we were pleased to get 45 minutes behind Anderson. Hopefully, the two weeks before the Everton game will give him a chance to improve."

Anderson played just over an hour of the Reserves' 3-1 defeat at Manchester City on Tuesday night. Having been omitted from the Brazilian squad for their friendlies against USA and Mexico, the midfielder will spend the next ten days sharpening up his fitness ahead of United's next league match at Everton on Saturday week.