Official - Alexandre Pato to Milan

Got this article from the [url]www.theworldgame.com.au..... good read....

'Duck' making a big splash - PA Sport



With Internacional recently crowned, in FIFA's eyes at least, as the best club in the world, it seems unusual to talk of wonderkid Alexandre Pato moving on to bigger and better things.

But while the Brazilian outfit's victory over UEFA Champions League winners Barcelona in the Club World Cup final may long stand as one of the finest-ever achievements by a Campeonato Brasileiro side, for Pato it may just be the start.

The 17-year-old is the latest in a long and illustrious line of Brazilian prodigies who have found themselves hailed as the next big thing and with some illustrious predecessors - Ronaldo, Ronaldinho, Adriano - still looming large on the world stage, the focus on Pato will only increase.

Despite only making his debut last month against Palmeiras, Pato - nicknamed 'Alex the Duck' - made a big enough impact in Japan to crank the expectation level up even further.

He scored once and set up the other three goals as Internacional crushed their opponents 4-1 in that game but coach Abel Braga has moved quickly to deflect attention from the teenager.

"We are trying to take away any pressure," the coach said. "He knows he needs to be free of pressure. "

"He's just a 17-year-old boy and I'd like to leave him as he is. Leave the boy so he can play on the pitch."

Shielding Pato from the glare of the world's media may become a thankless task.

He has continued to progress since his maiden appearance and was one of Internacional's stars as they beat Egyptian outfit Al Ahly in the semi-final of the Club World Cup, scoring the opening goal and causing no end of problems in the final third.

He also found himself in the starting line up against Spanish giants Barca in the final.

Although it was Pato's replacement, Adriano, who eventually grabbed the winner the young forward more than held his own against some of the best defenders in Europe and carved out a handful of early chances for the underdogs.

Such eye-catching displays are likely to draw admiring glances from clubs in Spain, Italy and even the Netherlands - where Ronaldo started his European career with PSV Eindhoven - but at the moment Braga is keen to ensure he develops in to a major player for Internacional.

"In order for him to become a regular player on our team he needs to have good technique and skill and we are in a very good environment at the moment," Braga said.

"He's a boy and sometimes he's childish but his presence is a positive thing. When we have interviews they put too much pressure on him. I would like to avoid that. Someday he will appear in front of you but please wait for that."

Club captain Fernandao stressed that he and his team-mates were doing all they could to allow Pato to concentrate on his game.

"He's very skilful and the way we support him is by reducing the amount of pressure on him," he said.

"I'm sure he has the skill and the talent to decide a game but we don't want him to feel that this is his responsibility."

"Even if he's a young boy he's welcome in the team. We don't feel he is nervous. He is kind of childish in a way as he has a lot of humour and he always plays around."

"He is a member of the national Under-18 team and he is already an experienced player and if he is calm, I feel calm too."

With Pato rapidly emerging as one of world football's hottest new talents, keeping everyone else calm could be the hard part.


Last modified: 21 December 2006 05:59:30