I've always wondered why I haven't really warmed to Nani the same way I have to most of our players and I've decided it's because he's the one winger in the club that stands out from the rest in one area - fannying around. Of all the wingers we've had in my lifetime I think he does it to a significant degree more than the rest. Beckham, Kanchelskis, Giggs, Ronaldo, Valencia and Sharpe; they're the only players to establish themselves in the first team out wide during my lifetime, and they were all extremely direct. Sure, Beckham liked fannying about on the halfway line, Giggs would piss about with the ball out wide picking out the wrong ball over and over again and Ronaldo would love his fancy tricks, but they were all single-minded and direct.
Nani beats one man and then another, leaves one on his arse with a fantastic show of balance and then gets to the byline and does the same thing again, on the same player...and even if it is the right choice in the end, it still irritates me in the process of it. Not that I'm trying to justify me not warming to him, and I might well be talking out of my arse there because you could make an argument for every one of them fannying about in some way, because that's what wingers do, and Nani does go straight for the kill plenty. It's just the only explanation I could come up with. Maybe there are just lingering feelings of frustration from when he was at his low point in his career with us, but it seems a bit farfetched given what he's gone on to do for us since then that I'd still hold some sort of grudge. I just warmed to Valencia much easier than I did to Nani and I think it's because he was more like what I was used to.
It just seems a bit ridiculous though when I think about the player that he is, with all of the qualities that he possesses and regularly puts on show, that I don't absolutely love the bloke. He's probably the second most gifted player we've had under Sir Alex in terms of his ability to beat a man, it's remarkable how easily he can cut through a defence these days. He's technically excellent by any standard, with a fantastic first touch, wonderful close control and an excellent shot and cross. He's absolutely rapid with the strength to match, and he works his bollocks off. It just makes no sense why he isn't my favourite player in the squad, really...he just isn't.