Will Alves already seems to be making an impression on Cardiff City fans, pundits and the manager following his debut at the weekend.
Alves came off the bench in Cardiff’s FA Cup win against Stoke City on Saturday as the Bluebirds beat their Championship rivals on penalties.
Iwan Roberts has compared Alves to Harvey Barnes, who followed a similar development path before being introduced into the Leicester first team.
Cardiff fans also waxed lyrical about Alves after his eye-catching debut as the 19-year-old played on both sides of the wing in just his sixth senior appearance in football.
Cardiff manager singles out Will Alves for debut performance
His directness and willingness to beat the man stood out for Cardiff experts as journalist Paul Abbandonato wrote: “I’ve got to say my first impression of Alves is that he’s exactly what Cardiff have been crying out for. Fast, direct, skilful, ready to race to the byline.”
There is every chance he could start against Portsmouth on Tuesday night but Cardiff manager Omer Riza revealed that due to his lack of game time after a return from an ACL injury, they did have doubts about signing.
Riza, who worked with the youngster in the England youth setup, decided to take a chance and it’s already paid off.
He said: “We need players who have frightening pace that can scare the opposition. Will can do that. He needs to be weaned in, he’s not played a lot of senior football and maybe not a lot of managers would have taken a punt on someone with his profile at the moment.
“But I’ve worked with him and know what he’s got and the character he is. It’s nice to give people the opportunity and hope they will repay you with energy, intensity and respect. I’m sure he will do that and be very impactful, he is a very exciting young player who fans will really like.”
Does Will Alves have a future at Leicester City?
It’s over three years since Alves made his debut for the Foxes, becoming one of Leicester’s youngest ever players to represent the club.
The 19-year-old has been touted to become a future star but has seen opportunities limited and after a lengthy spell on the sidelines with and ACL injury, has had to get back up to speed.
If Leicester were to find themselves back in the Championship, the chances of Alves featuring for the club would be a lot higher.
He looks ready to play senior, competitive football week-in-week-out now and should he impress for the rest of the season in South Wales, Van Nistelrooy may decide that now is the time to unleash his talents.