Nani signed for Manchester United from Sporting CP in 2007. Sometimes on the shy side, the 20-year-old was attracted in part by compatriots and Portuguese speakers already being at Old Trafford.
Cristiano Ronaldo had made the same move from Lisbon and helped Nani to settle in England, where he would go on to win four Premier League titles and the Champions League.
Sir Alex Ferguson was the architect of Nani's United successes. Now 39, the former Portugal winger recalls the impressive but welcoming nature of the Scot's Man United dressing room.
Nani on signing for Manchester United
Nani moved to the Premier League for a reported fee in the region of £17.5 million, a price tag that came with serious expectations even without taking into account the in-built competition with Ronaldo.
The Lisbon-born future European Championship winner largely lived up to his billing even if many Red Devils supporters left feeling he could have had an even bigger impact. In all, Nani scored 40 times in 230 appearances in all competitions before returning to Sporting on loan in 2014.
“My agent, Jorge Mendes, presented me with the possibility of going to United,” Nani tells FourFourTwo when asked about his switch to Manchester.
"He told me, I suppose to help convince me, that Cristiano [Ronaldo], Carlos Queiroz and other Portuguese were already there, and that Alex Ferguson really believed in young players. I didn’t hesitate for long – I told him I was interested.
"Many clubs were interested in me. My agent told me about Real Madrid, Juventus, Bayern Munich, Arsenal, Chelsea… There were stories in the newspapers every week, but I hadn’t paid much attention to them – I knew a lot of those things weren’t true.
"When I finally signed for Manchester United though, I realised the interest had been real. People from different clubs came up to me, saying, 'We were following you.'"
United was the destination that made the most sense at the time and there's no doubt it proved a fulfilling move for Nani, who was quickly made to feel at home.
"When I arrived, I was struck by the atmosphere in the dressing room – so many stars with strong personalities, but also warm and welcoming people," the former winger tells FourFourTwo.
"That helped me to adapt enormously. The first people to greet me at United were Cristiano, who I already knew from the national team, as well as Anderson and Carlos Queiroz.
"It was easier to communicate with them as we all spoke Portuguese. During those first few days at the club I spent a lot of time with them, learning what life in Manchester was like, and I even spent some time living at Cristiano’s house."
Nani went on to play in Portugal, Turkey, Italy, Spain, Australia and the USA. At the beginning of 2026, he came out of retirement to sign for Aktobe in Kazakhstan.
