The Brazilian won January's Player-of-the-Month award for January after being recognised by fans for his fine recent performances, and he’s also impressed Carrick – who knows a thing or two about playing in central midfield himself.
“I think he’s done great,” the 38-year-old told us at our winter training camp in Marbella.
“It’s not always easy, I think history tells you that. When you look through the pages of this club, when new signings have come in, sometimes it takes a little time to adapt, you know that, and it doesn’t mean they’re not good players or they don’t have real good quality in their play.