Nani tips his protege Ryan Gauld to blossom into a real world-beater

He saw a young boy, aged just 18, trying to find his way in a new country with an unfamiliar language. It reminded him of the days when he first left the Portuguese capital to seek fame and fortune in the English Premier League.

He was two years older than Gauld when Sir Alex Ferguson identified him as a potential successor to Cristiano Ronaldo and carried a significantly heavier price tag of just under £20m. All the same, he was aware of the buzz created by Sporting's decision to commit a fee of around £3m to signing a largely unknown talent from Scotland and tie him down on a six-year contract with a 60m euro buy-out clause.

He now understands why there was such excitement about this little laddie from Laurencekirk, hardly the height of nonsense and with only around 50 first-team appearances under his belt for Dundee United.

Now that Gauld is involved in the first-team set-up after six months spent finding his feet in the 'B' team, Nani wants him on his side in training. He senses a special relationship developing between them on the park and is enjoying the benefits of a friendship already well and truly forged.

With Gauld having now made five appearances for the 'A' squad in all competitions this season and likely to be on the substitutes' bench for this Sunday's visit to FC Porto, his dressing-room mentor believes there is no limit to the progress the Scotland Under-21 midfielder can make in the weeks and months ahead.

"When I arrived, I heard all the stories about him and I wanted to see him and then come to a conclusion," said Nani. "After I saw him play, I knew he was a good investment.

"I have taken him under my wing. I am a person who appreciates Scottish and English football.

"The mentality is different, the football is quicker and I like this style. He has a little bit of that and that's why, when we train, I want him to play with me on the same team because he understands my movements. We always do well together.

"We have a very good relationship. I try to help him and give him advice.

"I know what it is like to be young and alone and outside your country because I had that when I was his age.

"I know you need someone to help and give advice and motivation when you are a bit down, so it's good.

"I don't think he needs a lot of help outside of the club, though. He already understands a lot of Portuguese and I think he is well-organised.

"We have become very, very good friends. I wanted to help him because I saw that, although he is a very young player, he is very clever.

"He is humble and wants to listen to what you say. He has shown already that he wants to learn."

Gauld has been utilised as a substitute in a couple of league matches and scored twice in a League Cup defeat to Belenenses last month. He has been receiving favourable reviews with Nani, a veteran of the Champions League with United and two European Championship finals competitions with Portugal, in no doubt of his ability to develop into a player capable of reaching the higher echelons of the game.

"Of course he can play at the very top level," he exclaimed. "He has time to learn a lot.

"For his age, he is already doing some very good stuff on the pitch against very experienced players and you can see there is potential.

"The improvement he has made since I came here is great and he can play on the team now and make the difference. He has played in two games and he did very well.

"He is faster and more confident about his game now. He always had the quality, but he was not confident in the past, but that is improving with every game and training session. He scored goals in the cup and is doing very well.

"I think, in the future, he will be a top, top player."

It seems silly to ask whether he believes Gauld will become a prominent figure within the Scotland national squad in the not-too-distant future.

"Of course," he replied. "I think he will be there in one or two more years. For sure."

The more technical style of Portuguese football would appear the perfect place for Gauld to learn his trade. He has spent his time at Sporting indulging in regular gym sessions to build up his physique and is already showing clear signs of understanding the defensive duties necessary when performing in a league in which the opposition place great emphasis on retaining possession.

He is, of course, the smallest member of the Sporting squad at a little under 5ft 7in, but Nani insists that will be no handicap whatsoever when he is approaching his football in such a thoughtful, studious and committed way.

"I think being smaller is an advantage sometimes," he said. "He is clever and strong. He can hold the ball, turn, pass, control the game and he's fast with the ball at his feet."

Nani, speaking ahead of this weekend's clash between Sporting Lisbon and Porto which is live on BT Sport this Sunday, is certainly someone for Gauld to look up to. He is enjoying a fine season in the Primeira Liga and relishing the opportunity to play regularly after struggling with injury last season and being regarded as surplus to requirements following the arrival of Louis van Gaal.

"We used to play as a very attacking team with four players up front and we used to score a lot of goals in every game," he said. "Now, we are a more compact team and more organised, but we are not scoring goals like we used to.

"Of course I miss Manchester. I was there for eight years. It is my home. My son was born there.

"I love Man United. I love the club and the only reason I went away was to play more and be me again because I lost a lot of things there last season because of injuries and the change in managers. I had to play more to be happy."

*Porto v Sporting Lisbon is live on ESPN at 7.15pm this Sunday. BT Sport brings fans multiple live games from Portugal's Primeira Liga every week as part of a European football line-up including UEFA Europa League, Germany's Bundesliga, France's Ligue 1 and Italy's Serie A, alongside top-flight British football from the Barclays Premier League and the FA Cup.