Felipe Anderson

Footballer Felipe Anderson moved through the ranks of Brazilian club football before signing for Italian side Lazio where he gained a reputation as one of the modern game's paciest attacking midfielders. Born in Santa Maria in 1993, Anderson played for local side CPMIND at the age of six and after hitting his teens, moved to various clubs including Federal FC, Sport Clube Recreativo Gaminha FC, Astral EC and Coritiba. In 2007, Anderson signed to Brasileirao team Santos, and after impressing with his performances in the youth side, made the step up to the senior squad three years later. By the end of the 2011-12 season, Anderson had established himself as a regular, making 35 appearances during a league campaign in which Santos finished a respectable eighth place. Anderson's consistent form inevitably attracted attention from several European clubs, and after lengthy negotiations, he eventually signed to Serie A side Lazio in 2013 for a €7.8 million fee. Anderson took some time to adapt to the slower-paced Italian style of play, scoring just once in his first season there. But he proved to be an instrumental figure in the following 2014-15 campaign, netting 11 times in 37 appearances to help guide Lazio to a Coppa Italia final, a third-place league finish and Champions League qualification. Having played a handful of games for the U-20 and U-21 national side, Anderson then made the leap to the senior Brazil team when he came on a sub during a 2015 friendly against Mexico. Anderson then remained a Lazio ever-present during the 2015-16 Serie A season in which he was also constantly linked with a big-money move to Manchester United.