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Tadious Manyepo

Sports Reporter

REAL Betis Academy Zimbabwe have settled to serious business by recruiting a Brazilian teenager who could ply his trade in the domestic Premiership.

Eighteen-year-old Bernardo Ribeiro, and a Ghanaian of a similar age, Patrick Oshiah, were unveiled by the Spanish Laliga-backed nursery, in Harare, yesterday.

The Brazilian midfielder, like Oshiah, is coming from the TFA Academy in the United Arab Emirates.

The UAE academy recently partnered with their Zimbabwe counterparts.

“I honestly think that this is the right place for me to flourish as a player,’’ said Ribeiro.

“I think I can develop more as a player and come to be noticed by professional clubs overseas.

“I am a Brazilian and I have played for some of the best academies back home, including Boa Vista and Campo Grande, as well as Albatroz SC in Latvia, before I settled at Dubai TFA.

“I just hope that this would be my last stop before I cross to big teams.

“I am a huge fan of Neymar and I play more like him but I should admit that I still have a long way to go.

“I am here to learn and, through the intensive methodologies used by Real Betis Academy, I am sure I will gain a lot as a player.” Oshiah is also eyeing a dance in the local top-flight league.

“I am happy to be in Zimbabwe and I know there are several players from my country who have played in this country in the past,’’ he said. “That gives me confidence that I will be able to develop as a player.

“I am here to learn as you know learning is a continuous process.

“I have been with Twifu Mampong FC before I went to TFA in Dubai where I am coming from.

“I believe I will enhance my skills here and, hopefully, fulfil my dreams of playing in Europe.”

Real Betis Academy Zimbabwe chairman, Gerald Sibanda, said the signing of the two foreigners signals a new chapter, in the life, of the development project.

“Exciting times are coming for the project. This is just the beginning in our thrust to attract raw talent from across the globe,” he said. “We have enlisted TFA in the UAE, from which these two are coming, as our feeder academy.

“We are saying those who would be ready for the bigger stage will come here for some fine-tuning before they can find their way to bigger clubs, including Real Betis.

“We are looking at the bigger picture. We are developing local talent as well, as well as looking across the world.

“We want to be the go-to academy.’’

He said they were borrowing from La Liga side Real Betis.

“We use exactly the same methodology, which is used by La Liga side Real Betis Football Club, and that makes us an academy of choice. “You never know, these two, Ribeiro and Oshiah ,could be attached to our local Premiership clubs as a way of continuous development and exposure to more competitive action.”