Name |
Tiago Manuel Dias Correia |
Height |
6 ft 3 in |
Naionality |
Portuguese |
Date of Birth |
12 July 1990 |
Place of Birth |
Agualva-Cacem, Portugal |
Famous for |
Football Player |
Tiago Manuel Dias Correia better known by his nickname Bebe, is a Portuguese footballer who currently plays as a striker for Rio Ave, on loan from Manchester United. On 11 August 2010, only five weeks after he signed for Vitoria de Guimaraes, Manchester United agreed an undisclosed fee with the Portuguese club for the transfer of Bebe.
The fee was reported to be around £7.4 million, believed to be the value of the buy-out clause in the forward's contract, though reports in Portugal later claimed the fee was €9 million, of which the agent company GestiFute received €3.5 million (included agent fee) and the club only received €5.5 million (about 60%), as third-party ownership is allowed in Portugal. It was also reported that Real Madrid and Benfica were interested in him. Bebe was recommended to Manchester United manager Alex Ferguson by Portugal national team coach Carlos Queiroz, Ferguson's former assistant. Ferguson only met him the day before the transfer. On 12 August, David Gill announced that Bebe would not be sent out on loan; instead, he would work with the first-team squad to prove his worth and to learn English. The transfer was completed on 16 August, following Bebe's medical and the submission of the appropriate paperwork, and he was unveiled to the media at a press conference the following day, along with fellow new signings Javier Hernández and Chris Smalling.
Bebe was a Portugal under-19 international. In August 2010, Bebe was called up to the under-21 squad for the first time for their 2011 European under-21 qualifiers against England and Macedonia in early September. He made his debut for the under-21s, playing as a lone striker in their 1–0 loss to England on 4 September. He then scored his first goal for the under-21 side three days later in their final qualifying game against Macedonia, scoring the first in a 3–1 win. On 9 August 2011, while playing for Portugal under-21 team in a friendly match against Slovakia, Bebe suffered a cruciate ligament injury to his left knee and he was expected to be out for six months.