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Former Barcelona Winger Set for Second Trial
Former Barcelona Winger Set for Second Trial
Saturday, 27th Sep 2008 11:00

TWTD understands that former Barcelona winger Nano could be the man to solve the Blues' left midfield problems. The 26-year-old has already spent time on trial at Playford Road and has been asked back for a second spell.

Nano, real name Fernando Macedo da Silva, made a big impact as a youngster with Barcelona's B side and even broke into the first team as a teenager in the 1999/00 season, making one sub appearance.

The La Coruña-born left midfielder spent the next three seasons back in the Barcelona B side, but made three more sub appearances for the first team in 2002/03.

A move to fellow La Liga side Atletico Madrid followed that summer, Nano playing 39 games and scoring six goals in two seasons. The 6ft 1in tall wideman moved on to Getafe for the 2005/06 season, also playing in Spain's top division, but made only eight appearances but still managed two goals.

Nano dropped into the Segunda División B (third tier of Spanish football) when he moved to Cádiz for 2006/07 but left the club after a falling out at the end of last year.

Since then Nano has been unattached and as a free agent would be entitled to join the Blues outside the transfer window if he impresses the Town management during his second trial.

Meanwhile, Town boss Jim Magilton has been awarded his UEFA ‘A' Licence after 180 hours of study over a one-year period.

Magilton, who manages the Blues for the 100th time in the league today, says set pieces were covered extensively on the course and that they are something his side need to work on at both ends of the field: "As part of your ‘A' Licence you have to come up with six defending and six attacking set pieces.

"There is no one more aware than us about the way we are conceding at set plays. It is about each person taking responsibility and doing their jobs.

"We don't score enough from set pieces and we have people who create chances, so Gareth McAuley and Richard Naylor need to get more from set plays.”

Magilton has already started working for his UEFA Pro Licence, which again takes a year to complete and involves 240 hours' study.

Elsewhere, Crystal Palace boss Neil Warnock says his side are very much the underdogs ahead of today's game at Portman Road: "We go to Ipswich now, where nobody will give us a prayer and quite rightly so. We've lost three away against Preston, Reading and Wolves. If you look at those three they are all near the top.

"I don't think anybody gave us a chance at Wolves but if we'd have had a striker of any sort we would have won the game.

"We lost four strikers in six days. We can't really overcome that. It's hard enough to get one firing.”

"We've just got to muck in for the next three games. We are bound to be a little bit apprehensive after the recent results. When you are underdogs you've got to start well. We can't go there and just be defensive."


Photo: Action Images



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