Jets sign Brazilian Ribeiro
6 August 2012 07:34
Newcastle Jets have announced the signing of Brazilian midfielder Bernardo Ribeiro.
Ribeiro, who counts Flamengo, Italian side Catania and Skenderbeu Korce of Albania as his former clubs, will arrive in Australia later this week before joining the Jets squad.
Newcastle manager Gary van Egmond was delighted to have signed the 22-year-old attacking midfielder.
"His junior football was at Flamengo and he's obviously been really well schooled over there," van Egmond said.
"He was at Catania for six months and it was only because of a couple of issues with his permit that he wasn't able to play much there.
"He'll get a good part of the pre-season with us which is excellent for him to have a chance to see how we do things and for us to see how we can best utilise him.
"All our discussions with Bernardo have been very positive and he is an ambitious player who is coming here with exactly the right mentality."
Van Egmond sees Ribeiro fitting into Newcastle's impressive squad 'in the middle of the park or in a wide area' and is excited about the potential impact Ribeiro could have on the A-League.
The Rio de Janeiro-born player holds an Italian passport and made 12 appearances for Skenderbeu Force in all competitions last season, scoring twice.
