Looking for the next bright young thing out of Brazil? The crowd at Wednesday's Copa America match between Haiti and the Seleção in Orlando might have gotten a sneak preview.
Gabriel Barbosa Almeida, better known as Gabriel or simply “Gabigol,” came off the bench to score Brazil's fourth goal in a 7-1 thumping of the overmatched islanders. The composed finish will only amplify the growing hype around the 19-year-old striker who rose from humble circumstances to score more than 600 goals as he progressed through the youth system at Santos, Pele's old club.
The transfer gossip pages have linked Gabriel to the likes of Manchester United, Juventus and Arsenal, and many Brazilians are eager to see what he can do as a featured member of the Olympic squad that will hunt gold on home soil later this summer. He's been dubbed “the new Neymar,” and will get a chance to team up with the FC Barcelona superstar for that tournament in August.
US fans may recall that Gabriel tormented the US U-23 squad that played two friendlies vs. Brazil as part of their preparations for Olympic qualifying earlier this year, scoring twice in the second of two Brazilian wins: 2-1 in Recife and 5-1 in Belem.
Gabriel also scored in his national-team debut last month, a friendly win over Panama at the Colorado Rapids' Dick's Sporting Goods Park home.
