That’s the opinion of Sven-Goran Eriksson, who has started the 26-year-old in both games since signing him from Shakhtar Donetsk, but most notably in Saturday’s superb 2-0 win at Upton Park.
Elano outpaced Matthew Upson to set up Rolando Bianchi’s opening goal, and the City boss likes what he has seen from him both in matches and on the training field.
Sven says: “I think he’s a fantastic player, I had seen him before the Copa America but in those games he was absolutely incredible. If you are a great player on that stage, you can play anywhere in the world. He has vision, technique, but he’s also working very hard.
“Physically, he’s very strong – he’s not Micah Richards, but he’s not weak! He can cope with the Premier League, I’m sure of it.
“He had not really trained since the end of the Copa America, and he’s had just one full week with us, so of course he will get better. The same goes for Corluka, Geovanni and Bojinov, they need to catch up if you like but we have started them off.”
The Blues are preparing for the visit of Derby on Wednesday night, but even with the three points from Upton Park in the bag Sven is warning against complacency.
“I told the players after West Ham that Wednesday will be another very difficult game, and there are absolutely no guarantees to win any game in the Premier League. We’ve had a good start and we will look to build on it on Wednesday. Who knows what might happen on Wednesday, but I hope that we can keep on playing good football.”
