Allan's first City appearance had the arc of a player learning on the job in real time. By the end of it, he had a goal, an assist, and a clearer idea of what English football asks of a winger.
Twenty minutes of hard education
Norwich City's Darlin Yongwa gave him a proper introduction. The left-back shoved him off the ball without much ceremony, and for a spell Allan looked like a player still working out the speed of the game here. That opening quarter of an hour was not kind to him.
What followed was better. He kept running, tracked back when possession went astray, and gradually found his footing. The reward came when his first cross from the right was met by Floyd Samba, whose header opened the scoring. An assist on your debut tends to settle the nerves.
Enzo Maresca had given him the start against Norwich in the third-round Carabao Cup tie, a 5-0 win for City. Allan arrived from Palmeiras in the summer and had waited for his chance. The club's approach with him has been patient, allowing him room to adjust to life in England rather than throwing him in cold.
The switch that unlocked him
City led 2-0 at the break. Early in the second half, Maresca moved Allan from the right flank to the left. The change worked almost immediately. Allan collected the ball on the left, drove at the Norwich defence, worked himself into space, dropped his shoulder and finished left-footed past Daniel Grimshaw to make it 3-0 in the 48th minute.
That was the moment his confidence visibly surged. Everything he had struggled with in the opening exchanges seemed to fall away. Maresca, speaking after the match, was pleased with what he saw.
"I think it was a good performance. It was not easy – the first minutes here at home is always complicated."
He added: "I think it was important for him to play to see a little bit of the English competition is a bit different to South America, so overall, it was good, he scored a goal and an assist – I think he is happy!"
The win sets up a fourth-round Carabao Cup tie against Brighton. For Allan, the night offered a glimpse of what he will bring once he fully adapts: effort out of possession, trickery and elegance in possession. The physicality of English football remains a hurdle, but on this evidence he is a quick study.