The 21-year-old signed a deal with the club on January 2 and pictures have emerged of him training with the first team today ahead of the 3rd round FA Cup clash.
The central defender arrived on an undisclosed fee thought to be around £1.2 million from Danish club Silkeborg, where he has spent the past three-and-a-half years and made 48 senior appearances.
It makes a lot of sense should he start or appear as a sub with the manager keen to give himself an opportunity of running the rule over his fourth signing ahead of Premier League action.
In his first interview on joining the club Alves said “I’m feeling very excited and I can’t wait to get started. I was very excited to hear that a big team from the Premier League was interested and I’m very glad to be getting an opportunity at this Club.
“My plan is to join up and train with the squad in January and, from there, to work hard so that I can play with the first team.
“I have great respect for the senior defenders here and I am the young one, so I am going to learn as much as I can from them because they are more experienced and know how the Premier League works. I am here to learn..”
It could be argued that this match gives an opportunity for him to start the learning process although nothing is a given of course when discussing Moyes’ various team selections.