Man United legend admits he fears for young assets development

Man United legend admits he fears for young assets development

Manchester United have started the season in fantastic form, winning all three of their matches so far, and new signings Romelu Lukaku and Nemanja Matic have settled into the side fantastically; helping the Red Devils look like a Championship winning side.

Jose Mourinho’s team had their fair share of problems last season, shown by their sixth-placed finish in the Premier League, but their flashes of brilliance in the cup competitions now seem to have been transferred into more consistent performances in the league.

The Red Devils do have an abundance of talent though and keeping their squad happy may be a concern, especially with young starlets like Marcus Rashford and Anthony Martial enduring limited opportunities.


Jose Mourinho has elected to utilise Romelu Lukaku ahead of the pair this season, unsurprisingly, but the return of Zlatan Ibrahimovic means that Rashford, in a crucial World Cup year, may find himself third-choice in the striker’s pecking order.

That’s led Manchester United legend Ryan Giggs to admit he’s concerned about the Three Lions ace’s development at the club, as he feels he won’t get too many opportunities in his preferred central position.

“Like you say, he’s not going to play centre-forward of United too often with Lukaku, Ibrahimovic as well. For England with Kane, he’s not going to play centre-forward. He can definitely play out wide, but eventually he’s going to be a No 9.”

“I see similarities with Thierry Henry myself, he’s brilliant off the left. Even if he’s playing centre-forward, he drifts off to the left where you can take players on either side. But then, if he’s not played centre-forward a lot and all of a sudden Kane gets injured and you ask him to play up front, he can do it.”
Whilst showing versatility isn’t a bad thing, Rashford may find himself in a position where he doesn’t get opportunities in his favoured position due to the fact Lukaku is just 24 and looks set to dominate Manchester United’s front-line for the foreseeable future.The concern is that he could become another Danny Welbeck, showing the ability to be a home-grown hero at Old Trafford but failing to get the regular football he needs and ending up seeking a move elsewhere in the Premier League.