“He’s a warrior”: 17yo United wonderkid has reinvented himself in deeper role, could open the door to first team promotion

Manchester United’s U21s pulled off a stunning 2-1 win over local rivals Manchester City last weekend, extending their winning run.

Travis Binnion’s side have won all three of their PL2 games this season, with Chido Obi opening the scoring against City before Amir Ibragimov netted the winner in the 83rd minute from a Shea Lacey cross.

JJ Gabriel has been stealing all the spotlight recently, and rightly so, but Ibragimov is one talent who seems to have gone under the radar a little bit.

The 17-year-old has been on fire in this campaign, netting a goal in each of his four appearances, including three in three for the U18s and the winner in the U21 Manchester derby after coming on as a substitute.

Ibragimov on fire

The fact that he can all across the midfield and out wide is a bonus, with Binnion using him in a slightly withdrawn role on Sunday.

After the game, the coach spoke to The Manchester Evening News, and praised his intelligence level and the fighting spirit he keeps showing.

“He’s had a slight positional change, but he’s got all the tools to do it really well. Amir is still an attacking player, he’s learning the deeper role,” Binnion explained.

“He’s intelligent. He’s got stuff to tidy up, but he’s a warrior. If you’re intelligent and a warrior and want to do everything right with and without the ball, then you’re going to cause people problems.

Coach can’t stop raving

“He played 90 minutes yesterday and come on today. Once he was in the squad, it was always in my mind to get him on the pitch because we were so attacking today.”

By no means is the England U16 international the finished product, but his attributes means he can go to the very top if he keeps his head down and keeps working hard.

The fact that he is being played as a deep-lying playmaker could open the doors for Ruben Amorim to check him out given the obvious dearth of midfielders in the first-team squad.

He signed his first professional contract with the club earlier this year and is internally regarded as one of the club’s future stars.

Feature image Ben Roberts photo via Getty Images

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