Manchester United have officially confirmed the signing of 18-year-old defender Diego Leon from Cerro Porteño.
United originally struck a deal for Leon in December after agreeing a fee worth up to £6.5 million with add-ons for the the Paraguay youth international.
The Red Devils fended off interest from other major clubs in Europe, including Arsenal, with sporting director Jason Wilcox playing a key role in securing the move, buttressed by data analysis from the club’s recruitment department.
But Leon only turned 18 in April, meaning a move to Old Trafford was scheduled for July due to FIFA’s regulations regarding international transfers of young players.
The left-back is considered one of the standout defensive prospects in South American football with a potent pairing of speed and strength for his age.
He combines this with outstanding work-rate and an unrelenting intensity in both directions of the pitch – attributes which make him an ideal candidate for the left wing-back position in Ruben Amorim’s system.
Leon has already made 33 appearances at senior level for Cerro Porteño, scoring four goals in process.
But there were reports initially suggesting United would consider a loan move for the 18-year-old once he had arrived in Manchester this month and Amorim assessed him.
However, in an interview en route to Old Trafford, Leon outlined his intention to become a part of the first-team as he was going to “kill it” in pre-season.
“Everyone thinks I’ll go out on loan, but I don’t have that mindset,” he said at an airport in Paraguay. “I’m going to kill it in pre-season and within one or two games, I’ll already be playing with them.”
The club’s website, which officially announced Leon’s signing, describes the left-back as an “emerging talent” who will be supported by both “our first team and the Academy whilst he settles into life in Manchester.”
This suggests the plan is for the youngster to drift between both the youth and senior teams as he acclimates to English football, in a similar process to Sekou Kone, signed from Guidars FC in Mali last year as an 18-year-old.
Whether Leon agrees with that assessment remains to be seen, however. The flying fullback’s words indicate he expects his time with the Academy side to be brief and the senior dressing room to quickly become his new home.
Featured image Alex Livesey via Getty Images
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Darragh Fox
Darragh is a writer for The Peoples Person who spent three years as a history graduate slowly realising football was by far the most interesting thing to write about.
