The games are coming thick and fast for Manchester United as they are the only Premier League team to be fighting on all four fronts this season.
Manager Erik ten Hag knows the importance of squad depth but it is also vital to keep the players happy yet hungry.
One of his biggest dilemmas in recent weeks has involved the short-term futures of two wingers — Anthony Elanga and Facundo Pellistri.
Elanga was last season’s breakthrough star while Pellistri has had to wait more than two seasons for his debut which ultimately came in the Carabao Cup quarterfinal win over Charlton Athletic.
ETH to choose between Pellistri & Elanga
Incidentally, the Dutch manager put him on in place of ineffectual Swede and the Uruguayan certainly made his mark, grabbing an assist and impressing with his general all-round play.
The Sweden international is generating interest from the likes of Everton and Bournemouth as well as Bundesliga giants Borussia Dortmund.
In Pellistri’s case, apart from loan offers from Watford, Valencia and Flamego, there are also permanent bidders in the form of Botafogo and Bologna.
With Jadon Sancho returning to training, there is a chance that one of these two highly-rated youngsters will be allowed the chance to leave and play regularly.
🗣️ Ten Hag on Facundo Pellistri’s #mufc debut: “I am happy with that performance and I’m happy with his development, we brought him in [to the team] and we think he has a future here at Manchester United.” [MU] pic.twitter.com/5xm5NbzcnY
— UtdTruthful (@Utdtruthful) January 18, 2023
And in a fan-special event, organised by the club media department, the former Ajax manager seemed to hint that the Uruguayan could be kept on after his impressive cameo.
“It was just 10 minutes [he played], but he made a really good impression. He had to wait a long time for it because you have to deserve the game-time in our squad. There are others who also deserved it who didn’t even come on.
“He worked for a long time and he proved himself. He showed., in that moment, that he was ready.”
Pellistri’s cameo could have tilted things in his favour
Apart from his contribution further up the field, the manager also seemed to be impressed with his hard-work and defensive solidity that he brought after coming on.
For a youngster, devoid of minutes, the Uruguay international showed immense maturity during his cameo, including not trying too hard to score and dropping deep when required.
“He had some really good actions, he was lively and he got the assist but also [he gave a] good contribution in terms of defending, he was reliable and he took the responsibility.
“I am happy with that performance and I’m happy with his development, we brought him in [to the team] and we think he has a future here at Manchester United.”
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