Timothy Fosu-Mensah's Performance Hints at a Bright Manchester United Future
For two games in succession in England's capital, London, Manchester United's Timothy Fosu-Mensah has been a standout performer for the Red Devils.
On Sunday, it was not until he had gone off the pitch with an injury that Tottenham Hotspur grabbed their glut of goals. On Wednesday night at the Boleyn Ground against West Ham United, Marcus Rashford justifiably grabbed the headlines, but Fosu-Mensah's performance in the 2-1 victory was once again impressive.
While it is too soon to be getting carried away—there are likely plenty of mistakes to come given he is just 18 years old—his initial impact would suggest a bright future lies ahead for him at Old Trafford.
A quick look at the numbers tells some of the story. Against Tottenham, he won the ball with all five of the tackles he attempted—the most of any United player. In addition, he made five interceptions—the most of any United player—and six clearances—you've guessed it, the most of any United player. He was also the only Red Devil to block a Spurs shot.
Against West Ham, he made two tackles. With five and eight respectively, he again made more interceptions and clearances than any other player on his side.
In terms of numerical output, he was clearly United's best defender in both of those games in spite of his inexperience. Occasionally, that inexperience showed—but he has the physical assets to compensate if he gets caught out of position. He also showed plenty of tactical awareness, coming in to help out the central defenders on plenty of occasions—hence all those clearances.
He has caught the eye of those watching United's recent games.
Greg Johnson of Squawka wrote after the Spurs game:
[quote]
Prior to his substitution after 68 minutes due to injury, Louis van Gaal’s side were just about holding it together against the pressure being applied by their hosts, who were denied time and time again by the young Dutchman’s awareness of danger and capacity to roam into whichever danger zone was hottest.[quote]
Johnson drew attention to Fosu-Mensah's all-round game, also writing he has "the versatility to cope with the demands that are surely only going to increase on adaptable ball-players in the future, and is already showing his ability to deal with threats to his defence, even if the rest of his team struggle to keep up with him."
Musa Okwonga of ESPN FC described Fosu-Mensah's turn against Spurs as "an elite performance." After the West Ham game, Okwonga wrote that the youngster had "an outing of impressive maturity."
Daniel Storey of Football365 wrote: "Fosu-Mensah continues to put Matteo Darmian to shame. The Dutchman may be eight years Darmian’s junior and playing in an unfamiliar position, but he has acclimatised impressively to United’s right-back spot. That Totaalvoetbol education in Ajax’s academy is being put to good use."
Bleacher Report's Sam Tighe, writing for uMAXit Football, described him as, "a Swiss Army knife of untapped potential; given his natural comfort at the senior level no matter the position, he represents mouldable clay in an astute manager’s hands."
That he is attracting such plaudits is no surprise to anyone watching. Of course, there is always a danger with promising young versatile players that they never master one position, becoming competent in many rather than excellent in one.
Phil Jones fell into this trap a little before injuries derailed his United career altogether. John O'Shea's ability to fulfil multiple roles for Sir Alex Ferguson arguably put a cap on the maximum level he reached in any one of them. The same could be argued for Daley Blind.
However, between Fosu-Mensah's obvious physical attributes and the abundant evidence of footballing understanding he has displayed, there should be enough talent there to avoid that trap.
Given the various shortfalls in United's squad—at right-back, centre-back and in central midfield—there is definitely a route to regular first-team football available to the 18-year-old.
His emergence will likely save the club some money in the summer transfer market—he can cover a number of positions, and there looks every chance he could make one of them his own on a regular basis.
As Johnson wrote: "He’s a youngster that even Jose Mourinho would probably be motivated to bring on and work with."
With his obvious talent, the manner in which he has taken to first-team football and the gaps in United's squad he could fill, Fosu-Mensah's future at Old Trafford should be very bright indeed.
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http://bleacherreport.com/articles/2632788-timothy-fosu-mensahs-performance-hints-at-a-bright-manchester-united-future