Manchester United defender Leny Yoro made his first appearance for France’s under-21s side in almost two years this week in a 3-0 win over Serbia.
Leny Yoro was signed by Manchester United last summer from Lille in a big-money deal, with the teenager described as one of the best young defenders in the world.
Despite the difficulties at Old Trafford since he joined, the Frenchman has gone from strength to strength and is now considered as one of Ruben Amorim’s best players.
His impressive form has earned him a call-up to France’s U21s squad, although some would have even claimed that he is ready for the senior side.
Still, it was a good experience for Yoro, who played the first 45 minutes in a 3-0 win over Serbia on Monday evening and he continues to showcase his improvements.
Yoro’s France U21s highlights shows United defender is improving key area
Yoro only had 45 minutes to make an impression in this game but it seems like he did a good job, with fans uploading highlights of his performances.
As usual, there were a variety of clips, with the United defender timing last-ditch tackles perfectly and also stepping out of the defence with confidence.
But the most significant part of his display seemed to be his low passes into the half-spaces. On several occasions you can see Yoro fire the ball into those locations for France’s talented forward players to get onto the ball.
He is not only gaining confidence in playing those passes, but also improving his ability to disguise his intentions.
In the first clips of the above video, you can see Yoro making it look like he will pass it wide to the right before making the pass between the lines to a forward. Those disguised passes can be so useful.
Yoro’s improvements crucial in Amorim’s plans
Yoro’s role in possession is only growing and that is important for Amorim, who plays with three centre-backs in his system.
Yoro has been operating on the right so far this season, but also played from the left throughout periods of last term. In either wide centre-back role, they are crucial for United’s possession.
With the licence to step up with the ball, Yoro and other defenders need to have the ability to fire the ball into the danger-men upfront.
Matheus Cunha and Bryan Mbeumo both love picking the ball up in those pockets on the half-turn, and it seems like Yoro is getting better and better at finding those passes.
There are question marks over the consistency and quality of some United players, but Yoro’s top performances are no longer a surprise, and that is a testament to him.
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