One Manchester United insider has explained how one Erik ten Hag signing has impressed at the club this season.
Manchester United made five first-team signings last summer for Erik ten Hag’s squad. The total cost of the additions came to around £200 million.
The cheapest of them all was Noussair Mazraoui, who joined for around £15 million from Bayern Munich alongside his defensive teammate Matthijs de Ligt.
Mazraoui was viewed as the replacement for Aaron Wan-Bissaka, who United had sold to West Ham in the same transfer window. He would likely be a backup for Diogo Dalot.
However, partly due to the injury issues at left-back, the Moroccan international was thrown into action quickly under Ten Hag and continues to play consistently under new boss Ruben Amorim.
Now mostly as a right-sided centre-back in a back three, Mazraoui has made 55 appearances so far this season and 50 of those have come as a starter.
United insider explains how Mazraoui has impressed
Many supporters view the signing of Mazraoui as a successful one so far, especially because of the minimal fee paid for him.
His comfortable nature with the ball at his feet is something that not every United player possesses. He rarely gets caught out when pressed and has also shown his ability to be aggressive out of possession.
One United insider has explained to The National’s Andy Mitten why Mazraoui is so highly-rated by those within the Old Trafford club.
“When you consider that he’s played for Ajax and Bayern Munich, there’s no ego at all with him,” the source explained. “We’ve been crying out for players like that.
“As a player he’s extremely technical and that’s one reason why he’s been used as a forward by Erik ten Hag and Ruben Amorim.
He’s top under pressure which is a big attribute to have when you consider the number of teams that both press aggressively and man to man.
“When you press man to man, you’re only as good as your weakest presser but it’s never Nous. He’s conscientious, he’s a good athlete.”
Mazraoui is a consistent performer
Mazraoui is expected to start the Europa League final on Wednesday evening and you can almost guarantee that he will have a steady game.
United have had many players over the years who can produce 10/10 performances one week but then drop to a 4/10 the next. Mazraoui is the other kind of player, the one you can rely on to get 7/10s most weeks.
A strong technical base, the right mentality. These are simple things but ones which make players more likely to succeed at United.
There were certainly question marks when he was signed last summer, mainly about his injury record, but Mazraoui is proving that he was more than a worthwhile addition at Old Trafford.
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