“Old school…” – Man United icon praises unsung player for key attribute

Former Manchester United striker Alan Smith has praised Scott McTominay for having the same mentality as the trophy-winning United teams of old.

Making 93 appearances for United across three seasons, Smith played a role in a United team that won both the Premier League and League Cup during his time at the club.

With the mentality they displayed under Sir Alex Ferguson vital to their success, Smith has now stated that Scott McTominay is bringing that same mindset to the current United squad.

This season, McTominay has nine goals in all competitions, just three fewer than Smith managed during his entire spell at the club.

It is those goals, as well as his willingness to succeed coming off the bench that Smith believes is McTominay’s greatest asset.

“I think Scott McTominay has the mentality that we had when we were there, in terms of maybe not starting every game or being a mainstay of the team,” Smith told JohnnyBet. “But you realise that you have an impact when you play, when you come off the bench, train really well.

“He’s different to Fletch (Darren Fletcher) because he goes forward and scores a lot of goals, but I bet he’s similar in his mentality and I’m sure that Fletch has had a big influence over him as he’s still on the staff.

“I think he has an old school mentality where it’s all about United, all about the team and not himself, and people have seen that shine through, especially the impact that he has had coming off the bench and scoring those late goals.

“It’s been a real positive for the club and for himself. He’s all about the team but he doesn’t seem to sulk, I’m sure he’s frustrated if he doesn’t play but he doesn’t let that affect his performances or the others in the team.

Rising through the ranks of United’s youth setup, McTominay is now in his eighth season as part of the club’s senior squad, so far having made 171 appearances for the Red Devils.