Sunderland boss offers Erik ten Hag midfield solution with Amad position change

Amad Diallo is having an incredible impact at Sunderland and has progressed massively during his loan spell in the Championship this season.

Manchester United have been closely monitoring his performances, with the Ivorian contributing to 11 goals in 29 league appearances, scoring nine times and picking up two assists in the process.

Sunderland manager Tony Mowbray has shown a huge amount of trust in the 20-year-old and rates him highly. In fact, he believes the United loanee could effectively play a variety of different roles, even operating in a similar position to Bruno Fernandes.

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Amad possesses a unique skillset that allows him to excel in different areas on the pitch, whether it be out wide as a winger or inside in more central areas; Sunderland have utilised him in a variety of different positions this season, including playing as a centre-forward.

Amad is gifted with bags of technical ability, often cutting in on his favoured left foot and finding the far corner from the left half-space, or linking up with teammates with one-touch passes. Sunderland manager Tony Mowbray emphasised his versatility when he was asked if the youngster has the attributes to perform well in different positions.

“I’ve been trying to say to you the ball isn’t a problem to him,” insisted the Sunderland manager. “He can play wide, he can play inside, he can play deep. I think he can play centre-midfield for us in the Championship, you know. Just give him the ball and he very rarely loses it. Yet we generally put Roberts really wide and play Amad just inside him.

“We’ve had huge success down the right-hand side of the pitch with those two linking and playing with each other, people running off the back of the two of them and sliding people in. It’s very profitable for us. He is versatile.

“I see United games, I watch a lot of football, and Bruno (Fernandes) plays a bit of everywhere, off the right sometimes, inside as a 10 or as a running 8, he can play deep and link the midfield up. Amad is a similar type of footballer.

“I hope Amad will bring personality to the team when he gets back to Old Trafford and he will find his niche in that group. If not, Sunderland are always welcome to have him back because he’s been amazing for us!”

Amad has the tools to operate as not only a winger but as an inside No. 8 or 10, taking a similar path to Martin Ødegaard and Bernardo Silva, both who started out as wingers but later developed into top-quality midfielders that excel in the right half-space – Manchester United are in need of a player who can provide such qualities.

His low centre of gravity and ability to manipulate the ball with both feet makes him very effective in tight spaces, and this is where he has been thriving this season – in the pockets and manoeuvring his way out of difficult situations and providing solutions.

This versatility and technical security will have impressed Erik ten Hag, who this season has utilised the squad by deploying several players in different positions such as Bruno Fernandes, Jadon Sancho, Marcus Rashford, Wout Weghorst, and even Luke Shaw, who played as a centre-half on multiple occasions.

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It will be interesting to see how the manager could use Amad next season when he returns from his loan spell. The signs he’s been showing so far have been promising, and exciting times could be ahead for the future of United’s 20-year-old wonder kid.