Former Manchester United midfielder Luke Chadwick has surprisingly credited Jose Mourinho with the rise of Scott McTominay.
The 24-year-old has become an increasingly important player for the Red Devils this season, and many fans will no doubt be pleased with the work that current manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer has done with him.
However, McTominay first broke into the first-team during Mourinho’s time in charge at Old Trafford, which may well have been forgotten as he’s largely now developed under Solskjaer’s guidance.
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Still, Chadwick believes McTominay owes a lot to Mourinho for giving him his breakthrough, and it certainly is a compliment from the Portuguese tactician, who is not well known for promoting academy players if there’s the option to spend big money in the transfer market.
Even if Mourinho was not exactly Mr Popular by the time he left United, fans could perhaps do well to acknowledge the part he’s played in the career of this player who is now in fine form.
“He’s had a brilliant rise to prominence and I think he probably owes a lot to Jose Mourinho for putting him in the squad to start with,” Chadwick told CaughtOffside.
“He’s a player who’s divided opinion, but what you always know about him is the incredible work rate that he shows, real bravery. He showed what he’s capable of in those first five minutes against Leeds to score those two fantastic goals, particularly for someone who’s considered to be a holding midfield player.
“He’s got all the tools to be a top player – physically he’s very good, his attitude is superb, and technically he’s turning into a proper player. We know what the club and manager think of him – he’s often getting picked ahead of Paul Pogba for example.
“The future certainly looks bright for McTominay and credit to the club who’ve stuck by him at times when he wasn’t doing so well, and now they’re bearing the fruits of that labour. He’s starting to look like a really fantastic young player, someone who can get into that first-team and stay there.”
Chadwick also spoke about another of United’s homegrown players, Mason Greenwood, who is enduring a difficult second season for the club.
The talented teenager broke into the first-team last term and made a real impression, but he’s now found the back of the net just three times so far in this campaign, whilst also struggling with being in and out of the side.
Chadwick imagines Greenwood is simply going through a quite standard difficult second season, but that he’ll soon be back to his best due to the natural talent he has.
“I think he can be hugely effective from the wide players or as a number nine, but we’ve seen over the years what a tough season the second season is,” Chadwick said.
“He was exceptional last season, one of the best young players in the world. But the majority of players when they’ve burst onto the scene find the second season a lot tougher.
“It’s a fantastic learning opportunity for him going through this tough time, but I’m sure with the talent he’s got, it’ll see him through in the long term.”