£19m talent labelled 'mentality monster' as former Rangers stars give insight into Man Utd star
01/23/2025 08:00 AM
Man Utd might not be the force they once were or the team that filled with household names from the last time the two teams met, however, Rangers will still be in for a tough night at Old Trafford.
Philippe Clement will be confident of causing his opposite number problems, but the manager will have to be wary of a player who some of the members of his squad know all too well.
Former Rangers loanee Amad Diallo is now Man Utd's star man, a far cry from when he spent most of his time watching on from the dugout or in the stands at Ibrox.
Rangers duo had a feeling Amad Diallo could reach the top
When the £19m winger arrived in Glasgow with Aaron Ramsey, it looked like Giovanni van Bronckhorst had been given the extra quality and firepower to get the Scottish Premiership title over the line.
We all know how things turned out, however, Scott Arfield and Ryan Jack, always thought Amad was destined for the top:
“It was a runout for those of us who didn’t play the night before or who only got a few minutes,” Arfield told BBC Sport about a training session at Auchenhowie.
“I’m there with Amad, a kid who’s not playing much and who must have been feeling a bit low. He trained the house down. Honestly, he absolutely tore into it.
“We were only supposed to be getting a bit of a sweat on, but he was a proper mentality monster. I’m thinking, ‘with that talent and desire, this boy is going to be worth watching’.
“Did I think then that he would make it at Manchester United? The honest answer is probably ‘no’. The way they buy and sell players I didn’t think he’d get the opportunities.
“But when I saw him ripping it up with Sunderland after he left us and I was thinking, ‘he’s learned from the experience in Glasgow and he’s better for it’.”
To which Jack added:
“There are plenty of players with talent, but they need more, and Amad has it.”
Was Amad given a fair chance at Rangers?
There is a perception that Amad was treated unfairly by Van Bronckhorst during his loan spell at Rangers.
Scott Wright was given more minutes on the right, which seems ludicrous now, but this was only after the top six split and into April – in reality, he spent more time on the bench than Amad.
He was also in reasonable form at the end of the season with three goals and two assists in seven games which is why he was picked for the Europa League final.
The player who was selected more often was Fashion Sakala, again, understandable given his ability to get numbers and the fact that he was Rangers player, not a loanee.
Sakala and Wright also had the physicality that Amad lacked until it seemed to click in the final few league games of the campaign when he chipped in with a couple of goals and appeared to be more robust.
Hindsight is a wonderful thing, but Amad wasn't the player that he is now, even if those who were up close had a sneaky feeling that the potential was there.
