Amad To Feature In A New Role As Ten Hag Plans For Tactical Twist

After a scintillating loan spell at Sunderland last season, Amad will be desiring he can deliver the goods in a Manchester United shirt this term.

Signed from Italian outfit Atalanta in January 2021 for an eye-watering £37million fee, Amad was sent out on loan last August, joining a Sunderland side that was still adapting to life back in the Championship after four painful seasons in League One.

He had spent the second half of the 2021/22 campaign on loan at Rangers and was not presented with enough chances to showcase his capabilities.

Working under experienced Black Cats boss Tony Mowbray, who is no stranger to getting the best out of young players, the Ivorian quickly started to show why United had invested so much money in his signature just over two years ago.

A run of five goals in seven league games on either side of the World Cup break meant he was fast gathering attention.

Though he was signed to operate on the right wing, Amad, 20, was soon tasked with operating as a versatile attacker, often being asked by Mowbray to play as an attacking midfielder and sometimes even a striker.

As the statistics highlight, he thrived in that position, meaning United manager Erik ten Hag, can play Amad Diallo in that position if he decides to.

The Versatility of Amad Diallo

On Amad’s versatility, Mowbray, speaking back in March, said: “I’ve been trying to say to you the ball isn’t a problem to him. 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.”

Though Amad is unlikely to be deployed as a No.8 for United, there could be scope for him to operate as a No.10 to ease Bruno Fernandes, as well as a winger.

There’s every tendency for Amad Diallo to operate for United more centrally in the coming seasons.