Sergio Reguilon must prove Gary Neville right to make Man Utd transfer work
Sergio Reguilon has much to prove after joining Manchester United on loan from Tottenham on transfer deadline day.
He does have a key backer in Gary Neville, who praised him during his debut season at Spurs, his strongest campaign at the club. Reguilon struggled somewhat after that year though, with Destiny Udogie now Tottenham's first-choice left-back.
That led to Reguilon's move to Old Trafford, where he is expected to immediately start given Luke Shaw's injury layoff. The Spaniard will have to rediscover the form that earned him Neville's praise if he is to be a success at the Red Devils following that period of struggle.
Neville waxed lyrical about the left-back following a North London derby win over Arsenal in December 2020. Reguilon had joined Spurs from Real Madrid that September and lined up for Spurs in a 2-0 win.
He successfully kept Gunners star Willian quiet to earn high praise from Neville, himself a former United full-back. Neville said: “I like him. Loads of energy, quick to the ball, aggressive in his defending and he flies forward at great pace."
Marcel Sabitzer completes Man Utd transfer after last-minute deadline day dash
Reguilon would make 31 appearances in his second campaign at the club, though he failed to impress. That saw him sent out on loan to Atletico Madrid, but he would make just 12 appearances for the LaLiga side.
HAVE YOUR SAY! Is Sergio Reguilon is a good signing for Manchester United? Comment below.
Sergio Reguilon has much to prove after joining Manchester United (Manchester United/Manchester United via Getty Images)While he has been far from at his best recently, his previous performances suggest he can be the player United need while Shaw is sidelined. Neville will likely be pleased to see him arrive, having called for the Red Devils to sign a new left-back earlier this week.
“I think they have to try and do something in the transfer market this week. They have got to try and get players out, some clubs get players out really well – United don’t tend to get players out really well," he told Sky Sports.
“They’ve got better players in this summer but there’s no doubt they want another player or two, a left-back and a central midfield player. I think they need that or else they’re going to be put under real pressure, particularly when all the other competitions kick in.
“There is another one or two players needed just to beef up the squad because of injuries. He does want another midfield player in there to sit alongside Casemiro, so it’s an important week for United before Arsenal [on Sunday].”
Boss Erik ten Hag is certainly confident that Reguilon can impress during his year-long stay in Manchester. He hailed the fullback for the qualities that he will bring to the Red Devils and praised club chiefs for completing the deal quickly.
"He is a very experienced player, a player for big clubs, a player that's played already a lot of games in La Liga, in the Premier League. So, he has a very good background, we have seen he can play very intense football," Ten Hag said.
"We are happy. While we had a problem with Luke Shaw injured, Ty[rell] Malacia injured, they are for [the] long term out, so I think we responded very well on that emergency situation."
Read more similar news:
Comments:
comments powered by Disqus
