Manchester United have always been keen to loan some of their younger players out to clubs in order to give them experience of playing first team football. We have seen many players benefit from that process and go on to have great careers at Old Trafford.
Here is a round-up of how some of the United youngsters are doing this season during their loan spells.
James Garner – Watford
James Garner has been at Manchester United since he was seven years old and he is highly regarded by the young coaches at the club. The 19-year-old was given the chance to go out on loan to Watford back in the summer and he took the opportunity.
Garner has played 20 times for the Hornets this season so he is a key member of their starting XI. He tends to take set-pieces and corners for the Hertfordshire club so they clearly rate the quality of his deliveries. Watford are very much in the promotion hunt this season. They have 2020/2021 EFL Championship odds of 2/1 to be promoted to the Premier League. Hopefully, Garner can play his part in helping the Hornets achieve their goal.
Diogo Dalot – Milan
At the age of just 20, Diogo Dalot’s career at Manchester United is far from over. When he signed from Porto in 2018, there were high hopes for the Portuguese full-back. He has already played 35 times for the Reds and a lot of those appearances have come in the Premier League.
Dalot is now featuring on loan at Milan in Serie A. This is a great move for the United man as he is getting experience in one of the best leagues in Europe. His side are flying at the top of the table in Italy in what is a very open Serie A this season, although they have conceded 19 goals in their opening 17 league games so they will need to tighten up.
Dalot has has started in two of their last three matches, including against champions Juventus where they were beaten 3-1, which will be key in building some momentum on an individual level. Interestingly, Dalot has been used on the left and right side of the defence. This durability could be a real asset in his game in the future.
Tahith Chong – Werder Bremen
Dutch midfielder Tahith Chong has been given a handful of chances over the last couple of years in the first team at United. In order to aid his progress, the club sent him on loan to German side Werder Bremen last summer.
The move to the Bundesliga is a good one for Chong. Werder Bremen are known for playing attacking football which has suited his style of play. So far, Chong has featured on 15 occasions and scored one goal which came in the DFB-Pokal against FC Carl Zeiss Jena.
Chong has a contract at Manchester United which will see him at the club until 2022, with an option of a further year. On the evidence of his performances for Werder Bremen this season, we could be seeing a lot of the midfielder in a United shirt in the future.
The January transfer window is now open so United boss Ole Gunnar Solskjaer may look for other opportunities this month across Europe for some of the other younger players at the club.
