Former forward Diego Forlan is excited by the appointment of Erik ten Hag and hopes the new manager will give young Facundo Pellistri a chance in the first team.
Ten Hag has reached an agreement with United to become the club’s next permanent manager, and there has already been much talk on what the 52-year-old will bring to Old Trafford.
Now, Forlan has weighed into the discussion, telling the Beyond The Pitch podcast: ‘He has been since 2017 at . He has been at a great club, he won titles, we know the way they do things there.
‘There is something about him I like, he has done very well in the and Ajax always do well in the Dutch league but the thing about him is that everything he can bring to the club. United is a place where you have very good players, where you try to get possession and play good football.
‘Ajax have their academy and he has done what he needs to do with that so maybe he can bring that.’
A bigger emphasis on younger players is what Red Devils supporters are hoping to see from Ten Hag, and Forlan, who won the Premier League and FA Cup over a two-and-a-half-year spell at Old Trafford, is hoping that fellow Uruguayan Pellestri is in the Dutchman’s plans.
The 20-year-old joined United in 2020 for over £7million, but he is yet to make his senior debut for the club, and he has spent the last 18 months on loan at Alaves.
However, the winger has struggled for minutes with the Spanish side and hasn’t made a goal contribution yet either, but Forlan believes that he still has a very bright future ahead of him and under the right coach he could flourish.
‘He [Pellestri] is very nice guy, very professional. He understands the language which is very important for him adapting to a new country in England,’ Forlan said.
‘The negative point is that he went on loan, and he is not playing that much at Alaves, he is not having the opportunity he wanted to have to get more experience and to come back to United.
‘It depends on the manager for next season if he gives him the opportunity to stay at the club. I think he can be very good, but he is young, he has a lot of potential, but he still needs to learn.’
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