Why Signing of Aaron Wan-Bissaka Is Important for Manchester United

Many would look at the name, and think ‘unproven’, ‘too young’ and ‘from Crystal Palace’ as negatives to the signing of Aaron Wan-Bissaka. How wrong those critics could be? The only non Liverpool and Manchester City player in the FWA team of the season, Wan-Bissaka has been fantastic for Crystal Palace throughout the last season. The youngster hasn’t just hit form for a month or two, he has been sensational for the duration of the season and has proved how much a full-back can influence a game of football in an attacking sense.

This has been something that Manchester United have lacked from the right-back position for a number of years. The club hasn’t quite found the key ingredient at both right-back and left-back since Gary Neville and Patrice Evra left the club. This is an opportunity that Wan-Bissaka needs to take with both hands. He has the ability to get fans up on their feet, Manchester United tickets sold, and with higher quality players now around him, he’s sure to be even more successful. Last season, Ashley Young, played right-back for the Red Devils. He came in for a lot of criticism due to his poor performances in the latter part of the campaign and his continuous mistakes were obvious on the eye. It was a shame for a player who was the shining light under Mourinho at left-back, look so, so poor on the other side. This forced the Red Devils hand and Wan-Bissaka has come in try to improve the right-hand side of defense. The price tag has been seen as quite steep for a player who has only competed at this level for one season, but United felt they had to take the risk on him due to the potential and incredible performances that he was showing at Crystal Palace.

His fast, direct and skillful style of play is what makes him stand out from the rest. It’s been a long time since a young English full-back has made this much impact on his first full season with a club, let alone in the Premier League. However, many think that the youngster is just good going forward and will cause more problems than solving them in terms of defending. Well, they would be wrong. Last season Wan-Bissaka made the third most tackles in the whole Premier League despite not playing in every fixture. The only two players ahead were defensive midfielders which says a lot about how good the right-back is not just attacking wise but defensively as well. Alongside this, he registered the second most interceptions in the Premier League.

This is a vital signing for Manchester United for the spirit of the club as well. The youngster has many a photo in a Red Devils shirt growing up, clearly having an affinity with the club since he was just a young boy. Wan-Bissaka is expected to start the season for United and he has travelled on their pre-season tour of Australia despite having played at the U21 European Championships with England. This is already showing his determination and willingness to succeed at the Theatre of the Dreams.