Ivorian winger was injured for over two months but has made a comeback in time for United’s game of the season
Amad Diallo is determined to help Manchester United to victory in their European final against Tottenham on 21 May. The winger has been one of the club’s agonisingly few bright spots this season, claiming the right flank for his own and delivering 10 goals and nine assists in all competitions. Were it not for his unfortunate ankle injury in February, which kept him out for 15 games, the winger could have staked a claim for United’s player of the season.
But while he is determined to make his return at the tail end of the season count, it is interesting to remember that the 22-year-old winger seriously struggled for playing time under former club manager Erik ten Hag.
When asked about his experiences in that period, Diallo said: “I need the game time to show I can play for this club. In that moment I was a little bit frustrated because you can understand that sometimes maybe you deserve to play and you don’t play.”
Amad scored a crucial winner for United at Old Trafford against Liverpool in the 2023/24 season under Ten Hag, knocking their fierce rivals out in the FA Cup quarter-finals. Ten Hag’s side would go on to win that trophy against Manchester City in Wembley. But he still struggled for playing time the following season until the arrival of Portuguese manager Ruben Amorim in November.
After being given more responsibility as a right wing-back in Amorim’s 3-4-3, Diallo started to repay his manager’s faith, scoring key goals and displaying the quality United invested in when they signed him from Atalanta for £19 million in 2021.
“It’s because the manager believes in me,” Diallo said about his performance. “He believes in my potential. I’m trying to repay his confidence every time I’m on the pitch. I showed everyone I can play for this club.”
With squad reshuffling under Amorim, Diallo has more recently been deployed as a right-sided No 10 instead of right wing-back, but the Ivorian does not mind where he plays. He is simply grateful to contribute to the team.
“I have no preference,” he said. “I just want to follow the manager and his system. The difference at right wing-back is you have to track back your defender and also you have to attack. No 10 is more forward.”
Diallo has been to the Europa League final before – twice, in fact. He was an unused substitute when United lost to Villarreal in 2021 under Ole Gunnar Solksjaer. He suffered a similar disappointment while on loan at Rangers the following year, when the Scottish side fell to Eintracht Frankfurt. Now, the 22-year-old is hoping to finally end that run and lift European silverware.
“I hope to win this one,” said Amad. “I keep praying for that. It will be really good for me but also for the team because we want some things at the end of the season.”
