Manchester United are set to loan out talented youngster Axel Tuanzebe to Championship side Aston Villa until the end of the season
Manchester United defender Axel Tuanzebe is set to leave the club in January, to move to EFL Championship side Aston Villa on loan till the end of the season, as per reports from the Daily Mail.
The 20-year old has been on the fringes of the first-team squad at Old Trafford this season and has made three senior appearances so far in the 2017/18 season, only one of which has been from the start in the Carabao Cup tie against Swansea City.
However, Manchester United manager Jose Mourinho had expressed a great degree of reluctance in sending him out on loan this season, due to injuries to some of his defensive personnel.
Eric Bailly has spent most of the season out on the sidelines with an ankle problem and Marcos Rojo has recently recovered from a long-term injury. Coupled with that, Phil Jones’ past tryst with injury problems, and it’s understandable why Mourinho was keen to avoid getting thinly stretched with his options at the back.
Latest on #avfc move for Axel Tuanzebe, which is set to be completed today…. https://t.co/cOIUZiVePX
— matt maher (@mjmarr_star) January 25, 2018
But, former Manchester United star and current Aston Villa manager Steve Bruce seems to have convinced the United management to let Tuanzebe join the club till the end of the season.
The 20-year old Tuanzebe made his first team debut for United last January, in the 4-0 win over Wigan Athletic in the FA Cup and has made eight appearances for the club ever since. He signed a new contract with the 20-time English champions in February last year, extending his stay at the club till the summer of 2020.
Primarily a centre-half, Tuanzebe is a versatile player who can play in either the full-back positions or as a holding midfielder as well. Given his age and the limited amount of first team football that was coming his way at the Old Trafford, the loan move to Villa Park will come as a good move for the youngster.
Playing alongside a legend like John Terry would be a major learning experience and the 20-year old will only benefit from the short spell with the Villans. Manchester United, too, would be hoping the move pays off, with the player earmarked as a long-term defensive solution.