Man Utd told Pellistri has ‘rebelliousness’ in his game as former coach tells teenager where to improve

Chris Burton

Man Utd told Pellistri has ‘rebelliousness’ in his game as former coach tells teenager where to improve image

Manchester United have been told that exciting teenage winger Facundo Pellistri has “rebelliousness” in his game, with his former Penarol coach picking out areas of improvement.

Big things are expected of a 19-year-old forward on the back of a 2020 switch to England.

The Red Devils have bought into the undoubted potential of a player who has just 37 senior appearances to his name.

Those outings have all come in his homeland, with Ole Gunnar Solskjaer easing a hot prospect into life at Old Trafford.

United have been allowing Pellistri to cut his teeth within their U23 ranks, but he has been training with the first-team squad.

Important lessons are being picked up there, while a loan move to Alaves has been sanctioned for the second half of the current campaign.

The plan is for him to see regular minutes in Spain, allowing his ongoing development in Europe to be enhanced.

Adrian Colombo, who worked with Pellistri within the youth ranks at Penarol, expects a talented youngster to thrive outside of his native South America, but admits there are areas of his game to work on.

Colombo has told inews: “The main thing with Facu is that he likes having the ball at his feet to run.

“He wants to get the ball at his feet and provoke one-on-one duels.

“Sometimes I’d say, ‘Facu, it’s better to lay it off then attack the space.’

“He needs to understand the game, when he can go past his man and when he needs to pass.”

While admitting that Pellistri needs to improve his decision making, Colombo sees a rebellious streak in the youngster’s game that should serve him well as he seeks to follow in the footsteps of iconic countrymen such as Luis Suarez and Edinson Cavani.

“It’s true we have a lot of players who get stuck in, who fight for the ball, who will jump [for headers] or block,” Colombo added.

“But we also have this other kind of player, who is quick, who carries the ball at speed.

“Uruguayan football is very vertical; you attack quickly. That is the case with Pellistri.

“Conducting the ball at speed is his primary weapon. He has a little bit of rebelliousness [about his play].”

Chris Burton