Timothy Fosu-Mensah was the shock name on Manchester United’s teamsheet against Crystal Palace last night.
With United’s season at a critical stage, it was a big call from Ole Gunnar Solskjaer to ask him to make his first competitive start after the ACL injury he suffered in January 2019 for Fulham.
It was 1,152 days since his previous Manchester United appearance, which coincidentally was a 2-0 win over Crystal Palace, back in 2017.
Fosu-Mensah proved to be a lucky omen for United, as the team managed to secure all three points, and secured a clean sheet.
Confidence booster
It was a tough call to put Fosu-Mensah in here, ahead of Diogo Dalot, with both Brandon Williams and Luke Shaw out injured.
United will expect to have one of them back for the FA Cup semi-final on Sunday, but if not, then this was a solid audition from Fosu-Mensah to continue as stand in.
The Dutchman was solid and did not do much wrong. He completed all 90 minutes and grew in assurance as the game went on.
It was also important to note that left-back is not his preferred role, which makes his performance all the more impressive.
This was what he needed to kickstart his career, and there was a lot of pressure on him. He can feel confident that he passed the test.
Fosu-Mensah will also feel a bit more like part of the team after this. At times in training he will have felt like a spare part, having not played for the club for so long.
He still has a long way to go to become a regular for United, but this was an important step forward in his career.
Reaction
Here is a look at how Manchester United fans reacted to his performance…
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- Jason Wilcox has just shown why Amorim had to be sacked with pointed praise for Michael Carrick
- Newcastle’s £46m rejected bid proves that Man Utd have completed the best deal of the summer
- Michael Carrick might have provided a hint on Patrick Dorgu plans as transfer priority becomes clear
- Who is Tynan Thompson? Exciting Spurs wonderkid linked with move to Man Utd
- Ruben Amorim’s biggest wonderkid success story is ending brutally as Man Utd pre-season begins
- Dan Gore will hope for better Man Utd pre-season outing vs Wrexham than he had in 2023
- When Man Utd played Wrexham in the European Cup Winners’ Cup
- Is Man Utd vs Wrexham on TV? Michael Carrick’s men kick off pre-season tour ahead of World Cup final
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