Former Manchester United midfielder Dylan Levitt opened his account for the season by scoring on the opening weekend of the new SPL campaign.
The Wales international joined Dundee United on a permanent deal in the summer after spending last season on loan with the Scottish Premiership side.
Despite the Red Devils triggering a 12-month extension in his contract and Levitt having a very brief conversation with Erik ten Hag, the ball-playing midfielder wanted regular first-team football ahead of this winter’s World Cup.
According to The Courier, Levitt, who won last season’s fans’ player of the year award at Tannadice Park, had already made up his mind on leaving United before speaking with the former Ajax boss.
Dylan Levitt scores first goal of the season
The 21-year-old scored six goals during his loan spell with the Tangerines last season, some of which were stunning long-range strikes by the Welshman.
And Levitt has wasted no time in adding to his ever-growing resume of great goals with another piledriver which came in yesterday’s 1-1 draw at Kilmarnock.
Steven Fletcher laid the ball into Levitt’s path on the edge of the box and the 12-time Wales international smashed the ball into the top corner.
Levitt will be looking to spearhead the Tangerines’ European charge this season and Jack Ross’s side welcome Eredivisie side AZ Alkmaar to Tannadice Park on Thursday night, for a Europa Conference League qualifier.
Explaining the reason behind his United exit, Levitt told The Courier: “I did expect Man United to extend my contract but then I just had to push to get out.
“I wanted to be settled and sign permanently somewhere. Sometimes you’ve just got to move on and build a career, even if that means getting out.
“Can I get back to the elite level? I’m hoping so. Coming here, it’s a massive step in my career and an opportunity to showcase what I can do. It’s down to me.
“I spoke to Erik ten Hag when I was doing my medical tests down there. I spoke to him very briefly. It was a hello and goodbye!”
It was highly unlikely that Levitt was going to breakthrough into the United first team and with him keen to play regularly and secure a place in Robert Page’s World Cup squad, a move back up north made sense.
Speaking about Levitt’s performance and goal at Rugby Park, Ross told Sky Sports Scotland: “He’s a really, really talented player – still very young and still learning parts of the game.
“But he has undoubted quality and even today after playing 95 minutes which was tough because he’s not had a lot of minutes in pre-season – he’s got a bit of resilience about him as well, but his overall quality is terrific and that’s a challenge for him to get higher up the pitch because he’s more than capable of producing those moments.”
Since Levitt made his move to the Tangerines permanent, the likes of Charlie Savage and Zidane Iqbal have impressed during United’s pre-season tour and given Ten Hag further emerging midfield options.
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