Manchester United’s first summer signing is already agreed with Diego Leon set to join after his 18th birthday.
The January transfer window saw Ineos make two signings in the form of Ayden Heaven and also Patrick Dorgu, but Manchester United sealed a third deal before the month even began.
Fabrizio Romano claimed that United had sealed a deal for Diego Leon. The 17-year-old wonderkid was one of South America’s hottest prospects which explains why Jason Wilcox went above and beyond for Leon.
The move for Leon is all but complete, as he underwent medical examinations in Manchester. Here, Leon was pictured meeting Alejandro Garnacho and Lisandro Martinez.
It is a transfer move firmly with the future in mind, with Ruben Amorim a fan of United’s business.
But before he joins up with United, Leon has half a season with Cerro Porteno to play through – and he has started with a bang.
READ: Who is Diego Leon, Man Utd to sign 17-year-old Paraguayan as Ineos add to youth dynasty
Diego Leon scores for Cerro Porteno
The prospect of Leon is still a relatively unknown quantity for United fans given his age, but one thing for certain is he will be an exciting addition.
Leon starred for Paraguay U20 during the South American Cup with some excellent performances. This includes Leon’s deciding goal for Paraguay against Argentina.
Now, Leon is back with Cerro Porteno and is looking to leave on a high note – with his campaign off to an excellent start.
Leon made his first start of the season on Thursday against Monagas SC – after he was a substitute against Olimpia last weekend.
Starting as a left-back, Leon scored the opening goal of a 3-1 win in the 19th minute. It was a very good finish, which passed the goalkeeper into the far corner, off the post and into the net.
After scoring, Leon shushed Porteno fans who had seemingly been quite critical of the teenager after his move to United, which showcases his mentality.
All of this happening as Ruben Amorim surely watches on…
Manchester United will love what they’re seeing from Leon
Despite Leon costing as much as £7m, he is unlikely to be an immediate starter for Manchester United. Instead, his journey likely begins with first-team training and U21 football, similar to Sekou Kone.
Leon has been compared with Marcelo, while has been tipped to become a great player.
On paper, Leon always sounded exciting with his intensity, running and offensive game perfect for the wing-back role under Amorim.
But the more we see of the 17-year-old, the better he looks – to the point he probably is knocking on the door of immediate first-team involvement perhaps as the understudy to Dorgu.
Leon has the physicality, quality and character to play for United, the next part is on Amorim to help him learn and develop.
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