Manchester United summer signing Sofyan Amrabat has been hailed as a “certified baller” after his “brilliant” performance against Crystal Palace in the Carabao Cup on Tuesday evening.
Amrabat arrived at Old Trafford on deadline day after United agreed a season-long loan deal with Serie A side Fiorentina, with an option to make the deal permanent.
The Red Devils are paying Fiorentina £8.5m for Amrabat’s loan spell and can purchase the Morocco international for a transfer fee believed to be £21.4m.
Amrabat, whose United debut was delayed due to injury, made a brief second-half cameo against Burnley in his side’s 1-0 Premier League win at Turf Moor.
But the 27-year-old defensive midfielder finally had the chance to show off his highly rated skills when United kicked off their Carabao Cup title defence at Old Trafford.
READ MORE: Manchester United fans name man of the match in Carabao Cup win v Crystal Palace
United fans are raving about Amrabat
United manager Erik ten Hag made the call to deploy Amrabat at left-back for the third-round cup tie, with the Fiorentina loanee having played as a full-back before.
Amrabat excelled as a makeshift full-back and was praised by United fans for his stunning performance in the Red Devils’ 3-0 home win over Crystal Palace.
“Amrabat masterclass on his [first start] and still admitting he’s not [at] his best, imagine him [at] his best… BEAST,” one fan wrote.
Another tweeted: “A strong performance from Amrabat, last time we have seen it from Paul Scholes.”
While a third posted: “Amrabat reminds me of Michael Carrick or Paul Scholes. Such a calm presence in the midfield, dictating tempo.”
Someone else commented: “Sofyan Amrabat is exactly who he thinks he is. Certified baller.”
And a fifth X, AKA Twitter, user added: “It’s no wonder Casemiro had his best [Man United match] of the season. Brilliant full debut from Amrabat. Same again on Saturday?”
A sixth fan simply said: “Brilliant performance from Amrabat, [an] absolutely superb player he is.”
Why Amrabat played at left-back
United fans were caught by surprise when they saw the starting XI against Crystal Palace, as Amrabat featured at left-back instead of in midfield with Casemiro.
Despite his placement at full-back — a role he sometimes played in at Utrecht — Amrabat thrived in his performance and really added urgency to United’s attack.
All eyes will still be on how Amrabat performs when he is deployed as an outright midfielder, but his versatility and desire is exactly what United have needed.
Speaking to Sky Sports (via the Manchester Evening News), Amrabat revealed that he told Ten Hag he was ready to play at left-back for the Crystal Palace match.
“I told the manager that I would play where he needed me or where the team needed me,” he said.
“I will play where I can help the team. Today it was left-back but I had a bit of a free role.
“I think you saw that I played a lot in the midfield, so it was nice, it was good.”
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