The ‘special’ Man United player who has given Ralf Rangnick selection headache

MAN UNITED: Mason Greenwood was described as’special’ by Owen Hargreaves after he scored his fifth goal of the season against Young Boys on Wednesday.

With an acrobatic left-footed volley from close range, the 18-year-old gave United the lead at Old Trafford, but Fabian Rieder equalized for the Swiss side shortly before half-time, and the game ended 1-1.

United had already secured a place in the Champions League last-16 as group winners, so interim manager Ralf Rangnick made changes from the team that defeated Crystal Palace on Sunday.

Fringe players and youngsters like Jesse Lingard and Amad Diallo were given chances to shine, but it was Greenwood’s performance that will have given Rangnick something for thought ahead of Saturday’s match against Norwich.

Greenwood, according to former Manchester United midfielder Hargreaves, is one of Rangnick’s most gifted players.

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“I believe Mason Greenwood is the one player who could sneak in over the weekend.” He appeared to be in great shape,” he told BT Sport. “He’s one of a kind.” There are a lot of guys out there that have come from other teams and cost a lot of money.

“Mason has completed the academy and is the most talented of the group. Ralf gets to witness him play in front of an audience and see him score a goal.

“He’s one of the club’s finest finishers, can play several positions, and is good on the ball. People constantly speak about his finishing, but his ability to use the ball and receive the ball is underappreciated.” He’ll most likely be in the starting XI in the near future, in my opinion.

“If Ralf wanted to buy him, he’d have to pay a lot of money.” You see, Amad, they paid 35/40 million dollars for Mason Greenwood, who falls into the Phil Foden bracket in terms of putting a price on it. He’s a true gem.”

Greenwood’s performance was also lauded by fellow commentator Rio Ferdinand, who stated that there is more to his game than just a clinical finisher.

“There aren’t enough words for me to express how I feel about this guy as a player seriously because he’s a beautiful footballer,” he continued.

“Everyone spoke about his finishing when he first joined the squad because that’s what you notice right away, but when you break his game down, he’s incredibly efficient.”

“When he receives the ball, his body angles his movement to catch the ball, and what I appreciate about him is that he is rarely tackled.” Today, a lot of the young kids on the field were tackled.

“There were a lot of turnovers, but he’s a great ball hawk.” He snatches the ball from the defenders. There are so many things to like about his game; granted, there are things to improve on because he’s a young kid, but that’s to be expected, but the sky is the limit for this kid.

“Even while pressing, I’ve seen his sprint and high-intensity run data. What he could be if he continues to devote himself to the game as he is now, and continues to grow and take advantage of opportunities like he is now… Because he can come in and contribute value to that team, England is currently missing out.

“I don’t think anyone else gave Ralf something to think about besides Mason.”