2. The rebirth of Ashley Young continues…
Ask any manager in the world and they will tell you the importance of pre-season games irrespective of where they are played. During Manchester United’s tour of the USA, there was one player who shone unexpectedly. And that man was Ashley Young. Many thought that the Englishman might not be at the club after the summer, but a wonderful pre-season where he reinvented himself as a left wing back meant that at the start of the season, the 29-year-old was one of the side’s key players in Van Gaal’s 3-4-1-2 formation.
Against Aston Vila, Young terrorized Matthew Lowton who was playing as the home side’s right wing back. Often isolated against Young, the defender simply had no answers as he didn’t know whether to show Young down the line on his weaker left foot and show him inside, where they had plenty of bodies. Unfortunately for Lowton, irrespective of what he did, Young was simply too fast and slippery to handle. And it was only when he was moved to the right wing back slot that the Englishman struggled to make an impact. Otherwise, it was a game, barring a couple of early errors, in which he showed just why he is one of the most improved players in this United side.
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