In any typical Jose Mourinho team, a loaning out to either another Premier League club or one on the continent is usually seen as the beginning of the end for a once promising young talent, but not in the case of Timothy Fosu-Mensah - despite the confirmation of his temporary move to Crystal Palace this afternoon.
Originally poached from the Ajax youth setup and installed in its Manchester United counterpart in 2014, the now-19-year-old made his debut in a 3-2 win over Arsenal during the reign of compatriot Louis van Gaal and most notably featured as a starter in a vital 2015/2016 FA Cup tie against Everton in the season that the Red Devils ended a 12-year drought to lift the trophy.
Under Mourinho, opportunities have been diminished however the penning of a contract extension until 2020 in May communicated that the Dutch U-21 international indeed features in the Portuguese’s long-term project whilst widely-considered to be one of United’s most exciting academy graduates in decades.
In fact, it is reported that his loan deal at Selhurst Park has been devised solely as a means of gaining vital first-team Premier League experience to then be recalled and gently eased in at full-back as the successor to the aging Antonio Valencia.
That being said, Fosu-Mensah is among the Europa League winners’ most versatile squad members able to perform a duty at centre-back or in defensive midfield with Louis van Gaal last year viewing him as a potential middle-of-the-park enforcer cut from the same cloth as Bastian Schweinstieger, who himself was converted from right wing or right midfield when van Gaal assumed the mantle at Bayern Munich’s Allianz Park.
Regardless of where he ends up on the pitch, the comparisons are easy to make. Fosu-Mensah, born to Ghanaian parents in Amsterdam, is a tough-tackling and intelligent playmaker able to read the game whilst demonstrating a wisdom beyond his years through impressive vision and the kind of physicality and intensity Mourinho demands from his men.
Fosu-Mensah bids farewell to Old Trafford for now with 21 first team appearances over two seasons and still yet to find his first senior goal.
