“He had that hunger, desire and belief” - Ashley Young makes feelings clear about Manchester United selling 28-year-old star

Ashley Young has expressed his surprise at Manchester United’s decision to sell midfielder Scott McTominay. The former United captain, who spent almost nine years at Old Trafford, spoke about the qualities McTominay displayed from an early age and how the Scotland international has gone on to thrive elsewhere.

Unlike Young, McTominay emerged from Manchester United’s academy and broke into the first team during Jose Mourinho’s tenure in 2017. He is renowned for his physicality in midfield and his ability to arrive in the opposition box as a goal threat.

However, despite some impressive performances, the Scotland international never established himself as a guaranteed starter at Old Trafford. He was eventually sold to Serie A side Napoli last summer, and he has established himself as a key player in Antonio Conte’s squad.

In a recent interview with Sky Sports, Young said he was surprised that the Red Devils let go of McTominay. He stated:

“[He was] one of them youngsters [McTominay] who came into the first-team when we were there, and he had that hunger, desire, and belief. He just wants to do well from a young age.

“I was surprised that Man Utd let him leave. I always knew that if he had a new challenge, it would be perfect for him. Saw him at Napoli, with Antonio Conte, I knew the manager would love him. He just wants the hardest-working player. I’m delighted for him.”

Young and McTominay spent three years together at Old Trafford. They both shared the pitch 47 times, including one time with United's U23 side.

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“I hope it’s going to be a right move” – Ashley Young on former Manchester United teammate’s potential exit from Old Trafford

In the same interview, Ashley Young spoke about Marcus Rashford’s potential move to Barcelona. Rashford has been strongly linked with a move to the Catalan club in the past couple of months after things went sour between him and head coach Ruben Amorim.

When Young was asked for his thoughts on Rashford potentially leaving Manchester United, he said:

“You’ve got to look at the last season with the way things have been. I’ve loved him since the day he joined he trained with the first team. He’s a fantastic player but I think it’s you can’t always just stay at Manchester United. There’s got to be something that got to happen. There’s got to be a change. He went to Aston Villa last season and I think he enjoyed his time there. You saw him, he had a smile on his face again, and he looked like he was enjoying his football.

"So, I think now he’s going to have options. Whether it’s options that he wants or no, there’s going to be places where teams want to take him. I hope this is going to be a right move and that he takes. It’s just about his football he goes in and gets on with and shows football that he goes people that Marcus Rashford that we know because he’s a fantastic player ad he showed that in glimpses when he went to Aston Villa last season."

Young and Rashford shared the pitch together at Manchester United 106 times and combined for four goals.