Leny Yoro has been urged to focus on his personal development - not winning - if he wants to become an elite player.
The Manchester United centre-half has finally begun enjoying some game time after a pre-season injury kept him out for months. Yoro was signed from Lille for big money after a stellar year in France and has had to bed himself into Ruben Amorim's 3-4-3 formation.
He's played alongside Matthijs de Ligt, another summer signing. The Dutchman once had the world at his feet when he came through at Ajax, but is yet to truly deliver on that promise.
De Ligt is convinced his team-mates has all the skills to go to the very top but has urged him to place a real onus on becoming a better player, not necessarily becoming engrossed in the team's results.
The Dutchman told the United Review : “He has all the tools to become an amazing defender, [so] I think it’s mental. What I would give to him as advice is to always stay close to himself and to try to learn. That’s really important for a young player. You can’t be so focused on winning that you’re not improving as a player anymore.
“I think with this trainer [Ruben Amorim], he gives a lot of attention to that. He gives young guys chances, but also sometimes pushes them a little bit back to let them improve in training.
"I think he’s in a really good place with a really good staff to improve in the best way.”
Erik ten Hag was the man to sign Yoro but was never able to see him play in a competitive match before his sacking. Amorim is now the man tasked with getting the most from the teenager as we head into the busy festive period.
De Ligt added: "He’s now back from injury and I think it’s really important for the team to get lots of options because the schedule is hectic, so we have to use everybody.
"It’s really nice that he’s here and hopefully I can help him with some experience that I had at his age, because I also had this experience at this age. I really want to help him become as good as possible, because I think he has a lot of potential.”
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