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Manchester United have formally confirmed the signing of 18-year-old defender Diego Leon from Cerro Porteño.
United initially struck a deal for Leon in December after agreeing a charge value as much as £6.5 million with add-ons for the the Paraguay youth worldwide.
The Purple Devils fended off interest from different main golf equipment in Europe, together with Arsenal, with sporting director Jason Wilcox enjoying a key function in securing the transfer, buttressed by data analysis from the membership’s recruitment division.
However Leon solely turned 18 in April, which means a move to Old Trafford was scheduled for July as a consequence of FIFA’s rules concerning worldwide transfers of younger gamers.
The left-back is taken into account one of many standout defensive prospects in South American soccer with a potent pairing of pace and power for his age.
He combines this with excellent work-rate and an unrelenting depth in each instructions of the pitch – attributes which make him an excellent candidate for the left wing-back place in Ruben Amorim’s system.
Leon has already made 33 appearances at senior stage for Cerro Porteño, scoring 4 targets in course of.
However there have been stories initially suggesting United would consider a loan move for the 18-year-old as soon as he had arrived in Manchester this month and Amorim assessed him.
Nonetheless, in an interview en path to Previous Trafford, Leon outlined his intention to develop into part of the first-team as he was going to “kill it” in pre-season.
“Everybody thinks I’ll exit on mortgage, however I don’t have that mindset,” he mentioned at an airport in Paraguay. “I’m going to kill it in pre-season and inside one or two video games, I’ll already be enjoying with them.”
The membership’s web site, which officially announced Leon’s signing, describes the left-back as an “rising expertise” who will likely be supported by each “our first staff and the Academy while he settles into life in Manchester.”
This means the plan is for the teenager to float between each the youth and senior groups as he acclimates to English soccer, in an identical course of to Sekou Kone, signed from Guidars FC in Mali final 12 months as an 18-year-old.
Whether or not Leon agrees with that evaluation stays to be seen, nonetheless. The flying fullback’s phrases point out he expects his time with the Academy aspect to be transient and the senior dressing room to shortly develop into his new house.
Featured picture Alex Livesey through Getty Photographs
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