Sunderland manager Tony Mowbray is hoping Amad Diallo breaks into Manchester United’s first-team with his remarkable performances in the Championship.
The Ivory Coast international is on loan at the Stadium of Light and put in a Man of the match performance as he scored in the Black Cats 2-0 win over rivals Middlesbrough on Sunday.
The victory moved Sunderland closer to the promotion playoff zone with Amad playing a key part in that resurgence after an earlier struggle at the start of the season.
“The test for Amad, of course, is when he goes back next year,” Mowbray said.
“Can he have a good pre-season? Does he feel like a first-team player at Manchester United? Because that’s the glass ceiling he has the break through really.
“Amad has to try and do that, and he’s not going to fall short on talent. For me, with these young players, it’s all about their personality and whether they feel they can do it and feel they should be on the pitch with Bruno [Fernandes]
“I hope [he can break through] because he’s very talented. He’s a lovely kid, he’s very humble and I hope he can produce it at the top level.”
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Diallo, on his part, stated he is enjoying the good run of form he is in at the moment. The former Atalanta player now has seven goals in the Championship, all of them coming in his last 13 games where he became a regular starter for the Black Cats.
“Yeah, I missed a chance in the first half, but today was not an easy game,” the Ivorian star said.
“[I am enjoying football] a lot. I enjoy every game. Every match is not easy, but we try to win every game.”
Sunderland will take on Fulham next in the FA Cup fourth round on Saturday, after which they return to Championship action with a trip to Millwall, who are above them in eighth place.
