The Rise Of Angel Gomes: Life After Manchester United

right then England's first post G Southgate squad has been announced and Angel Gomez is in it Lee casley has decided to bring in uh Angel Gomez lots of new faces as well John in there livero is going to be in there Morgan Gibbs white is also in there uh Muk is in there as well but Angel Gomez is the one that um I think catches the eye for Manchester United fans and certainly for myself as well um you might remember him as the the young lad that came through the right at Manchester United I first saw him age 13 playing under 16s for Manchester United wearing a sh a shirt that looked like a parachute uh and I was like wow unbelievable and Angels had um he been moved around a fair bit as he was finding his feet and was always going to take a second or two because of his size to adapt to men's football but for those of us who remember his debut um you'll know that even on his debut there was there was a lot of obvious Talent there for him um and I think angel story is always one of what could have been at United um I think it's still a huge Downer that it didn't work out for him at Old Trafford um but I almost kind of understand why he had to step away to go and get his start in men's football uh but let's have a look at his journey um coming through the youth uh at Manchester United and then going on uh and hopefully becoming an England International this weekend um so Angel Gomez joined Manchester United at the age of six his father Gil is a former professional footballer and under 21 International with Portugal uh he was playing with henden before moving his family up to the Northwest where they settled and he he kind of did the rounds uh in non- league as happens um and that's where they grew up um in sford actually now Angel earned his stripes at junior level with England representing every single age group uh from the under 16s all the way through to the under 21s uh before he got his first senior call up this week now for England Angel was the captain of the side that won the Under 17s World Cup had an incredible Squad the likes of Phil foden Jaden Sancho mark gay as well as angel in there as well after Rising through United's academy uh he went on to make 10 appearences for United including the one which saw him become the youngest ever player to represent the first team since Duncan Edwards uh in 1953 when he made his debut age at just 16 but despite being the youngest player Angel struggled to establish himself and make a lasting impact at Manchester United where that smaller stature and playing profile was seen as a bit of a limiting factor when it comes to a physically demanding premier league and a Manchester United that wasn't exactly conducive to Bringing through Academy players and giving them an environment where they could um Thrive obviously you saw how long it took Manchester City to eventually blood fill foden in and that was while they was being Ultra successful United didn't have that option and despite the technical skill that is undoubtedly there for him he found it difficult to break into the first team um on a regular basis and and hold down a First Choice spot but after he left all Trafford in 2020 to for a move to Le he's really established himself really turned it around in France he has thrived in a more tactically flexible and probably less physical environment especially after going to Portugal where obviously he's going to be familiar with the language and established himself out on loan at Boa Vista now Angel's skill set is likely going to see him Thrive as an advanced eight or a 10 but he's actually been successful and for England as well as a number six as almost like a polo sort of deep line playmaker but the defensive side of the game at times can bypass him or you can be targeted in that area in that area of the pitch you do have to have a little bit of an aerial presence that's generally one of the areas that you see direct balls kind of punted up to and if you've not got that sort of aerial presence you can get overrun just a little bit so he has to find where he's going to play and a lot of teams don't play with a number 10 either so it's it's been a bit of a journey to find where works for him now he's played in a little bit of a double pi pivot at leil and he often plays next to Andre who is the club Captain under fona leil deployed a very high line and they had very possession heavy tactics that suits Angel down to the ground because he is a playmaker he's someone that's going to get on the ball get on the turn and make things happen his vision is fantastic his strength as a first phase receiver is is not just underrated it's really really high level and from there he can carry the ball forward either by dribbling or he can break lines with his passing you know and his ability to impact the game from there is is second to none really and that's why you see him being so successful and and doing the things that he does but he also gets the ball in a second phase he's able to break lines and and create things in the final third he provides countless positive influences into that final third for that little team and defensive weaknesses which you know let's be honest about them they're not really it's certainly not his strong point but the defensive weaknesses rarely seem to have an impact on that team's General play because he does press he does get after people he is hard to shake when he's tracking you down because of that agility and lateral movement that he's got let's talk about Leon a little bit now would Angel's physical shortcomings prevent him from succeeding in the Premier League now there are a few standout examples of players that have managed to thrive in the Premier League despite their height and the French league is regarded as one of the most physically similar to the Premier League players are strong and they are quick the play is technical but that physical presence is also a massive factor in French football so I think it would be very lazy analysis I I think when he went to Portugal I think that was the the exact move at the exact time that he needed to have it because Portugal is not a very phys iCal and it is not a very fast league and that allowed him to go and establish himself when he was on loan at B Vista into first team football and he came then back into France as someone who had actually played a number of games of first team football and he took then to playing in the French league took him a minute wasn't IM immediately fantastic but he has adapted and he has learned and he has become the player that we thought he could be people really like to ham up the physic iCal kind of nature of the Premier League and people would have you believe that he would fail in the Premier League um he has a little bit of anomaly in France but I think that highlights the qualities that he brings when he's in possession of the ball he's got quick feet he's got versatility that's allowed him to make a name for himself not just in France but on the European stage as well he's becoming highly regarded as a player that will ghost pasture and make something out of absolutely nothing now when you compare him to some of his Midfield counterparts s Gomez is showing every single week that he has the knowhow that real sort of intelligent tactical football IQ to be able to progress play and keep hold of the ball he boasts a very very high pass completion of 88% which is incredible considering the sort of Versatility that you see from him some weeks he will play as a 10 he's often featured on the wing sometimes he's in the double pivot and that high percentage pass just comes off because that's what he does it's almost Unthinkable that he can be so consistent playing in so many different areas of the pitch he's in the 99th percentile for pass completion for attacking midfielders and Wingers um that puts him in the 86 percentile for Central midfielders and defensive midfielders but it highlights The Duality of the role that he's being asked to play he is a player that keeps control of the ball and he creates chances he's in the 88th percentile for midfielders for shot creating actions that's damn impressive you know he he at least represents Carrington well and the grounding that he's had you know through his family but also through coming through Manchester United so what does that mean for the future for him um I I think he probably should stay at leil for at least another season and continue to develop he has got excellent development so far and the manager that he's playing under is doing quite well for them and you could see him refine his game and maybe even establish a more concrete position just that little bit more if he wanted to leave Le or even at a later stage if he wanted to leave Le there would be a lot of big clubs interested in signing him Past rumors and have linked him to a move with well Chelsea but I know I think I've also been linked with Chelsea myself so I don't know how much you you'd read into that one um but they definitely wouldn't be the only ones that would be looking to attract Angel services I don't think it could have been easy leaving Manchester United especially um for Le who then went and loaned him it didn't look like it was going to kick on for him but he is motivated he has got bottle he has got a great family and support network around him it's work for him and it doesn't always work for everyone so fair play to him I am really really happy to see an ex Academy graduate of Manchester United going out into the world and making something happen for themselves and I'm really happy for him getting the call up for England they've got a progressive manager as an interim that's obviously going having a look at players that might offer something to that England squad going forward whether or not he gets the cap now he's in the system he's in the eye of whoever comes in as the permanent England manager and angel had the following to say upon leaving Manchester United he said I had to follow my heart I felt that if I stayed there wouldn't have been a lot of opportunities for me on the last day it was difficult for me to say goodbye to everyone finish training and be surrounded by your teammates who you've played with since you were little having to leave it was a difficult moment leaving carington knowing I would never go back it was the only home I'd ever known coming back home wasn't pleasant and neither was getting all of my stuff back I was looking for more playing time more consistency and a plan for my future I came to Le who offered me a good structure and a good project I have no regrets in life so I think it's beyond any sort of shadow of a doubt that it was the right move at the right time for Angel um I don't think his development would have been the same if it' have stayed in the Premier League I think a lot of youngsters can learn from this sometimes the badge on the tracksuit isn't as important as the opportunities that you're able to get and playing adult football as early as you can is the best way for you to develop do I think United would ever come back in for him well I would say Never Say Never I would say Never Say Never I certainly wouldn't be putting him top of any sort of transfer list that we're looking to get in now I think we're okay for those of advanced Playmakers which is the role I think probably suits him the most um but I hope he does well for England I wouldn't like to see him in an opposition shirt because I know his quality you know may maybe he stays in France maybe he ends up having a decent career there maybe he goes to one of the bigger teams in Portugal with the Heritage he's got from there maybe one day he comes back for Manchester United but either way good luck to him on getting that England callup and uh and good luck to him if he manages to pull on a shirt for his senior debut he's absolutely deserved it well done hey thank you for watching the video if you are new around these parts then don't forget to subscribe my channel is proudly supported by my community on patreon if you'd like to get a little bit of extra content a Discord group meetups F side games weekly podcast behind the scenes and even an occasional bit of transfer news as on when I get it then for the price of a pint you can show your appreciation for the content that we make and get some goodies for doing so as well check the link in the description or click the button right here you'll also find all of my socials here if you want to follow me on any of those platforms nice one