Ole Gunnar Solskjaer is confident Axel Tuanzebe’s versatility will ensure he plays a prominent role for Manchester United this season following his eye-catching comeback against PSG in midweek.
The 22-year-old hadn’t featured for United in almost a year but after battling his way back to full fitness following a serious knee injury, he was pressed into emergency action against the Ligue 1 giants.
In the absences of Eric Bailly and Harry Maguire, Tuanazebe gave an assured performance at the heart of United’s defence, coping admirably with the twin threat of Kylian Mbappe and Neymar.
Maguire is likely to be in contention to feature against Chelsea on Saturday, but Solskjaer believes centre-half is not the only position the academy graduate is capable of playing in.
‘It was a great performance by a kid who has not played for 10 months,’ said the United boss at his pre-match press conference.
‘Delighted for him because he’s such a professional character, he wants everything, he works really hard, been really, really thorough in his rehab and very pleased for him.
‘Now to get the consistency in his performances he’s got to stay injury free, we’ve got to manage that, that’s mine and his job and the physical staff’s job.
‘He’s a boy who takes responsibility for his own development. I’m sure he’s doing everything he can to have a long career at United so hopefully we can get this consistency.’