Solskjaer's prediction was right about Manchester United player who is like a new signing

It feels like in every summer window for the past decade there has been talk about Manchester United signing a new right winger.

This summer it was effectively a non-starter. Although there are other forwards United admire, they head into the new season feeling rather comfortable about their problem position and believing they might have finally found an answer.

Amad Diallo has been the standout player of the pre-season schedule and heads into the new campaign as a starter under Erik ten Hag. Not only that but he is also viewed by the manager as a key player in their plans for the future and someone they can build their new great team around.

The Ivorian was signed, along with Facundo Pellistri, in the wake of United's failed pursuit of Jadon Sancho four years ago, though he did not join until six months later when he became the first player to be signed and registered under post-Brexit rules.

A year later, they would finally get Sancho as well. It wasn't exactly a glowing endorsement of their plans for him. Yet it is the man they signed to make up for missing out on him who is well ahead in the pecking order, while both Pellistri and Sancho could leave before the window closes.

"Having watched him myself, I believe he is one of the most exciting young prospects in the game," said then-boss Ole Gunnar Solskjaer after Amad was signed. "It will take time for him to adapt but his speed, vision, and fantastic dribbling ability will stand him in good stead to make the transition. He is a player with all of the raw attributes that are needed to be an important player for Manchester United in the years to come."

Amad was certainly raw in those first years at Old Trafford and only started three games in heavily rotated sides in his first three years at the club, but after an encouraging loan with Sunderland, it was clear to see the talent he possessed.

If not for his injury a year ago in pre-season, which caused him to miss the first five months of last season, he might have already taken the Premier League by storm, instead, we only saw glimpses of his untapped potential as he proved his worth by the end of the campaign. The 22-year-old showcased the speed, vision, and dribbling ability Solskjaer talked about when he scored a stunning winner against Liverpool in the FA Cup, and he has also shown it plenty of times in pre-season as well. Yet even then, both Antony and Omari Forson started ahead of him last season until he made his first United start in more than two years in a defeat to Arsenal back in May.

While the upcoming meeting with Man City this weekend might only be an extension of pre-season in reality, for Amad it offers another opportunity to pit himself against the very best and prove why he is the answer to their long-term issues on the right wing. Having technically entered the final year of his current contract, it is inevitable United will trigger their option of an additional year, while there are also plans to tie him down on a new long-term deal as well.

Solskjaer backed Amad to have a bright future, and for him, the future is now.