Man Utd star Amad Diallo forced to play for Sunderland Under-21s as £37m winger struggles to make impact on loan
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MANCHESTER UNITED loanee Amad Diallo was in action for Sunderland Under-21s last night as his loan struggles continued.
The Ivorian joined the Red Devils from Atalanta for £37million in January 2021 but is yet to make an impact.
Amad, 20, signed a one-year loan deal with Sunderland on transfer deadline day.
But he has since managed just one start and five substitute appearances for Tony Mowbray's side - and is yet to register a goal or an assist.
In a bid to get Amad more match sharp, the Black Cats dropped him down to their Under-21s side for last night's PL2 clash with Leeds United.
But it didn't seem to do the trick, with the Whites running out 1-0 winners, despite Amad playing the full 90 minutes.
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The winning goal was scored by Wilfried Gnonto - who is a six-cap Italy international but curiously hasn't cracked Leeds' first-team yet.
Amad also had a somewhat underwhelming spell on loan at Rangers during the second half of last season.
He wasn't used at all by boss Giovanni van Bronckhorst in their incredible run to the Europa League final.
Overall he managed 13 appearances for Rangers, scoring three times.
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After returning from Scotland, Amad did travel on Man United's pre-season tour of Thailand and Australia, having the chance to impress Erik ten Hag.
He also scored in the Old Trafford friendly 1-1 draw with Rayo Vallecano.
Amad has made nine competitive appearances in total for the Red Devils, scoring once.
His latest loan spell has some United fans concerned.
One wrote on social media: "If Amad doesn’t score here then I’m finished."
Another added: "Amad Diallo playing for Sunderland academy Wtf."
He needs to find a better end product
Tony Mowbray
Asked about Amad last week, Black Cats boss Mowbray said: "He’s just a young boy really, but he’s supremely talented.
"To see his touch, and see how fast and direct he is, it’s a lovely thing to watch on the training pitch.
"You see how talented he is, and you can see why he’s at Man United, but you can also understand why he’s out on loan, to develop the core materials you need to be a competitive footballer.
"He needs to find a better end product. He has all this soft, lovely feet and brilliant skills, but he needs to shoot when he gets in the box.
"When he sees the goal, he needs to shoot, and he needs to add goals and assists to his name.
"It’s not enough just to be a lovely footballer who can dribble and go past people, but never have an end product.
"That’s the message, yet it’s not a simple one.
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"You have to keep repeating it to him all the time – we have to drill into him that we want him to shoot and get in the box.
"Can he score a scruffy goal, can he get a rebound off the goalie? We have to get him into those positions, but when it all clicks for him, he’s going to be some footballer because he’s got every attribute you want."
