Former Manchester United defender Gary Neville has unsurprisingly sung the praises of striker Mason Greenwood after the youngster steered his side towards a 1-1 draw against Everton.
Greenwood’s second-half strike rescued a point for Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s men with what was his seventh senior goal of the season in all competitions – prompting Neville to suggest the 18-year-old is a better finisher than Marcus Rashford, who is currently the only player above him in United’s goalscoring charts with 13 strikes.
Speaking on the Gary Neville Podcast, the Sky Sports pundit lauded the teenager for his finishing prowess, while praising him for not showing the negative traits that other more experienced teammates tend to show.
He said (via Sky Sports): “I like Greenwood a lot. The composure that he shows at such a young age, his great physical presence.
“The way in which he finishes is that of a top centre-forward. Sometimes when you see a young player in front of goal, they panic a bit and snatch at things – [Daniel] James and [Jesse] Lingard do that quite a lot.
“But I’d say Greenwood is a better finisher than Rashford – and that’s saying something. He really does look the real deal. I think Solskjaer knows that and he’s going to bleed him in.”
With Greenwood having only just begun his United career, it may be difficult to judge Neville’s claims over a lengthy period of time.
However, his raft of goals in his early days as a United player is reminiscent of the man Neville compares him to in Rashford, who grabbed eight in his first 18 senior appearances for the club – while Greenwood has started with a record of seven in 19 this season, albeit from a lesser total of minutes.
Therefore, there is certainly added credence to Neville’s suggestion, while his observation about his composure could suggest Greenwood has a maturity that may yet see him usurp the achievements of his United colleagues in the years to come.
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