Manchester United goalkeeper Nathan Bishop has been tipped to go "right to the top" by a teammate at his loan club Mansfield Town.
Goalkeeper Bishop was sent to the League Two side at the start of the season, with United wanting to take a look at how he performed playing regularly in a relentless division.
And with only a few months of the season remaining, Bishop is well on course to help his temporary employers seal promotion into League One.
The Stags are just a point off the automatic promotion places, with a game in hand, and are in the midst of a 14-game unbeaten run. Last week they equalled a club record of ten successive home league wins and Bishop has more than played his part.
The 22-year-old pulled off a clutch of fine saves in the 2-1 win over Exeter City and earned praise from manager Nigel Clough.
Now the United loanee has been given another appraisal, this time from teammate Elliott Hewitt.
Midfielder Hewitt has backed Bishop to get to the very top level due to his excellent professionalism.
“He’s probably the best goalkeeper I’ve played with, especially in terms of his shot-stopping," said Hewitt. "I think his potential is wherever he wants to take himself.
"But he is probably the best professional that I’ve ever seen as well. He’s always the first in and the last out at training
“He doesn’t eat chocolate and he doesn’t drink alcohol. He’s the perfect professional and hopefully he’ll go right to the top.”
Bishop has kept 10 clean sheets in 36 appearances for Mansfield so far. Despite an error against the Grecians last week that led to a goal, it proved merely a consolation thanks to Bishop's earlier heroics.
And it won him praise from Clough: "(He was) Absolutely brilliant. That’s why he’s a little bit disappointed with the mistake (that led to Exeter’s goal). When you make a mistake and you still get the three points, that’s okay. He kept us in it with three or four brilliant saves tonight.”
Bishop's future at United, where has featured only sparingly for the club's under-23s, is unclear. But United goalkeeping coach Richard Hartis has previously spoken highly of him.
He said: "He (Bishop) has come in the door and I think he recognised the opportunity that he has as an individual, to come in and be around the first team.
"He is on his own career path and I think he sees Man United as a really good opportunity to develop and to grow.
"He is very ambitious, very athletic, very hard working. He is somebody who is really going to set the tempo in the training with his attitude, approach and application."
Bishop is contracted a Old Trafford until 2023.
