Italy manager Roberto Mancini has admitted Wilfried Gnonto ‘will need time to settle’ at Leeds United. Gnonto is yet to make his first team bow for the Whites since his deadline day switch from FC Zurich, despite being named on the bench twice.
The 18-year-old has featured more prominently for the U21s so far, starting both of the wins against Southampton U21s and Tranmere Rovers. Before his move to Elland Road, Jesse Marsch claimed Gnonto would be more of a long-term project but backtracked that statement ahead of the 0-0 draw against Aston Villa eight days ago.
"I can say that he has pleasantly surprised all of us in almost every way," said Marsch. "First of all there was this video of him and I meeting in my office that went out and almost went viral, which was funny to me because it was a normal interaction of meeting a player.
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"I think you can see even in that video his humbleness and is his maturity and then on the pitch and training. He's been fantastic. I thought he was very good in the U21s match against Southampton.
"He will be in the squad this weekend and we think he can play a big role for us now. I guess you can say I would revise my statement.
"That statement had more to do, I think with the fact that we had targeted him and we identified him, but more for future windows and not exactly this one, but the fact that we're able to start the process early I think is really advantageous for everyone."
While he is yet to play for Leeds, Mancini has already handed Gnonto six senior caps for Italy. Despite that, former Man City chief Mancini has called for patience regarding his time in the Premier League given the fact he is still only 18.
He told Tuttosport : “Gnonto is a young kid, and he’s only just arrived, so maybe he will need time to settle in.”
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