Zidane Iqbal is now a salutary tale about what can happen to young players when they impress in pre-season and look to have taken a step forward in the summer sunshine.
The then-19-year-old shone on the tour of Thailand and Australia a year ago, performing well in a midfield role and looking set for opportunities under Erik ten Hag. Fast forward a year and Manchester United have banked just €1million from his transfer to FC Utrecht.
The moral of the story is that catching the eye in the slower pace of pre-season fixtures is easy to do. Sustaining that through the intensity and quality of a Premier League season is an altogether greater challenge. The Iraq international was an unused sub in 17 first-team games this season but ended it behind 17-year-old Kobbie Mainoo in the pecking order.
