While Marcel Sabitzer’s deadline-beating move from Bayern Munich was the big story at Manchester United, there was another deal completed in the final throes of the window.
Understandably, all eyes were on Sabitzer as he flew in from Germany to sign on loan for the remainder of the season. But at the same time, Stoke City faced a similar race against time to finalise a move for Axel Tuanzebe.
Sabitzer’s move was one of the latest in the window, with confirmation coming 70 minutes after the 11pm deadline. Potters fans were made to stay up even later however, with Tuanzebe’s loan move not announced for a further half hour.
The 25-year-old will make the short trip down the M6 for the rest of this season, where he will hope to help Alex Neil’s back into the Championship play-off mix. And while his contract at the bet365 Stadium is a temporary one, it effectively confirms he will be leaving Old Trafford this summer.
Tuanzebe, a graduate of the club’s academy system, is due to become a free agent at the end of the current campaign and there have been no signs of that arrangement being extended. That means the central defender will be using his time in the second tier to convince potential suitors he is still the same player that was touted as a United star of the future.
Back in 2015, Tuanzebe joined the likes of Marcus Rashford, Danny Welbeck and Ryan Giggs by winning the prestigious Jimmy Murphy Young Player of the Year award at United.
Harry Maguire arrived at United four years after Tuanzebe picked up that gong and was quickly given the captaincy. That was a decision which has come under heavy scrutiny in recent months, with reports that many felt Cristiano Ronaldo should have take over from him.
Ronaldo’s exit has ended that particular debate and Maguire’s previous comments on Tuanzebe suggest Erik ten Hag’s squad may have lost another key leadership figure behind the scenes.
"We have a lot of leaders in the dressing room, a lot of senior pros,” he said in 2021. “And you don’t have to be a senior pro to be a leader. Axel is a leader, in the ways that he works and speaks in the dressing room.
“And he’s only a young boy, he’s still learning his trade. I’m sure he’ll go on to have an unbelievable career."
That was an assessment shared by ex-boss Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, who made him United’s youngest ever captain in a Carabao Cup tie in 2019.
"Axel is a captain in the making, he's a leader. Why not give it to young kids?" Solskjaer asked talkSPORT of the United captaincy. "How does he handle it? He was absolutely fine, he enjoyed it. It’s just a way of telling him that we trust him."
Speaking after Tuanzebe's brilliant display versus Paris Saint-Germain in October 2020, he added: "I’m pleased for him. Now, it’s about getting consistency in his performances, he’s got to stay injury-free but I think he can kick on, he’s a leader.
"He can play right-back, centre-back, midfield. He’s a boy who takes responsibility for his own development and he’s doing everything he can to have a long career at United and get that consistency.”
Injuries have since stunted Tuanzebe’s development at United, with Erik ten Hag unable to call upon him once since his appointment last summer. His last appearance for his parent club came all the way back in the Europa League final in 2021.
Tuanzebe’s last appearance, full stop, is now more than a year ago, with hope that he can now finally get regular football in a division he won promotion from with Aston Villa in 2019.
