Manchester United wonderkid Facundo Pellistri has hailed that “amazing” feeling at finding the back of the net in the Red Devils’ Liverpool thumping.
Erik ten Hag ’s men took on their fierce rivals in Bangkok on Tuesday in what was their first outing of pre-season. They racked up a comprehensive victory with Jadon Sancho, Fred and Anthony Martial all getting on the scoresheet in an emphatic first-half.
Pellistri, 20, was then given a chance to impress after the break and he certainly did that. A stunning Eric Bailly run presented the opportunity for the Uruguayan youngster to play a clever one-two with Amad Diallo.
Pellistri then remained cool to sweep the ball home to extend the advantage even further. The striker who joined United from Penarol in 2020 will hope to continue catching the eye as he seeks further first-team opportunities at Old Trafford.
The six-time Uruguay international has not yet made his senior debut for the club and spent the last season-and-a-half on-loan at Alaves. With United’s forward positions set for a shake-up this summer though, Pellistri could be a potential option for Ten Hag.
In the meantime, he has spoken of his delight at having contributed against Liverpool and has hailed his first-team colleagues for allowing him to feel so welcome within the group.
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"It was a very good start, amazing, and against a really hard team," he said to MUTV following the win against the Reds. "I think we did good and I'm really happy to score a goal for the team and that we win, [it] makes such a difference.
"It is good to start like this [with a win]. We have a long and hard pre-season coming and we have to keep working. Obviously it is always good to win and we are working on that. In every match we have to try to win."
He continued: "It was amazing. We have very good players, so it is easy to play with them. I am really happy to share the locker room [with them] because they have lots of experience and they help me a lot.”
Whilst Pellistri is currently enjoying his time on Man Utd’s pre-season tour, questions remain over whether he will remain at Old Trafford or seek another loan during the coming campaign. His agent Agustin Alvarez has claimed the decision lies solely with Ten Hag and that he has already received offers should his client be allowed to leave.
Speaking with Grand Hotel CalcioMercato, he said: “He [Ten Hag] will decide, if he will stay or if he will be loaned out.
“In the latter case we have several possibilities between England, Italy and Portugal thanks also to the performance we had with the Uruguayan national team, where the coach [Diego] Alonso who gave him the confidence that Alaves lacked.”
