Van Gaal: McNair Can Be Right-back For 10 Years

Louis van Gaal has heaped praise on young defender Paddy McNair, claiming the talented Northern Irishman could become Manchester United's first-choice right-back for a decade.

McNair came through the club's youth ranks as a central midfielder but eventually moved back into central defence, a position in which he made an accomplished senior debut during this season’s 2-1 win over West Ham United at Old Trafford.

Adding a further string to his bow, the 19-year-old played a full match at right-back during the midweek win over Cambridge United in the FA Cup fourth-round and was even voted Man of the Match by Reds supporters on the club’s official Facebook page.

As van Gaal told MUTV on Friday, the Reds' no.33 is one of many youngsters with a bright future ahead. “It is not only Paddy McNair who has impressed with his development, as I have given a lot of chances to younger players. But Paddy McNair has developed himself very well, not only as a central defender but now we are giving him the chance to develop as a full-back and he did it very well.

“He has done it already in the second team [Under-21s] and has done it now at a higher level in the first-team,” the boss continued. “Maybe he shall be the right full-back of Manchester United for the next 10 years, you never know. He has the chance.”

As for McNair himself, the youngster has explained how his experience as a centre-back helped him in terms of positioning during his outing at full-back in Tuesday’s comfortable 3-0 win over Cambridge at Old Trafford.

“I enjoyed getting down the right flank,” he told MUTV. “I actually enjoy getting forward. It was a bit different. I played there for the Under-21s and I played there for the first time [in the senior team] against Yeovil in the second half. It was good to play there.

“I’ve played in a three at the back, so it’s kind of similar. It is similar to centre-back, but you’ve just got a bit more running forward to do, a lot more sprinting and overlapping. A lot of the time I was in their 18-yard box; when you’re a centre-back you don’t really get over the halfway line that much.

“As a centre-back, you always want your right-back to cover you. When I was playing there I thought, ‘when I’m playing centre-back, I want my right-back to be here’, so that’s where I went.”