Man United Ace Nemanja Matic Praises Midfield Star Scott McTominay

Nemanja Matic has praised Scott McTominay’s midfield maturity and predicted a big future for the Manchester United youngster.

Matic says he noted McTominay’s ability within days of joining United from Chelsea last summer and is not surprised he has broken into the team as his midfield partner in recent weeks.

The experienced Serbia international says he is happy to help a player whose increasing impact has sparked a tug-of-war between England and Scotland for his international allegiance.

Matic said: “He is amazing. He is only 21 and to play like he did against Chelsea and control the game like that is impressive.

“When I came to Manchester I saw within a few days he would become a top player. I like him because he is a verynice guy and he doesn’t have a problem to ask something before the game and I am always there to help him.

“He is working very hard but I don’t want to say too many things about him because he is still very young. But he deserves all the good things. For sure, he will be a big player for Manchester United.”

Matic says McTominay’s hard graft, tenacious style and defensive discipline has impressed boss Jose Mourinho: 

“What does Jose want from a player in that position? To fight for the team and not to let the opponent big spaces to play and this is what Scot and me did against Chelsea.”

McTominay has been associated with Manchester United since his primary school days but was held back by being too small.

A sudden growth spurt of 10 inches in the last couple of years – he is now 6ft 4ins – has helped his development into a first team player.

Apart from becoming physically stronger,McTominay was encouraged by the first team breakthroughs of Jesse Lingard and Marcus Rashford in recent seasons.

“That was an inspiration for me,” he said.

“It just shows how far you can actually come. A lot of people may have written Jesse off when he was a lot younger andsmaller and thought he might not be capable of playing at the top level but look at him now, he’s done it.

“Marcus and I were in the Under-16s together and we used to play 45 minuteseach. We both weren’t capable of playingthe full game. That was in the No 10 role and we’ve both moved positions; he’s gone up front and I’ve dropped back into midfield.

“Marcus has what you want to see as a fan: blistering pace. United is by far the best place for producing young players and winning trophies, which is what the club wants to get back to. Everyone wants to keep pushing forward and winning as much as possible.”

McTominay wants to repay Mourinho’s faith and show that like Lingard and Rashford he can perform consistently onthe big stage and meet the huge expectations on any United player.

He said: “Obviously it’s so important for me to repay the manager whenever he puts trust in me in these games. Big nights, big occasions. That’s what you want in your career.

“They’re the things that make or break you as a footballer and I feel like it’s howyou deal with those situations that define you as a player and as a character on the pitch.

“Obviously nerves are only natural. It’s how you deal with those nerves and it’s how you put that on a football pitch. Once you’re out there, you just forget about it – it’s a game of football on a pitch that you’ve played on before, so, you just take it from there, want to play your game and that is it.”

New Scotland manager Alex McLeish has confirmed he will try to persuade McTominay – who was born in Lancaster but has a Scottish father – to play for Scotland. But Gareth Southgate is also keeping an eye on developments.