The teenage sensation is becoming a key player for the Spanish giants despite his young age
Valencia legend Miguel Angel Angulo has praised the development of 18-year-old Yunus Musah ahead of Friday’s derby match with Villarreal.
The former Arsenal academy star is attracting a lot of attention in La Liga, having broken through at a young age to become a regular starter on the right wing for Los Che.
The youngster is also eligible to play for both the U.S. national team and England, which sees the two nations battling over his future. Indeed, he has already debuted for Gregg Berhalter’s side but only in friendlies. The Three Lions can still change his mind until he plays in a competitive match at the international level.
What has been said?
“I think he is a great player and he will be a powerful player for Valencia,” Angulo, who played over 300 games for Valencia, told Goal. “He is one of the youngsters who has come through the ranks and forced their name onto the team-sheet of the first team, getting ready to learn the values of the club.
“Yunus is the perfect example of that, he is a player that the club really wants to back. The youth players overall at Valencia are really being given the chances in the team and it is an example of how good the youth system is.
“I think Yunus will help the club improve not only now but in the future. He still has to adapt to the team fully but he is doing very well, considering he is 18. He is gaining experience at the club and he will become a very important player for Valencia.”
What has happened to Valencia in recent times?
Having been a mainstay of both Champions League and Europa League football, Valencia have fallen into a financial crisis which has been made worse by the ongoing global coronavirus pandemic.
Valencia sold €85 million (£73m/$101m) worth of players in the summer, including Ferran Torres to Man City, Rodrigo to Leeds and even Dani Parejo to rivals Villarreal to rebalance the club’s books.
They did so without signing any new players and Javi Gracia has been forced to rely on talent from the academy, with the club currently just five points above the drop zone.
Who else is there to watch out for in the Derbi de la Comunitat?
Another star stealing the headlines ahead of kick-off is Villarreal’s Pau Torres, who has been linked to a host of clubs in recent months, having broken into Spain’s starting XI.
The 23-year-old central defender has been linked with the likes of Manchester United, Liverpool, Barcelona and Real Madrid in recent times. Former Villarreal midfielder Hector Font was asked about the development of Torres ahead of kick-off.
“I think Pau Torres is a great player,” he responded when asked by Goal in La Liga’s discussion ahead of kick-off. “Also born here in Villarreal, good with the ball, can play out from the back and he can cause problems for attackers.
“He is playing really well with the national side alongside Sergio Ramos and at the age of 23, he has a lot more to learn and he can grow more. If he keeps this up, I think he can be really a very good player.
“I think he can be a key figure in the dressing room not only for Villarreal but for Spain too. He is another player from the academy and it speaks volumes of how good the academy is here at Villarreal.”
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