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Cape Town - According to Manchester United academy director Brian McClair, Tom Cleverley has what it takes to make a mark at Old Trafford when he returns from a loan spell at Aston Villa.
The 25-year-old agreed to join Villa on a season-long loan on transfer deadline day, having found himself on the periphery at United following a host of new arrivals.
The midfielder's current contract with the Red Devils expires at the end of the season and as a result many have asserted that his time at the club is over.
However, McClair believes that does not necessarily need to be the case.
“You don’t know what’s going to happen because he’s only on loan at Villa,” McClair told the Manchester Evening News. “I think he's a good player.
“He came from Bradford when he was 12. At 16 we didn’t offer him a scholarship.
“He stayed at school and he worked as hard he possibly could, while still at school and at the end of that two-year period, because he had developed more physically, he had a professional contract.
“He’s gone on from that to represent his country and to play many games in the Premier League.”
While McClair may still be backing Cleverley, the player himself appears not to have as much hope, telling The Telegraph: “If I’m honest I don’t think I’d play for the club again."
The 25-year-old agreed to join Villa on a season-long loan on transfer deadline day, having found himself on the periphery at United following a host of new arrivals.
The midfielder's current contract with the Red Devils expires at the end of the season and as a result many have asserted that his time at the club is over.
However, McClair believes that does not necessarily need to be the case.
“You don’t know what’s going to happen because he’s only on loan at Villa,” McClair told the Manchester Evening News. “I think he's a good player.
“He came from Bradford when he was 12. At 16 we didn’t offer him a scholarship.
“He stayed at school and he worked as hard he possibly could, while still at school and at the end of that two-year period, because he had developed more physically, he had a professional contract.
“He’s gone on from that to represent his country and to play many games in the Premier League.”
While McClair may still be backing Cleverley, the player himself appears not to have as much hope, telling The Telegraph: “If I’m honest I don’t think I’d play for the club again."
