Diallo grabs his first Man Utd goal in impressive cameo against Milan

Robin Bairner

• Updated: 17 May 2021 17:35 BST
• 2 min read

Amad Diallo scored his first Manchester United goal on Thursday as Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s side drew 1-1 with Milan in the opening leg of their Europa League last-16 tie.

Signed in the January transfer window from Atalanta, the 18-year-old opened his account for Man Utd in this his third outing for the Red Devils.

Bruno Fernandes was the architect of the goal. Having been given the luxury of time in the heart of the midfield, the Portugal star lofted a perfect pass over the top of the visiting defence that allowed Diallo to loop a header over Gianluigi Donnarumma and into the net.

But it was not just the composed manner of his composed finish so soon after arriving on the field as a half-time substitute for the injury Anthony Martial that caught the eye. His movement for the goal was sharp and incisive, a promising sign from one so young.

Amad Diallo v Milan

Having made such an explosive start to the game, Diallo was unable to contribute heavily after that moment.

Nevertheless, he provided a spark that Man Utd had been missing until he was introduced.

During the first half, Milan had been the dominant side and had seen a couple of goals disallowed. Although they scored their equaliser late from a corner – an effort that Dean Henderson will be disappointed beat him – the visiting side were good value for their draw.

From Diallo’s perspective, though, it was an encouraging outing and one that should see him more heavily involved in Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s plans going forward. It may be too soon to expect him to feature from the beginning against West Ham, Milan or Leicester in the 10 days ahead, but Diallo confirmed that he is a young man with a bright future in the game.