Over recent months, most of the interest directed at Derby County’s Will Hughes has been coming from Liverpool, but Manchester United are also awakening to the talents of the teenage midfielder, making a January approach quite a reasonable possibility.
The 18-year old midfielder is considered to be possibly the biggest English talent at the moment, impressing everyone since a very young age with his passing and dribbling skills, and the overall maturity of his game. He is trying to add some goalscoring to his arsenal this season, scoring three times for Derby in all competitions so far.
David Moyes isn’t considered a big fan of signing players in January, not really a big fan of the kind of talent you can get during that time of the season. However, with Hughes and young talents in general, the approach is a bit more lenient, as United can try and do what they did with Wilfried Zaha last season: sign him from his club and then loan him back to them until the end of the season.
In Zaha’s case, who is still waiting to play his first match since the Community Shield, maybe getting another season on loan at Palace or any other club would have been beneficial, because it doesn’t seem like there’s any chance for him to get minutes anytime soon, regardless if the rumors about him and Moyes’ daughter are true or not.
Obviously, Manchester United aren’t alone in their interest in Hughes, with Liverpool being the main contenders for the player. As playing time is usually what young players need more than anything, the decision Hughes will make, depending of course on the amount of money Derby receive as offers, should be based on which teams presents the chance of more minutes, or at least a loan to a club that will play him, instead of rotting on the bench while waiting for an opportunity.