England Under-21 manager Aidy Boothroyd has stated that Manchester United’s interest in right-back Aaron Wan-Bissaka has undoubtedly turned the Crystal Palace star’s head.
Wan-Bissaka suffered the cruellest case of misfortune on Tuesday night, as his calamitous 95th-minute own goal saw England squander a point against France in their first match of the U21 European Championships, and Boothroyd believes that the increased speculation surrounding the full-back’s future has not helped his preparation for the tournament.
United have for a while now been touted with a move for Crystal Palace’s star asset, and talks are seemingly ongoing in regards to a potential £50 million switch to Old Trafford.
Wan-Bissaka appears to still remain at the top of Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s list to replace the long-standing Antonio Valencia at right-back, and Boothroyd is adamant that this could well be affecting his performances on the pitch.
As quoted by The Evening Standard, he said:
For a young player who all he knows is Crystal Palace academy and Crystal Palace, it would be daft not to say that in some way he must think about it.
I would not be truthful if I told you anything other than that. What I will say is because he doesn’t say too much you don’t get to find out too much. Aaron keeps things to himself.
He is a very private guy. When that speculation is flying around it is bound to turn your head. But having said all of that had he not scored the own goal we probably wouldn’t be having this conversation.
