When Adnan Januzaj was the future of Manchester United

"Manchester United teenager Adnan Januzaj rescued manager David Moyes from another hazardous situation as he inspired a vital victory at Sunderland."

- BBC Sport, 5 October 2013

David Moyes had endured a mixed start to his tenure as Manchester United manager at the beginning of the 2013/14 season.

The new boss, handpicked by the retiring Sir Alex Ferguson to continue his legacy of success, had seen his team lift the Community Shield at Wembley and win handsomely at the Liberty Stadium on the opening day against Swansea. There had also been a 0-0 draw against a dangerous Chelsea.

But United were also beaten at Liverpool early on and thrashed in a Manchester derby. Moyes hadn’t been equipped with the investment he needed as a new structure above struggled to get going and targets like Cristiano Ronaldo, Gareth Bale and Cesc Fabregas didn’t come.

United finished September by losing at home against West Brom for the first time in 35 years.

It made a result against Sunderland in the next game absolutely vital, although things got off to a rocky start when Moyes watched his team go behind after five minutes.

But United and Moyes had a potential superstar in the making in Adnan Januzaj.

The Belgian winger had joined the club from Anderlecht at the age of 16 and was named on the bench by Ferguson in his last ever game in charge in May 2013. Januzaj didn’t get on the pitch that day but he sat alongside Ryan Giggs, Paul Scholes, Rio Ferdinand, Nemanja Vidic and Patrice Evra.

Januzaj made his debut in the Community Shield and was drafted back into the first-team for a home win against Crystal Palace in mid-September, making his Premier League bow from the bench.

Moyes had turned to the teenager at half-time against West Brom and then opted to put him in from the start against Sunderland for his full professional debut.

The early pressure on Moyes would have grown even faster had Januzaj not intervened, serving as a breath of fresh air for a United front four that was otherwise stale and lacking form.

Januzaj started the move for his first goal, holding off Sunderland midfielder Lee Cattermole and knocking the ball wide to Patrice Evra on the left. Januzaj carried on moving, ghosting into the penalty area unmarked and meeting the Frenchman’s cross. It was a composed first time finish on his weaker right foot to fire United back into the game.

His second goal of the game, which proved to be the winner, was even more memorable. A half cleared Nani cross dropped towards him in the left corner of the box and he quickly re-adjusted his feet, watched the ball as it fell from the sky and struck cleanly through it back across goal into the far bottom corner of the Sunderland net.

It was a remarkable impact for a teenage debutant to have on the game, similar to that of Marcus Rashford when he exploded onto the scene around two-and-a-half years later.

“He’s a wonderful player and someone we think an awful lot of,” Moyes told BBC Sport at the time.

“I would have tried to get him in the team a few weeks ago [but] for different reasons it just didn’t quite happen. The way he’s trained and the way he’s played, he deserves it.

“He’s a really, really good player and he can do most things. Even finding his best position…he can play in so many different positions and gives us lots of variations. He’s just a real talent.

“I gave Wayne [Rooney] his debut at Everton [in 2002], I gave Ross Barkley his debut too [in 2011] and [Januzaj] is certainly in their category, that’s for sure.”

After the Sunderland game, Januzaj started three of United’s next four Premier League fixtures, bagging an assist in a win over Fulham. He remained a regular starter thereafter, rested here and there, and had made 38 appearances in all competitions by the end of the campaign.

Januzaj was rewarded for his club form by getting a call-up for Belgium and made it into his country’s World Cup squad that summer in Brazil.

He looked as though he was at the start of a very special career and the faith in him at Old Trafford was such that he was handed the number 11 shirt ahead of the 2014/15. It had only ever been worn by Ryan Giggs in the Premier League era and remains synonymous with the legend.

Yet rather than just the beginning, the 2013/14 season proved to be as good as it got for Januzaj as a United player. Working under a new manager in Louis van Gaal, he didn’t have the same impact and has often pointed to the Dutchman as a reason for his development stalling.

Januzaj made only 28 further appearances in a United shirt before loans to Borussia Dortmund and Sunderland, where he had made such an enormous impact on his United debut as a teenager, paved the way for a permanent exit to Real Sociedad in 2017.

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