Why Man Utd loaned Adriana Leon to Portland Thorns
Adriana Leon left Manchester United on loan for Portland Thorns with ‘no issues’ in the words of manager Marc Skinner, who insists he wants to see the forward ‘smash’ the next two months.
Leon was one of seven new arrivals at United last summer as the club attempted to build the kind of squad depth that had been absent and detrimental in previous seasons.
The Canadian already had three years of WSL experience with West Ham under her belt and had played extensively in the NWSL prior to that. Also a veteran international, she regularly appeared off the bench as Canada won Olympic gold at the delayed 2020 games in Japan.
But Leon, although versatile, found playing time incredibly difficult to come by after her move to Manchester, struggling to break into the team ahead of Leah Galton, Nikita Parris, Lucia Garcia, Martha Thomas, Ella Toone, Alessia Russo and Rachel Williams.
She had said upon first arriving that a conversation with Skinner regarding his vision for the team and coaching philosophy was what convinced her to choose the club. Yet Leon has played far more for Canada than United in the last nine months, totalling only 81 minutes in the WSL.
When she missed out on the matchday squad against Everton only days after the January transfer window closed, Skinner praised Leon’s ability but cited the competition for places and hinted that still adapting to a different style of play than she was used to was the primary reason for a lack of minutes. The player was being given certain things to focus on in extra individual sessions and the United boss is known for being extremely meticulous and detail-oriented.
But fast forward another couple of months and the situation hadn’t really changed. Just under 20 minutes of the FA Cup tie against Durham at the end of February was Leon's last club appearance.
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The short-term loan to Portland will cover the rest of the 2022/23 WSL season until the end of June. The idea is that she is able to get meaningful minutes ahead of this summer’s World Cup – the Thorns also lost fellow Canadian winger Janine Beckie to an ACL injury last month.
Leon has quickly started training with her new teammates but wasn’t in the matchday squad for their 1-1 draw with Houston Dash in the NWSL on Saturday.
The 30-year-old still has one more season left on her United contract to 2024 and the current solution is only temporary, geared towards the World Cup. Skinner described it as a ‘good move’ for both player and club and said he has been in contact with Leon since she arrived in Portland.
“We’ve got an abundance of forwards right now. Our medical team are magnificent [at keeping players fit] and she was playing very little,” he explained. “It’s a good move for her right now, to find that form we know she has…a good move for both club and player.
“Dri leaves us with no issues. She’s just going to play and I think that’s really important. Long may that continue in terms of us having availability of players because it’s causing me headaches. But, for Dri, we wish her all the very best, I messaged her the other day…spoke to her. I want her to go and smash it so that she has a really good World Cup too.”
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