Revealed: Man Utd wonderkid's recording-breaking stats
Tom Weber
- Updated: 27 Sept 2023 16:35 BST
- 4 min read
Hannibal Mejbri was thrust into the starting line-up of an ailing Manchester United against Burnley - and he delivered.
The 20-year-old had been the subject of plenty of speculation. Would United keep him? Would they send him out on loan? Hannibal had offers to depart Old Trafford in the summer, but Erik ten Hag decided to keep the Tunisian around and it is paying dividends now.
After scoring in Man Utd's ignoble home defeat to Brighton, Mejbri got his chance from the start at Turf Moor and he stole the show. Ten Hag switched things up, also adding 35-year-old Jonny Evans to the starting XI, and it worked, though admittedly United still looked far from convincing in their 1-0 triumph.
Hannibal, however, did look convincing. So convincing, in fact, that he broke records. According to Sky Sports, the Tunisian covered a distance of 12.9 kilometres against Burnley - that is more ground covered than any United player had managed since data collection started in 2019.
While running stats alone ultimately mean very little, what they do show is that the player is, at the very least, committed. This is something that a dour Man Utd need, and Ten Hag certainly appreciated Hannibal's performance because the 20-year-old again featured from the start in their comfortable 3-0 EFL Cup win over Crystal Palace.
Running machine
Ten Hag has made it clear that he wants his players to run more, to show more effort in games. After the Champions League defeat to Bayern, he said: "It’s always a concern when we didn’t run but I think against Bayern it was not the case, but in certain situations, yes...Against Spurs [2-0 loss], yeah, we didn’t run too much. We had a game last [season] where we did the same, where we didn’t run."
But against Burnley, it was a different story. "We brought some energy in the team. The pressing of Rasmus Hojlund and Hannibal, the togetherness, how they start the moments of the pressing, the timing was very good."
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It is clear that Mejbri is a running machine. While on loan at Birmingham City last season, coach John Eustace said of a "phenomenal" Hannibal: "He has broken records for total distance, all that kind of stuff."
The 20-year-old boasts a potent combination of quality and commitment and this can take him to the very top and help get Man Utd back on track.
