18yo turned down big-money offers to join Man Utd, Amorim described him as 'very good player'

Manchester United pulled off a major coup last January, beating fierce rivals in the race to sign defensive prodigy Ayden Heaven.

The 18-year-old centre-back swapped Arsenal for Old Trafford in a deal worth around £1.5 million.

According to The Athletic, Chelsea and Newcastle proposed more attractive financial packages to Heaven but the teenager chose United as his next destination.

Jason Wilcox, who was the technical director at that time, “won the day” by outlining a clear pathway for Heaven’s development at the Theatre of Dreams.

The Red Devils made it clear while announcing his arrival that he was not an academy signing and would be drafted into the first-team squad.

Despite injuries restricting him to just six senior appearances, the teenager has already shown flashes of elite potential.

He played only six times for the senior United set-up due to a couple of injury issues.

However, he shone like a diamond when he was available.

Manager Ruben Amorim fields his side in a 3-4-2-1 formation and Heaven looks perfectly suited to the left centre-back role.

He has not looked overawed since his introduction to senior football.

His impressive performances against Arsenal and Real Sociedad showed that the youngster possessed remarkable composure.

Amorim described him as a “very good player” who has a big future.

While Lisandro Martinez remains the undisputed starter on the left of defence, Heaven has emerged as a reliable and exciting understudy.

The key for Heaven next season will be staying injury-free and consistently knocking on Amorim’s door for opportunities.

Stats from Transfermarkt.com

Article written by Sanidhya Bhardwaj .