Greenwood needs to be nurtured, says Ferdinand

RIO Ferdinand has warned United not to rely heavily on Mason Greenwood too soon, comparing his development to that of Michael Owen.

Greenwood has earned a wealth of first-team opportunities this season under Ole Gunnar Solskjaer and his importance has increased following Marcus Rashford’s injury.

However, Ferdinand is concerned it could lead to Greenwood playing too many matches for United.

“He’s a fantastic goalscorer, all through the youth levels, growing up, he’s always been someone who has found it easy scoring goals. He plays with both feet, a fantastic talent but he needs to be nurtured correctly,” said Ferdinand. “You can’t expect him to come in and play every game just because there’s an injury to Marcus Rashford.

“A good yardstick is looking at someone like Michael Owen, he came in as a boy wonder, huge expectations and he played too many games at a young age.

“I think that was a big factor on him having injuries later on in his career and slowing him down, so I think that’s something you need to have a look at with Mason, nurturing him the right way.

“It’s difficult if he doesn’t have anyone with experience around him to guide him, you just hope there’s players or staff in there that can guide him through the period to understand that the pressure isn’t on him, he’s too young, there’s other people in there who can take the pressure on their shoulders and are experienced enough to do that.”