‘I know he plays for Liverpool but…’ - Zidane Iqbal reveals he's inspired by Man Utd rival & a Red Devils transfer target
- Teenager catching the eye at Old Trafford
- Named after a World Cup-winning legend
- Models his game on stars of the present
WHAT HAPPENED? The teenage midfielder has taken in just one senior appearance at club level, as a late substitute in a Champions League clash with Young Boys back in December 2021, but does have two international caps with Iraq to his name. Big things are expected of Iqbal at Old Trafford and he has revealed that his famous namesake, a domestic foe at Liverpool and a Dutch maestro at Barcelona are among those he is trying to model his own game on.
WHAT THEY SAID: Speaking to GQ Magazine about his idols, Iqbal said: “When I was young my dad used to put a lot of YouTube videos of Zinedine Zidane on at home. Now, I look up to Frenkie de Jong, I think he’s a brilliant player. And Thiago from Liverpool. I know he’s playing for Liverpool but you can still respect another person and how they play – he’s beautiful to watch.”
THE BIGGER PICTURE: Thiago has been a Premier League rival of United's since moving to Anfield from Bayern Munich in 2020, while the Red Devils spent much of the last transfer window trying to prise Netherlands international De Jong away from Camp Nou.
IN THREE PHOTOS:
WHAT NEXT FOR IQBAL? The highly-rated 19-year-old has plenty of proven performers to look up to at Old Trafford, with the likes of Cristiano Ronaldo, Bruno Fernandes and Christian Eriksen on hand to deliver priceless nuggets of advice.