Manchester United News: Red Devils Agree New Long-Term Deal With 'New Jack Grealish'

Manchester United Under-23 star Hannibal Mejbri is now committed to the first team.

Mejbri has been impressing in the English Premier League 2 since his move to Manchester United from Monaco in 2019.

The Red Devils are well aware of Mejbri’s potential and have decided to seal his future by agreeing to a new long-term deal with the teenager, The Athletic reported.

The midfield sensation has proven he is worthy of Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s trust in the youth team. To date, Mejbri has already scored four goals and registered seven assists in 18 league appearances.

Ahead of his highly-anticipated first-team debut, Mejbri is already being hyped as the “new Jack Grealish,” having posed the same fearless style of playing as the Aston Villa star especially during physical games.

“I think Hannibal has lots of quality and the frustrating point for him is that there must be about 15 fouls on him per game,” Nick Cox, head of academy at Manchester United, said of Mejbri. “And at some point if it’s not stopped, or if the referee is not protecting him, he’s going to get his leg broken. That’s what I fear for him."

Mejbri is Manchester United’s latest addition to the senior with the club already secured a deal for his U-23 teammate with Shola Shoretire last month.

According to Red Devils boss Solskjaer, the team has high hopes that the youngsters from their famed academy are the future of the club, and promoting them now will be essential for their “development.”

“We’ve moved Shola [Shoretire] up with us. Hannibal [Mejbri] will join us and we will keep them with us for a while,” Solskjaer said in a press conference. “I think it’s the next step of their development and we’ve just got to take the hit on them when they play for the reserves.”

Solskjaer was keen on handing Mejbri his senior debut this season when the Norwegian manager considered fielding the Frenchman in last month's Europa League round-of-32 second-leg against La Liga's Real Sociedad.

However, a sudden shoulder injury halted Mejbri from pitch action and was eventually ruled out by the manager.

“Hannibal [Mejbri] unfortunately injured his shoulder in the reserves so he’ll be out for a few weeks,” the Man United coach told MUTV. “He was just on his way into the squad and training with us, but that’s football. [But] He’ll come back stronger, I am sure, and he knows he’s not far away.”