Manchester United youngster Ethan Galbraith has been giving a ringing endorsement by Northern Ireland boss Ian Baraclough after he was called up for his country's senior national team.
Galbraith made his debut for United when he came on as an 89th minute substitute for a young Red Devils side which lost 2-1 to Astana in Kazakhstan last November.
He hasn't featured for Ole Gunnar Solskjaer's men since then, instead becoming a regular at under-23s level.
His performances there have been enough to catch Baraclough's eye though, and Galbraith has been called into the Northern Ireland squad for their Euro 2020 playoff against Slovakia next week.
The 19-year-old won his first and so far only senior international cap in September last year, and Baraclough says he reminds him of a couple of Spanish legends.
“Ethan, over the last six months, we've seen a maturity in his play and the way he goes about his work day to day,” he said, via the Man Utd website.
“He's excelled with the Under-21s and he's a different type of player to anyone we've got in the senior squad.
“Hopefully it’s the start of a long career for him.
"Hopefully, he relishes his time from the start in this squad, rather than coming in from the Under-21 squad.
“He has earned his right with the way he has gone about his play for the last six months.
“Not to put too much pressure on his shoulders, but he’s our little [Andres] Iniesta or Xavi, someone who can get on the ball and manipulate the ball and find positive passes. Over the coming years, he will give us a different flavour to the squad.
“He’s been brought in a couple of times and made his debut against Luxembourg. For him to be picked outright, it’s a big moment for him, but he’s ready for it.
”He’s gone and signed a new deal with Man Utd and you can see there’s a real self-confidence about him.
“It’s great someone like that can be a shining light for the young players, knowing there are chances for them if they perform at their clubs.“
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