Rio Ferdinand says Amad Diallo can be a "world beater" for Man Utd after discussing the teenager's prospects with club staff.
The 18-year-old completed his switch to Old Trafford from Serie A side Atalanta last week, to the cool tune of £37million.
That's quite some outlay from United, particularly given the youngster's professional career stretches to just 59 minutes thus far.
A goal on his debut attracted increased interest when aged just 17, and while his rise to prominence has since been rapid, Ferdinand believes his old club have a real talent on their hands.
"We just bought a kid in from Atalanta and hopefully he does something [to boost United’s season]," Ferdinand told the FIVE YouTube channel .
"If you see his clips and speak to some of the people at the club that were involved in buying him, potentially this kid could be an absolute world beater.
"I think that’s the thoughts of Manchester United people that they’ve unearthed…. I’m not going to give him that pressure of Cristiano Ronaldo but nobody knew about Ronaldo when we bought him really other than people in Portugal.
"This kid seems quite similar in that sense. if you see his clips and the way people talk about him then I think the world is his oyster if he applies himself right."
Diallo's move to United was delayed while he waited to be granted a work permit, but the Ivorian will join up with Ole Gunnar Solskjaer's squad immediately after landing in the UK last week.
And Solskjaer believes his new acquisition is already at a level good enough to feature in his first team.
The United boss has been told areas of Diallo's game the youngster needs to improve on, by the player's former coach at Italian club Boca Barco, Denis Cerlini.
Should Diallo be thrown in to United's side this season? Have your say below.
But Cerlini was also in agreement with Ferdinand that Diallo is not your average footballer.
“From the very first moment, it was evident the kid was special," Cerlini told BBC Sport .
“He was very bold and quick, possessed great technique and a strong shot, and executed everything at great speed."
Diallo will be available for selection immediately, though Solskjaer has urged for patience with the youngster, suggesting he is likely to drip feed him into the senior set-up.
