Adnan Januzaj: Following Ronaldo's path to superstardom at Manchester United

Januzaj has been a revelation for Manchester United this season

It certainly has been a year to remember for Adnan Januzaj. The youngster turned 19 yesterday and celebrated his big day by picking up the Manchester United Fan’s Player of the Month award for his dazzling performances in January. Manchester United are currently going through a dark period, but Januzaj has been a shining light this season.

The teenager has three spectacular goals to his name and has offered so much to his team but is far from the finished product . What’s scary is that he is only just beginning to show glimpses of his remarkable talent that is waiting to explode. Many critics and players have compared the boy to former Manchester United and current Real Madrid superstar Cristiano Ronaldo.

Can Januzaj be another Cristiano Ronaldo? They have loads in common. Both of them share the same birthdate, Januzaj broke into United’s first team at the age of 18 just like Ronaldo, Januzaj is playing in the same position that Ronaldo did at Manchester United, Januzaj is already a fan favourite like CR7 and both the players have game changing qualities in them. I feel Januzaj can make the same impact that Ronaldo had at Old Trafford in a few years. Perhaps destiny brought Januzaj to the Theater of Dreams to succeed the Portuguese great.

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In order to be a game changer, Januzaj must work extremely hard on every aspect of his game like Ronaldo did. Former Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson stated in his autobiography that Ronaldo put in extra hours in order to improve his game including his now-famous free kicks and headers. Ex-United coach and current Fulham boss Rene Meulensteen was an important figure in Ronaldo’s development and Januzaj needs someone of that same quality at Old Trafford. David Moyes has a reputation for developing young players so maybe he can have the same impact on Januzaj as Sir Alex had on Ronaldo.

Januzaj has excellent pace and technical abilities, but there are some parts of his game that need improvement. The 19-year-old is superb with long balls but needs to work on his passing skills and crossing in order to help his teams attack. Januzaj also needs to work on his build so he can hold his own against some of the toughest defences in football. The teenager has been accused of going down too easily and is the most booked player in the Premier League for diving.

The youngster’s spectacular two goal performance against Sunderland was marred by a shocking dive. Januzaj was booked yet again against West Ham United for a clear dive just minutes before he scored a screamer against the Hammers. To be fair to Januzaj some players have been purposely rough on him but he needs to keep his diving under control.

Ronaldo was the same during his early days at Manchester United. Many defenders purposely made some rash tackles on Ronaldo which caused him to retaliate. The Portugal international was also labelled as a diver by opposing managers because of his theatrics on the pitch. Sir Alex took out that negative aspect from Ronaldo’s game and Moyes is in the process of doing the same thing to Januzaj.

Januzaj will not remain a winger all his life and is expected to be converted into a forward later in his Manchester United career. One thing Januzaj must do is settle the dispute regarding his international future soon as he will gain more experience by playing against different national teams. The young Belgian could break the fabled 20 goal barrier soon and become a Manchester United great.

Can someone hand Adnan the legendary number 7 shirt already?