Lille's Director of Football Luis Campos believes Angel Gomes is one of the best talents in Europe. The Manchester United youth prospect refused to sign a new contract with the Red Devils and left on a free transfer to Lille.
Gomes, now on loan to Boavista, impressed in his debut with the Portuguese club. Campos speaking about the decision to sent Gomes on loan said -
It has to do with the need for him to complete his training. Angel needs to play 30-40 games in one season and I think that, if everything goes well, he will demonstrate that he is one of the greatest talents in Europe. We are talking about a player who was the captain of the England team which won the Under-17 World Cup, and who is also, I think, the captain of the England U20s.
He is a player that I had to watch several times live, both in the Manchester United teams and in the youth teams. It is necessary to create conditions so that all this talent can explode. I believe that Boavista and his coach can help him in that sense. He will play in a league that can grow his individual level so that, in the future, he can play at an even higher and more demanding level.
Angel Gomes joined Manchester United at 8
Angel Gomes became the youngest player to debut for Manchester United since the fabled Duncan Edwards. Gomes, a playmaker, came through the ranks at Old Trafford after joining them at the age of 8.
However, he found opportunities hard to come by under Ole Gunnar Solskjaer although he made a few appearances in the Europa League and other cup competitions. The Manchester United manager likes to play a 4-2-3-1 formation and, although a perfect fit for the Number 10 position, Gomes needed to grow substantially to play regularly in the Premier League.
Manchester United might have offered a similar loan spell to Gomes, but a pathway back to the first team seems easier at Lille than it did at Old Trafford.