Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson has reiterated his
belief that summer-signing Nick Powell has the quailty to replace
Old Trafford veteran Paul Scholes.
Powell, a £4 million signing from Crewe, netted 11 minutes into
his United debut when he completed the scoring in Saturday's 4-0
win over Wigan. And Red Devils boss Ferguson has high hopes for the
18-year-old midfielder.
"Powell is going to be a really good player who, we hope, will
fill Paul Scholes' boots in terms of he's got terrific vision, good
temperament, two great feet, is quick and is a great striker of the
ball," Ferguson told MUTV.
England Under-19 midfielder Powell is not getting carried away
though, admitting he still has a lot to learn from the senior
players at Old Trafford and claiming his family will help him stay
grounded.
"My dad will keep me in touch, I'll tell you that," he said.
"When I first came on it scared me a little bit, to be fair,
because I'm only used to 5,000 people now and then, but it's a
great atmosphere - the fans are great. It wasn't the hardest game
because they made it easier for me but I'm happy to be on the pitch
getting minutes.
"I learn every day, especially from the midfielders - [Paul]
Scholes, [Michael] Carrick, Giggsy [Ryan Giggs] - they're all
great, they've all been through it and won trophies. That's what I
want to do, so I hope to learn off them every day."
Powell scored 16 times last season to help Crewe win promotion
and aims to retain his scoring habit at Old Trafford. He added:
"Dario (Gradi, the former Crewe manager) used to say my game isn't
just attacking and defending, it's about goals as well and I proved
that last season and hopefully I can do that for United."