talkSPORT pundit Glen Johnson offers his advice to the 21-year-old as he embarks on this new chapter of his career at one of the world’s biggest clubs
New Manchester United signing Daniel James has been told how to make the most of the huge challenge joining one of the biggest clubs in world football poses.
Former Chelsea and Liverpool defender Glen Johnson has offered his advice to the 21-year-old, after he sealed a £15million transfer to Old Trafford on Wednesday.
Manchester United unveil new signing Daniel JamesJames, who came through Swansea’s academy, has become Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s first signing in charge of the Red Devils on the back of a brilliant campaign in the Championship – scoring five goals and providing ten assists.
Johnson knows all too well about the pressures of making a career-defining move at such a young age, having traded West Ham for Chelsea when he was just 19 – becoming the first signing of the Roman Abramovich era at Stamford Bridge.
Although he only spent four years with the Blues, the right-back went on to win the Premier League title and League Cup before moving on to Portsmouth and then Liverpool.
James has moved to Manchester during a time of transition for United, and finding his feet in the squad which is set for huge upheaval this summer will not be easy.
And, asked what his advice would be for the youngster, talkSPORT pundit Johnson said on Thursday: “Obviously it’s a fantastic opportunity for the young lad.
As long as he continues to want to progress and become the best player he can be and not take anything for granted, I’m sure things can be successful for him.
“A lot of people could get that big move to a big club and maybe rest of their laurels a little bit and take their foot off the gas.”
The track record of young players moving to Old Trafford in recent years has not be overly positive.
Anthony Martial was hailed as one of the world’s most promising talents when he arrived from Monaco in 2015 and yet, while few can doubt his ability, he has frustrated fans and managers with his inconsistency.
Wilfried Zaha is probably the most extreme example of how moving to a big club so early in your career could end in disaster.
And Johnson highlighted the importance of building strong relationships and always having the right attitude when you first move to your new club.
“You need some chemistry,” he added.
“I’m sure [James] is a great lad and hopefully he’ll do well, but there are players out there when the relationships don’t click, they can upset the manager in the early stages and you get a black mark against your name from day one.
“There are loads of different reasons why it may not work, and this sort of move does fail more times than not.
“It’s not always about signing the best player in that position, you need the player who will fill the void but also fit into the dressing room.
“You don’t want a bad apple, for example, who would just come in and upset people and rock the boat.
“You someone who can hit the ground running, you want the lads to love him, you want all the staff to love him and then things can flourish from there
“I can see it working really well for him at United.”
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