Photo by James Gill - Danehouse/Getty Images
Photo by James Gill - Danehouse/Getty Images
In every crisis, there is an opportunity, and with JJ Gabriel’s future uncertain, a door opens for Noah Ajayi, whose style of play is very exciting.
For far too long, academy coverage has been dominated by the exploits of JJ Gabriel. They feel rightly earned, but it has led to precocious talents like Noah Ajayi flying under the radar.
Ajayi has taken the U18s by storm, and earned a promotion to the U21s last season. Now, he’s set to go from strength to strength by signing a pro contract at Old Trafford, something which Gabriel is refusing to do.
Here’s the breakdown of Noah Ajayi’s style of play as he’s an electric wonderkid whose name Man Utd fans will be hearing a lot more of.
Noah Ajayi style of play
Before delving into Noah Ajayi’s style of play, here’s a briefer into what he is as a player, his position, his tendencies, and his versatility.
Ajayi primarily functions as a left-winger who likes to cut inside onto his stronger right foot and unleash shots at the goal. His versatility means he has also been used as a striker, and he can play off the right as well.
So good was he for the academy that even JJ Gabriel had to switch positions and start up top so that Ajayi could play in his preferred LW position.
The attack of Chido Obi-Gabriel-Ajayi was arguably the best in the country last season, and it speaks volumes about Ajayi that he managed to make himself stand out with two of the most high-profile talents in the academy.
Noah Ajayi’s strengths
Ajayi is a skilful player who likes to beat his man off the dribble, while also having the standing-start pace to dribble past them by beating them in a leg race.
That separates him from most explosive wingers who thrive only when there is space to play in front of them, because they struggle to create separation off the dribble.
Noah Ajayi playing for Man Utd u18s
Photo by Poppy Townson – MUFC/Manchester United via Getty Images
This ability made him a key player for Man Utd’s academy sides because they faced resolute low blocks most of the time, so Ajayi was a lock-picker as well as a door-basher rolled into one.
Once he picks the lock or bashes the door, the German-born attacker is also adept at making it count, because he has a streaky finishing ability. He has a tendency to catch the goalkeepers off-guard because he shoots a second before everyone expects.
That is why he has flourished as a striker as well, because his composure sees him score more than miss.
Most importantly, he is far ahead of many players in terms of physicality. Already standing at 6’2″, he is a nightmare to defend once he gains momentum with his long strides. He is still only 17, so it’s fair to assume that he might add an inch or two to that frame.
He is also becoming increasingly two-footed, which has made him unpredictable in the box and opened up the right wing for him, where he can act as a traditional winger. He often found himself running to the byline last season and crossing with his weaker foot last season as the opponents understood that they can’t allow him to cut inside.
In the last year or so, he has added playmaking skills to his game, a change that was partly forced upon him as he played with two goalscorers in Obi and Gabriel. It will stand him in good stead even if he becomes the main man now, because his game has become more all-around.
Weaknesses
A weakness which immediately stands out in Ajayi’s game is his wiry frame, because he seems to have gotten taller quicker than anyone imagined.
He is able to thrive despite that weakness at the youth level when most of his opponents don’t even have his height, let alone weight, but he can’t play a physical game in senior football.
Noah Ajayi playing for Man Utd under-18s
Photo by James Gill – Danehouse/Getty Images
Think Rashford in his debut season, but a couple of inches taller and a lot slimmer. His long-term position will need to be on the wing because he might lose his explosiveness if he adds muscle.
Second, he can have tunnel vision at times when he comes alive in the box, as his first instinct is to grab the headlines rather than make the intelligent pass. That could be a consequence of desperately wanting to prove himself in a team full of wonderkids, but it often infuriated his teammates last season.
He improved on that creative side of his game, and it helps that he has all the talent to do it. The will to do so will come automatically when he sheds the “hero syndrome” he has in the academy.
Finally, Ajayi’s growth spurt caused a lot of injuries for him when he was 15 and 16, so now that his body has caught up with him, he is having to manage his workload.
It’s why United haven’t showcased him as much as Gabriel, who is still nowhere near ready physically for senior football. Ajayi hasn’t trained with the first team much, but that should change as he puts those growth spurt-related niggles behind him.
Strengths Weaknesses
Explosive pace over long distance Wiry frame makes senior transition risky
Agile and shifty dribbler off a standing start Tunnel vision in the box
Streaky finishing ability to catch GK’s off-guard Needs to be more selfless in his play
Two-footedness adds to unpredictability Injury-hit past, making up for lost time
Extremely driven and motivated mentality Defensive effort can lack at times
Ajayi senior comparison
Ajayi models his game after the likes of Kylian Mbappe and Cristiano Ronaldo, which is no surprise, since he’s also a right-footed inside forward.
Getty Images
However, his game is much closer to, say, Jamal Musiala, rather than Mbappe and Ronaldo, because of his technical tilt instead of being a physicality freak.
Mbappe and Ronaldo are elite dribblers as well, but their peaks have frightening pace, explosive finishing, and ice-cold composure in the box.
Ajayi is more like Musiala, in the sense that he trades a higher physical ceiling for technical excellence, which makes his height an intriguing trait to use. A person that tall shouldn’t move with that much grace and purpose, but Ajayi manages to make it look easy.
In the Man Utd squad, think of a more technical version of Marcus Rashford, who is as adept at ball carrying as he is at laying it off with his technical ability. He has quite a long way to go towards reaching the heights Rashford did, but the latter started as a young striker as well, before maturing into a fearsome winger.
Ajayi has already found his calling as a winger, and he has Rashford to learn from as well. The sky is the limit for the German wonderkid who has so far flown under the radar at the club.