Angel Gomes names Andres Iniesta as the player he models his game on

You get the impression that we’re now closing in on the potential resumption of Premier League football – giving us plenty to look forward to in the (hopefully) not too distant future.

Yes, the season will likely be played out behind closed doors, but I’d rather have that than no football at all.

In the meantime, we’ve been kept busy with transfer talk aplenty, with some contract disputes mixed in. Amongst those players whose future is still up in the air is Angel Gomes.

The last we heard was on May 15th, when it was written that Gomes was refusing to sign a new deal due to doubts about his pathway into the first-team.

All the talk about his future isn’t stopping him speaking through the club’s official channels, though. This week, Gomes was involved in some chat with the official club website, during which he named footballing legend Andres Iniesta as the player whom he models his game on.

“In terms of who I model parts of my game on, I’d say [Andres] Iniesta,” Gomes told ManUtd.com. “He was always one of my idols.

“[He was] a big player I watched while growing up. [He played] in similar positions as me and I’ve always tried modelling my game on Iniesta.

“In terms of footballers when I was young it was always Ronaldinho, the Brazilian players, Robinho [plus Portuguese] Cristiano Ronaldo at the time.

“I remember the Joga Bonito stuff with the freestyling and stuff like that. As a youngster, all you wanted to do was practise skills, so I’d say players like Ronaldo [were my inspiration].”

There are definitely worse idols to have, eh? Iniesta is amongst the best players of my lifetime. Not many have the craft, vision and execution that the superstar Spaniard had – particularly during his peak years.

It’s the movement, the quick-thinking, the ability to slice open a defence with one inch-perfect through ball. He played football with the mind, which is something Gomes will have to do due to being slight in stature.

Back to the here and now, I do wonder where Gomes would fit in at United. At this stage, I feel as though he’s probably heading closer to an exit than signing a new contract which would be a shame, but I guess that’s football at the highest level. You simply cannot please everyone.