According to Travis Binnion, manager of Manchester United’s Under-21 squad, Diego Leon, a summer acquisition, must first begin playing complete games at the age-range level before considering a move up to the main team. After an agreement was reached in January, the 18-year-old full-back transferred from Cerro Porteno of Paraguay to Old Trafford in July.
For the adolescent, who had never played outside of his native country, it was a huge step up, and there was little possibility that he would be immediately placed in the starting lineup. He did, however, play in the preseason and showed some potential. He has now earned his first senior cap for Paraguay, making his debut against South Korea.
While players like Patrick Dorgu and Diogo Dalot have played at left wing-back, his development has proceeded behind the scenes, and he has yet to make his Manchester United debut. Leon has been playing for the Under-21 team, but they are gradually integrating him. He has been around the first-team group under Ruben Amorim, but he hasn’t appeared on the pitch.
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The most apparent answer in this situation is to pitch the 26-year-old just on the right, but it feels like Dalot is on borrowed time at Old Trafford because Amad made that position his own in 2025–2026. When you combine that with some of United’s up-and-coming young talent, Dalot’s future appears gloomy.
Step forward Leon, signed from Paraguayan club Cerro Porteno for only £3.3m in the summer. Although he hasn’t played competitively for United yet, this dynamic wing-back appears to have the potential to succeed in the Premier League in the near future.
The 18-year-old has only made three appearances for the U23s this season, but he has already scored. It was an incredible effort, just like Carreras’ goal for Madrid.
Further details regarding the wing-back were provided by Mattinson, who stated that “the standout trait of Leon is his physicality” and that “with a broad, compact build, he’s able to dominate duels with real aggression despite his young age.”
