Theo Hernandez comparisons and attacking mentality - inside Harry Amass' Man United development

A collage of four images, featuring three of Harry Amass and one of AC Milan defender Theo Hernandez.
-Credit: (Image: Getty Images.)


"Where is Harry Amass?"

It is a question a lot of Manchester United supporters have regularly been asking on social media so far this season. Signed from Watford in August 2023, few United academy players are currently attracting as much attention as he is.

In the absence of Luke Shaw and Tyrell Malacia, Amass went on United's pre-season tour of the United States during the summer and started each of their three Stateside friendlies. He was excellent on each occasion, earning plenty of praise from Erik ten Hag, supporters and journalists alike.

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However, he is yet to make it into a single matchday squad this season, despite United having faced a left-back shortage. His omission from the matchday squad for the 7-0 win over Barnsley in the Carabao Cup earlier this month was particularly surprising, especially when it was widely considered as a golden opportunity for him to make his senior debut.

But for Omer Riza, who first started coaching the United youngster at Watford at the age of 14, the timing has got to be right for the 17-year-old to be given his United bow - something which he does not believe is necessarily right now.

Speaking to the Manchester Evening News, Riza, who is currently standing in as Cardiff City's interim manager, said: "Manchester United is a massive club. It is a big, big club that he has gone to and he has done very well.

"He was called up for England while he was at Watford and now at Man United. He has been playing for the Under-21s and he has been around the first-team. I don't think it is going to be attributes that will be a problem; I think he will continue to play the way he has always played, and that is with energy, aggression and the enjoyment of being able to attack and cause problems with the qualities he has got.

"Do I think he is ready to be playing first-team football at Manchester United in the current situation? No I don't. I think it would be too much for him.

"But for him to be around the team in the way he is now - and to be progressed slowly - I think he is in a good place. I think United have got a lot of problems defensively and I don't think he would be able to add to that to help them at this time.

Harry Amass in training at Carrington.
Harry Amass regularly trains with the Manchester United first-team at Carrington. -Credit:Ash Donelon/Manchester United via Getty Images.

"I think he is a very forward-thinking, attacking player which I know for United is a fortress; it has always been about having the ball, what they're going to do with it and how they are going to cause the opposition a problem.

"Currently, that is not going to happen overnight again. I think those days have passed slightly and they are trying to get them back.

"In respect of Harry being able to go and start playing, I don't see no problem; he can probably start, play a game and do okay, but is he ready for first-team football at Manchester United? I would probably say no at this time. That is not me being negative, that is just me being honest."

Riza, 44, first started working with Amass consistently when the attack-minded left-back made the step up to Watford's Under-18s. It was his attacking credentials, as well as his power and strength, that quickly made him stand out.

"With every player, everyone has their own attributes, and he was a very strong, powerful boy, even at the age that he was at," Riza recalled. "It was always going to be a consideration as to whether his speed and power was going to be able to see him through as he gets older - and that is still going to be the case.

"He is at an age now where other people are catching him up and he has got to start adding other bits to his game, like his quality in possession and attacking mentality. Defensively, is that going to improve as well?

"There is a whole range of things for him at his age at the minute, he is still very young. I know what sort of players he is playing with and I know they are very good players, so it will be really interesting to see how he progresses."

Harry Amass competes with an Arsenal player during his time at Watford.
Harry Amass (right) was at Watford before joining Manchester United. -Credit:David Price/Arsenal FC via Getty Images.

Amass, who signed his first professional contract at Old Trafford back in March, played a key role in United's Under-18s' Treble-winning campaign last season, often venturing forward and delivering the goods from left-back.

Riza continued: "He has got a very attacking mentality; I think that is the thing that stood out for him as a full-back. He's quick, he's powerful, he can get forward, he can deliver and he can score.

"I think it is the flip side that's going to be the thing for Harry and how well he defends. At the end of the day, it is about your primary job first, and he has definitely got the tools when it comes to attacking, it is just whether he is going to have what he needs defensively against top, top, top players."

As with any player, the more experienced Amass becomes, the better he will get, certainly defensively. And that is an opinion shared by Watford Under-21s Lead Coach and former Bournemouth left-back Charlie Daniels, who first started working with Amass at Vicarage Road when he was with the Under-16s.

"It comes down to being challenged, it comes down to getting a bit wiser and getting that understanding of playing at a first-team level where it is more tactical," Daniels told the Manchester Evening News. "There is a lot more going on and there are going to be times when you are going to be up against it defensively.

"Like any youngster, you will have tendencies to switch off. He will learn as he goes on. The more that he plays with the calibre of players there are at United, and I am sure that the more that they talk to him and educate him on it, he will be fine defensively.

Watford coach Charlie Daniels.
Charlie Daniels (left) has very high hopes for Harry Amass. -Credit:David Price/Arsenal FC via Getty Images.

"His first thought is to go forward, just like any other attacking full-back. But I am sure the older he gets, the more he plays in that position, the more plays in big games and plays alongside the centre-backs that United have, it is only going to make him a better player."

Speaking of being challenged, Watford made the decision to challenge Amass ahead of time, promoting him from the Under-16s to the Under-18s to see how he would deal with the step up in quality. It was a mission he passed with flying colours.

"He was obviously excelling in his age group and that was why I played him at Under-18s level to challenge him," said Daniels. "We thought it was the best thing for him to give him that challenge week-in, week-out against people who were maybe a bit stronger, maybe a bit quicker and maybe a bit more physical than he was dealing with at Under-16 level.

"To be honest, he took to it like a duck to water and it excelled his development as well."

Not turning 18 until March, Amass has plenty of time on his side to get even better. He was given the chance to showcase his credentials in pre-season and he made the most of the opportunities handed to him by Ten Hag, producing a handful of eye-catching performances to leave United's supporters purring at his potential.

"He definitely is. [a big prospect]," Daniels stressed. "I am sure he is frustrated [at not getting in the squad]. I have messaged him a couple of times. It is one of those things when you're in the type of situation that he is in: he is really close but he is not there yet, in terms of getting into the matchday squad.

"He just has to keep doing what he's doing, keep up the hard work, which I know he will do, and when he does get his chance, I am sure he will take it."

Like several other members of United's youth ranks, Amass is knocking on the door in pursuit of a first-team opportunity. Ten Hag has not been reluctant to integrate youngsters into his squad during his tenure in M16, with the likes of Kobbie Mainoo, Ethan Wheatley and Toby Collyer all making their senior debuts for the club under the Dutchman.

As frustrated as Amass may be at not yet being awarded a first-team opportunity, Daniels is insistent that moving to Old Trafford was the best thing for his development.

Harry Amass takes on a Real Betis player during a pre-season friendly.
Harry Amass impressed during pre-season. -Credit:Ash Donelon/Manchester United via Getty Images.

"Yes, we spoke to each other about loads of different things," said the former Bournemouth ace. "There was not only Manchester United [who were interested], there was a few other clubs that wanted Harry. I think when United came in, I think it was the best decision for him in terms of his career development. It is one of the biggest teams in the world.

"For him, if you look at his competition that he has, and the pathway that he could get to the first-team, it was definitely the right decision.

"You have seen what he has done during pre-season; he was with the first-team all pre-season. That challenge that he will see in the first-team, at a club like Manchester United, it will only accelerate his development even quicker."

Yet to make his senior debut, it is hard to pinpoint who Amass can be directly compared with. But for Daniels, who was a seasoned left-back himself, he sees bits of France and AC Milan star Theo Hernandez in the former Watford youngster's individual game.

"He is a bit like Theo Hernandez, I would say," he said. "He is very, very attacking, he has a good left foot, is intelligent, will work hard for the team and likes to get forward.

"If I am looking at left-backs nowadays, he probably suits him. As you saw in pre-season, he has got all the attributes to become a top, top left-back."

It is not just United who have high hopes for Amass, either. Already climbing the rungs of the England youth ladder, the youngster has already represented the Three Lions at Under-18-level, and Daniels is confident he can go all the way on the international scene.

Asked if he could represent England at senior level one day, Daniels, answering without a moment's hesitation, said: "There is no doubt in my mind. He is in a system at the minute [with England] and there is no doubt moving forward, if he keeps progressing in the way he can, and if he does force himself into the squad at United or goes out on loan and plays first-team football, there is no doubt in my mind that he will make the step up and will one day be an England player."