It’s a lot to ask, indeed. Especially when considering the people on this forum, they could labeled him garbage in light speed after a mediocre performance.
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I think he can be a backup to bruno next year
I'll definitely be disappointed if Hannibal doesn't get a genuine chance in the first team squad within the next 2 seasons.
I'd love him to be a squad player next season. But if they think another loan - probably a PL one - would be better for 23/24 then that's fine as there's certainly still some raw elements of his game that need polishing with more game time.
But I'm really hoping that would be with a view to giving him a chance the following season. As I really think he has everything in his game to develop into a very promising #8 / #10 at a high level and would be disappointed not to see him at least get a decent opportunity at some point to establish with us.
I'd love him to be a squad player next season. But if they think another loan - probably a PL one - would be better for 23/24 then that's fine as there's certainly still some raw elements of his game that need polishing with more game time.
But I'm really hoping that would be with a view to giving him a chance the following season. As I really think he has everything in his game to develop into a very promising #8 / #10 at a high level and would be disappointed not to see him at least get a decent opportunity at some point to establish with us.
Hasn’t started at Birmingham for a few games now.
Bubble burst, or simply not a good loan?
Bubble burst, or simply not a good loan?
Is there a positive option in either of the two options you've given?
Neither. It's the same as with Amad for example. It's simply about managing him responsibly.
Here's his manager's comments from a few weeks ago:
And these from mid March:
Good to know Birmingham City are handling him responsibly.
I am genuinely surprised at people when they speak of Amad and Hannibal. I think Amad played more minutes than he has ever had in his career in his 1st 10 appearances for Sunderland. I could be wrong. Hannibal is on the same boat. I hope hannibal goes back to Birmingham again, I think he will show his talent even more next season(it would be nice to create a relationship with a team down there)
For a 1st season on loan in the Championship, I'd be looking for 20+ starts. Mejbri has 20 Championship starts 13 sub; so that's fine. I'm impressed that he has avoided getting a red card to date. However, it wouldn't convince me that he is ready for United just yet.
For a 2nd season on loan, expectations quite a lot higher, looking to be one of the best performers in the Championship.
3rd season either PL loan, other top 5 European league loan or back-up player at United.
Mejbri's contract is until summer 2026 so plenty of time before we're forced to make a decision.
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Applies for every player I'm afraid. Rashford's bubble is burst and if our 20-year old players starting their first team career don't play 90 mins and at least score or assist in every match, regardless of their position, the loan is a failure.
Sad but true.
I'd try to find him a team and a manager that try to play better football. I agree with @kundalini that it's realistic to expect him to be a leading player on Championship level next season, but I don't think Birmingham is an ideal fit for him.
He played back to back games for Tunisia during the last international break so was always going to be rested when he got back to Birmingham. But the player that came in to replace him was a young midfielder named George Hall, who is only 18 and probably the biggest talent currently from their academy. And George Hall played well in both the games he played in, so it would've been unfair to drop him for Hannibal.
And another thing, George Hall is attracting interest from EPL clubs like Leeds. And Birmingham are trying to extend his contract which will expire in 2024. So giving him games will likely be of a higher priority now that they look as if they've avoided relegation and are sitting comfortably in midtable.
It's in Birmingham's best interests to appease George Hall, so he extends his contract and hence enables the club to extract a bigger transfer fee from the clubs who are interested in buying him.
For Hannibal the loan has been good in a team that is very limited in possession. He's already made 20 starts, which is what I said should be his target before he joined Birmingham. And having watched about 60% off their games, it was a hard watch and they're not a team that is suited to the skillset of a attack minded midfielder who likes to connect, combine (with team mates) and carry the ball.
And another thing, George Hall is attracting interest from EPL clubs like Leeds. And Birmingham are trying to extend his contract which will expire in 2024. So giving him games will likely be of a higher priority now that they look as if they've avoided relegation and are sitting comfortably in midtable.
It's in Birmingham's best interests to appease George Hall, so he extends his contract and hence enables the club to extract a bigger transfer fee from the clubs who are interested in buying him.
For Hannibal the loan has been good in a team that is very limited in possession. He's already made 20 starts, which is what I said should be his target before he joined Birmingham. And having watched about 60% off their games, it was a hard watch and they're not a team that is suited to the skillset of a attack minded midfielder who likes to connect, combine (with team mates) and carry the ball.
If he was good enough to start for a PL team (never mind a PL team with aspirations of winning the league!) any time soon I’m sure they’d find a way to fit him in their starting XI, George Hall, or no George Hall.
Which is why these loans are so important. Training with the first team and listening to ten Hag, McClaren et al. will only go so far — these boys need actual minutes under their belt
I wonder if Utd have any power to demand he gets rested or whether Birmingham are required to send training / fitness data to Utd. Anyone know?
Absolutely this! So often our young, inexperienced players go on loan to clubs that really don’t care about their long term future and it results in the loan being a step back, not forward
We don't know if he's good enough to start for a PL team but he's definitely been good enough to start for a Birmingham team in the Championship who statistically play a transition based game where there isn't much emphasis on controlling possesion but rather attempting to win first and second balls, with the press and counter press as the fallback option.
Hannibal is also the only youngster in recent years that has contributed on his first loan (championship or above). The rest like Garner, Amad, Pellistri etc struggled to adapt and hence struggled initially.
Alvaro Fernandez is also contributing on his first loan and his team is very close to the playoffs.
Preston play with wingbacks, so the chances for him to start were always there due to the setup. But I hope they send him to a club that plays him as a fullback, which should test him defensively.
We have paid big money for players recently that arguably are not good enough to start for a top Premier League side and need time to adjust to the speed and intensity of the English game so I think players like Hannibal and Amad are at least accustomed to the physical side of things now and that was what was required of them.
@Bondi77 I agree mate. And I'll just provide some context below of the type of football Birmingham play, which isn't best suited to the skillset of Hannibal. But the loan has been good for him imo and he needed those regular games, which are going to aid his physical, tactical and mental development.
Birmingham played Stoke City at home earlier, and Stoke dominated the possession where they had 68% of the ball in Birmingham's back yard. But the game perfectly illustrates why it's very difficult for a young creative midfielder to shine in such a team. Hannibal didn't play in this game but if he did, I'm pretty confident his passing stats would also be compromised by the way Birmingham play, like I've demonstrated below.
4231 formation
Gk: Ruddy, made 22 passes, which were all long with a 55% success rate. Which isn't bad considering how Birmingham play.
RB: Colin, completed 54% of his passes.
RCB: Roberts, completed 48% of his passes
LCB: Long, completed 38% of his passes and only attempted 13 passes in total in 90 mins.
LB: Trusty, completed 39% of his passes.
RCM: Bacuna completed 69% of his passes
LCM: Bielik, completed 75% of his passes which is quite good considering what's happening around him.
AM: George Hall, only made 6 successful passes in total during the full 90 mins at a success rate of 100%.
Chong, Kadra and the striker weren't great either. Kadra attempted 5 passes in the 84 mins he was on the pitch and only completed two of those passes.
https://www.sofascore.com/birmingham-city-stoke-city/jsE
You have to judge a player within the setup he's being utilised in. And Birmingham's setup isn't conducive towards playing football through the thirds. And below are just three tweets of many from Birmingham fans and a Stoke fan, who weren't very happy with what they witnessed.
Stoke fan
Brum fans
Birmingham played Stoke City at home earlier, and Stoke dominated the possession where they had 68% of the ball in Birmingham's back yard. But the game perfectly illustrates why it's very difficult for a young creative midfielder to shine in such a team. Hannibal didn't play in this game but if he did, I'm pretty confident his passing stats would also be compromised by the way Birmingham play, like I've demonstrated below.
4231 formation
Gk: Ruddy, made 22 passes, which were all long with a 55% success rate. Which isn't bad considering how Birmingham play.
RB: Colin, completed 54% of his passes.
RCB: Roberts, completed 48% of his passes
LCB: Long, completed 38% of his passes and only attempted 13 passes in total in 90 mins.
LB: Trusty, completed 39% of his passes.
RCM: Bacuna completed 69% of his passes
LCM: Bielik, completed 75% of his passes which is quite good considering what's happening around him.
AM: George Hall, only made 6 successful passes in total during the full 90 mins at a success rate of 100%.
Chong, Kadra and the striker weren't great either. Kadra attempted 5 passes in the 84 mins he was on the pitch and only completed two of those passes.
https://www.sofascore.com/birmingham-city-stoke-city/jsE
You have to judge a player within the setup he's being utilised in. And Birmingham's setup isn't conducive towards playing football through the thirds. And below are just three tweets of many from Birmingham fans and a Stoke fan, who weren't very happy with what they witnessed.
Stoke fan
Brum fans
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Geez...those stats remind me of my Sunday morning football league days
The good thing is though I do not think his skillset has been in doubt and if he can now mix it up with the physical side of the game and curb his temper then we can safely call it a worthwhile and successful loan.
Omg! I had only watched a few of their highlight videos with Hannibal involved and been able to imagine how poor their play could be. But, the statistics you posted really blow up mind mind! “Poor” is too benign to describe it I think. Six passes in whole game by AM! The whole back line has averaged pass success rate significantly less than 50%! So, their game is just about running, blocking and bumping the ball I guess.
Played 20 mins today
Looking after his mate Diallo was great to see.
Strange seeing how he’s gone from starting week in week out to been benched for the last 2 months and yes I do relapse he’s 19. I mean there’s taking him out for a few games to rest him but it’s a lot more than that. Maybe Utd have had a say over his performance / training levels . I presume his been monitored closely by our staff.
He’ll need another loan next season but the club needs to choose the right club. Birmingham are pants and so is their style of football .
Looking after his mate Diallo was great to see.
Strange seeing how he’s gone from starting week in week out to been benched for the last 2 months and yes I do relapse he’s 19. I mean there’s taking him out for a few games to rest him but it’s a lot more than that. Maybe Utd have had a say over his performance / training levels . I presume his been monitored closely by our staff.
He’ll need another loan next season but the club needs to choose the right club. Birmingham are pants and so is their style of football .
I'm not even sure he's going to get another start this season and it looks like Birmingham are prioritising their own younger players now that they seem to feel they're safe from the drop with 4 games remaining. Even in the game today, George hall went off injured in the first half and Birmingham brought on Jobe Bellingham.
If Hannibal is to go on loan again, then he has to go to a club who look to build play through the thirds and hence a club who look to impose their game on the opponent. Birmingham again earlier conceded about 70% of the ball to Sunderland. In the current Birmingham team with their squad composition and play-style, it's better to select players who are strong at winning ground duels.
I think if a loan offer came in from a top Dutch club or French club, then sending him to one of those clubs would tell us a lot about Hannibal as a player. Because those teams will look to build play through the thirds and wouldn't place a over reliance on winning first and second balls like Birmingham do, and likely play European football as well. There's a few clubs in Belgium who look interesting in that regard as well and also play European football.
Carrick is at Middlesbrough and McKenna hopefully gets promoted with Ipswich, which will hopefully mean we can send some younger players to both those clubs. If Middlesbrough get promoted to the EPL then I can see Amad Diallo joining them on loan possibly.
If Hannibal is to go on loan again, then he has to go to a club who look to build play through the thirds and hence a club who look to impose their game on the opponent. Birmingham again earlier conceded about 70% of the ball to Sunderland. In the current Birmingham team with their squad composition and play-style, it's better to select players who are strong at winning ground duels.
I think if a loan offer came in from a top Dutch club or French club, then sending him to one of those clubs would tell us a lot about Hannibal as a player. Because those teams will look to build play through the thirds and wouldn't place a over reliance on winning first and second balls like Birmingham do, and likely play European football as well. There's a few clubs in Belgium who look interesting in that regard as well and also play European football.
Carrick is at Middlesbrough and McKenna hopefully gets promoted with Ipswich, which will hopefully mean we can send some younger players to both those clubs. If Middlesbrough get promoted to the EPL then I can see Amad Diallo joining them on loan possibly.
Also from what I've heard from some Brum fans, he hasn't been starting games due to him fasting in the month of Ramadan. So it'll be interesting to see if he starts the next game now that Ramadan is coming to a end.
Boro loan next season if they get promotion?
Chris Skudder there’s a blast from the past. Watching sky news at 20 past the hour for the sports bulletin. Good times .
Small sentence in the guardian that he is one of the names certain to be shipped out??
Anyone out there with info?
Anyone out there with info?
Surely this has to be another loan. I don't think there's any reason to give up on Hannibal as at least a future squad option 18 months from now with the proper loan next season. Championship standard has gone up but at the very least try and get him top flight experience in a Big 5/6 league before you start making decisions about putting him on the market -at the moment the price is going to be based on flashes of potential, as opposed to larger pay-off set against smaller risk of it rising/falling based on his form next season...
If we give up on this lad now, I will go crazy. He is such an exciting talent. The thought that we can’t (or can’t be bothered to) nurture him toward his potential depresses me to the core.
It would be plain daft of the club to give up on him and sell him, so it has to be surely another loan.
Probably will be a loan as I think he has a lot to offer but I think the emphasis on maximizing the potential to generate funds from the Acadamy has to be in play too. We have traditionally sat on our younger players for far too long until they end up running down their contracts and losing any kind of buzz around them. Axel is a great example of this, could have got around 15M for him 2 or 3 years ago and he will now leave quietly on a free this summer as a 25 year old who might struggle even to get a deal at a Championship club.
Exactly, I'm not against selling Mejbri. He's 20 already and isn't even close to being part of the squad.
You got players like Greenwood and Garnacho that break through and can see the potential. Mejbri is not even a nailed starter in the championship, we all love academy players but the reality is most of them won't even make it nevermind make it here. So players that are not part of the squad by the time they're 20 should be sold and put buy back clauses in case they turn out good.
Tuanzebe is a perfect example of how to not do things.
I fully trust Ten Hag’s judgement as far as talent. If he says sell then sell.
Why? He is on loan, probably only seen him for a few days or weeks at the start of the season and I doubt he has seen much of him since, jsut had reports.
I dont buy the stories at all anyway. We have a lot of players to clear out this summer, I expect or maybe it is hope....that a few youngsters will actually be more involved in the squad next season, Hannibal and Mainoo being the main ones as I expect at least a coupel of midfielders to be shipped out and I dotn think we sign more than one.
What I do think personally is a loan isnt right next season for Hannibal, he is old enough now, has done ok it seems on loan, has done ok in the little game time he has had for us and has lots of talent. The main question has been his temparament. I think next season is the time to see if he has the right mindset for top class football at a big club, he is ready for that judgment I feel....not more nurturing and experience in a league playing different football and football actualyl less suited to his abilities than the premiership.
He is goign nowhere permanently next season, there is no chance
It wont be fair to sell him next season. Had a decent loan spell and deserves at least one season. We are not City or Chelsea who treat their youth products like trash. Surely there are better ways to generate revenue than selling promising young players without giving them chance
Wish the cause and foundation of my depression was something as trivial as a football club potentially selling a footballer.
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