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Man Utd’s Newest Star Makes World Cup Decision—Report

Ruben Amorim has been full of praise for his recent performances.

Grey Whitebloom

Ayden Heaven (right) has put in some extremely promising displays of late.
Ayden Heaven (right) has put in some extremely promising displays of late. / Zohaib Alam/MUFC/Manchester United/Getty Images

Manchester United’s teenage starlet Ayden Heaven has decided against representing Ghana at this summer’s World Cup to focus fully on fighting for his first senior England cap.

Heaven has enjoyed a festive burst to savour. After beginning December by getting hooked at half-time against West Ham, the 19-year-old has started United’s subsequent four Premier League fixtures. The Arsenal academy graduate anchored the middle of a back three during a defensive injury crisis for Ruben Amorim before excelling in a flat four-man rearguard against Newcastle United.

Manchester United icon Gary Neville hailed Heaven as the obvious player of the match in the narrow Boxing Day victory, which also inspired fulsome praise from his manager. Amorim went so far as to claim: “If [Heaven] continues to play like that, it’s going to be really hard to take his place.”

Heaven’s surge has not been restricted to the last few weeks. The towering defender was long considered a top prospect at Arsenal, who were put out by his decision to join United last February. This prodigious rise caught the eye of Ghana’s football association, per BBC Sport.

Eligible to feature for Ghana’s national team via a grandparent, Heaven is nevertheless thought to have pledged his future to the Three Lions. After all, Heaven was born in London and has represented England at U18, U19 and U20 level.

Now the focus is on breaking through at senior level.

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Could Ayden Heaven Claim an England World Cup Spot?

Ayden Heaven
Ayden Heaven has lofty ambitions for the Red Devils. / Molly Darlington/Copa/Getty Images

Such is the nature of international football, managers are forever having to deal with uneven balances of talent at their disposal. Thomas Tuchel is no exception to this rule.

England may be overwhelmed with attacking midfield options—to the extent that one of Jude Bellingham, Morgan Rogers, Phil Foden or Cole Palmer will likely miss out on the World Cup squad—but their defensive reinforcements dwindle each week.

Chelsea’s Levi Colwill has been all but ruled out of the World Cup with an ACL injury while Dan Burn is currently recovering from a punctured lung. John Stones has not yet shaken off the concerns which have dogged his entire senior career. Harry Maguire’s fallible fitness has given Heaven his chance at Manchester United and could again be his ticket into the international setup.

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Marc Guéhi and Ezri Konsa are likely to form a reliable first-choice pairing for Tuchel this summer while Bayer Leverkusen’s Jarell Quansah is a surprise favourite for the former Chelsea manager. There should be at least four centre back slots in England’s squad, giving Heaven a fighting chance.

It will all, of course, rely upon Heaven maintaining his current form, which almost every Manchester United player not named Bruno Fernandes has struggled to achieve. Amorim, however, is certainly confident.

“I am really pleased with Ayden,” the Portuguese boss gushed this week. “You can feel that he is improving every game. He is young, but you can feel that he has a good game, slows the thinking and improves during the game.” Only time will tell if that improvement will vindicate his decision to snub an offer of playing at this summer’s World Cup.

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Grey Whitebloom
GREY WHITEBLOOM

Grey Whitebloom is a writer, reporter and editor for Sports Illustrated FC. Born and raised in London, he is an avid follower of German, Italian and Spanish top flight football.

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