Abdul Majeed Waris: 10 things you didn't know about Manchester United transfer target

Published on: 29 October 2014
Abdul Majeed Waris: 10 things you didn't know about Manchester United transfer target
Abdul Majeed Waris

The Red Devils have sent their famous faces out to Turkey to watch the young star, but who exactly is he? Here is what you need to know about the Ghanaian.

Manchester United are keeping tabs on Ghanaian World Cup striker Abdul Majeed Waris - and have even sent Ryan Giggs on a mission to scout him.

The Welshman was understood to have travelled to watch the Trabzonspor forward in his side's 2-0 Europa League win against Lokeren on Thursday evening, as the Red Devils hope to pip rivals to the signing of a highly-rated youngster.

Waris, 23, joined Trabzonspor from Spartak Moscow in September, but could be on the move again if he continues his goalscoring exploits from previous seasons.

We've got a scouting report here from French football journalist but if you want to know who Abdul Majeed Waris is then here, in handy list form, is what you need to know about the prospective United signing...

The basics

Name Abdul Majeed Waris

Position Forward

Age 23

Date of birth 19th September 1991

Height 5'7" (1.72m)

Weight 157 lbs (71kg)

International pedigree

Waris has already notched up 14 caps on the international stage for Ghana - and featured at the summer's World Cup.

He started the 2-1 loss to Portugal and was booked before being subbed off in the 71st minute, whee he was replaced by Jordan Ayew, brother of Liverpool target Andre.

He has scored three times for his country, all of which came in African qualifiers for the Brazil tournament.

Abdul Majeed Waris international goals

14 Caps 3 Goals

English experience

OK, it might not quite be Old Trafford, but Waris has had experience of playing in England.

He featured for Forest Green Rovers' reserve side from 2008 to 2009, when he was at college at Hartpury College in Gloucestershire.

The striker later quit his English education to sign a four-year contract with Swedish side BK Hacken.

Goals in Sweden

Waris made his name on the European football scene by becoming a prolific striker in the Swedish Allsvenskan.

After two years of finding his feet, he finally came up trumps in 2012 when he netted his first hat-trick - and actually scored five in the same game (the 6-0 win against IFK Norrkoping).

He went on to become the league's top goalscorer that season, forcing his move to Spartak Moscow for €2.9million.

Big club attention

Action man: Waris in the thick of the action in an international friendly against Japan Big club attention
Action man: Waris in the thick of the action in an international friendly against Japan
Big club attention
His form for BK Hacken caught the attention of many top scouts in Europe, with a host of clubs taking a closer look at the African ace.

Hamburg, Werder Bremen, Saint-Etienne, Catania and Arsenal are all said to have had a look at the striker in action.

Spartak beat everyone to his signature, however, giving him his first break into a senior European league.

Form continued in France

The goalscorer continued to boss the tally in France, as he went on loan to Valenciennes from Spartak during 2014.

Through his 16 appearances for the Ligue 1 side, he got on the score sheet nine times.

He had previously struggled to adapt to the Russian Premier League, but proved his worth when sent abroad for a short time.

Getting dry

In 13 games this season for Spartak, and then Trabzonspor after his move, Waris has failed to find the net.

The form of the forward has been slowly declining, but he is still highly-rated for his pace and agility on the pitch.

He has been getting regular game time for Trabzonspor, so it is likely that he will be back in the goals again soon.

Little niggles

Waris has been sidelined three times in 2014 for slight niggles to his leg.

Two thigh strains and a calf pull in quick succession before the summer's World Cup will certainly raise eyebrows about his fitness

However, he has managed to stay completely injury free since the summer's tournament, meaning that he should be close to goalscoring form again.

Ritual

Waris is a devote Muslim and prays Salat before every game.

This is a pre-match ritual which most players in the Ghanaian national team will perform before going out onto the pitch.

And finally... his FIFA rating

Still a relative youngster, FIFA have rated the 23-year-old at 71 on their 2015 edition of the game.

His key attributes are his acceleration (93), sprint speed (92) and jumping (90).

It is pretty apt that his jumping should be so good, as Waris is a small character at just 5'7".

United fans! Do you think Waris would be a good signing? 

Source: Mirror.co.uk

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