Manchester United's on-loan midfielder Hannibal Mejbri has been warned by Birmingham City manager John Eustace over his aggressive nature on the pitch.
The 19-year-old is on a season-long loan at the midlands club and has featured 11 times in the Championship so far this season.
During the 2020-21 season, he won United's Under-23s Player of the Year as an 18-year-old and was involved in the youth set-up for France before switching allegiances to Tunisia.
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However, the young midfielder has been warned over his fiery character by his manager following their recent win over Queen Park Rangers and claims he will speak to Mejbri about avoiding the attention of referees in the future.
He was part of the 2-0 win over Queens Park Rangers on Friday night, playing 54 minutes and managing his first assist for the club before being substituted.
It's been revealed by Eustace that the decision to bring him off was due to concerns that he could receive a second yellow card given his combative nature.
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His manager has claimed that he needs to control his aggression before it becomes an issue.
“I was contemplating bringing him [Hannibal] off at half-time, if I am going to be honest," Eustance said after the match. "I spoke to him, spoke to the staff and he assured me he’d be OK. I think it lasted about four minutes.
“It’s something we have got to watch but he plays on the edge, that’s why he’s so good, a top player. I am certainly not going to stop him from doing what he does but he has to realise the importance of managing the games at times.
“He didn’t get sent off so it makes no difference to me, we brought him off because he was running the risk and that’s it. He might have got sent off on another day and when he made that tackle I thought ‘I have got to get him off’.”
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Mejbri has built a reputation as an aggressive midfielder from his youth days, but was first seen by the wider footballing world during Liverpool's 4-0 win over United at Anfield in the Premier League last season.
The Tunisian international was brought on for a brief cameo during the dismal performance and earned praise from United legends Gary Neville and Bryan Robson.
It's safe to say he wasn't afraid to get stuck in, as he made his mark and announced himself with an aggressive cameo.
Topics: Manchester United, Birmingham City
George Priestman