Edinson Cavani value to Man Utd laid bare as unique training ground relationship emerges

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Edinson Cavani’s exemplary conduct and attitude on the training ground is said to be of huge benefit to a whole host of Manchester United youngsters at Carrington, according to assistant first-team coach Kieran McKenna. El Matador has rarely featured this season despite signing a one-year contract extension earlier this summer but it’s clear he is worth his weight in gold to the club, even if he is not on the field of play.

At 34, there are not many better strikers to learn from in Europe than seasoned veteran Cavani, who is widely considered one of the best strikers of the last decade.

He has rifled in over 250 goals since arriving in Europe back in the 2006/07 season, winning 21 trophies during his time in France.

While Cavani may not currently be contributing to the best of his ability under Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, he is still someone to look up to on the training field.

First-team coach McKenna has highlighted just how much he’d noticed Mason Greenwood taking notes from his team-mate, learning whatever he can from El Matador behind the scenes at Carrington.

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“How Edinson handles himself off the pitch is well documented but his levels of professionalism, concentration, consistency and how he prepares for every training session – before training and then his concentration during sessions – is outstanding,” McKenna told United’s website.

“So on that side of it he’s a fantastic role model but then also in the various parts of his game. The way Edinson fights for the ball with his back to goal.

“The way he challenges in the air, the way he uses his body up against defenders, is something that Mason needs to do and is working on.

“I think Mason’s eyes light up when you speak to him about Edinson or when you see the two of them working together. There’s a clear respect and admiration on Mason’s side.”

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Cavani has made a conscious effort to help Greenwood too, providing him with extra pointers to help the youngster sharpen his tools.

“I think Edinson’s been great in terms of taking Mason under his wing and seeing a talented kid there who can go on and achieve great things,” McKenna added.

“So that’s been really beneficial. We can see, as a staff, improvement in certain areas, like his movement in the box, anticipating things, trying to get in there for the tap-ins and rebounds in the six-yard box and I think a big part of that is having such a good role model, day to day, to watch.”

Cavani’s mentor role landed him in hot water on one occasion last season when Greenwood was involved in an altercation with Roma defender Gianluca Mancini in the Europa League.

Several Roma players soon swarmed the young forward and he was soon backed up by Cavani – who would later receive a yellow card for his troubles.

“In that incident against Roma, what I felt was that he was arguing face to face with the Roma defender which is something that can happen in football,” Cavani said.

“The next minute, a third guy came on the scene and began pushing him when he clearly wasn’t part of the original argument.

“I told him he should keep out of the incident and that’s why I went to help Mason and offer him some protection.”

The attacking pair have looked devastating whenever they’ve played alongside each other and Solskjaer will be hoping to have Cavani fit again soon so he can see the duo link up with Cristiano Ronaldo in attack for United.

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