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Former Manchester United defender, Teden Mengi, prepares to face his old club this weekend, as the Red Devils travel to Luton on Sunday evening.
The 21 year old has given a comprehensive interview about his time at United and his move to the Hatters this season.
Speaking to The Times, he explained that being at United “was all I’d known since I was six”.
The Manchester born centre back opened up on the difficulty leaving the club at which he had spent his childhood and most formative years. “It was a brave decision and nerve-racking,” he admitted.
Despite the player’s affection for United, it was the lack of game-time that convinced him that that the correct next step in his career was a change of scenery.
“I couldn’t see a pathway for me to be playing week in, week out for United. The only pathway to the pitch I could see was minutes in the cup if I was lucky”.
Reflecting on his time at United, Mengi is full of kind words for a plethora of players who helped him at the club. He claims that Paul Pogba had a big impact on his mindset when playing.
“Pogba was always playing with freedom. My debut against LASK, I was so nervous I played within myself. Now, if I look back to the message Pogba gave to me, I can play freely. Nothing can weigh on my mind because I’m doing what I love”.
The youngster also stated that he learned how to work hard and be nice from Juan Mata – “Oh my God, Juan’s so nice!” – and that Harry Maguire helped him in learning how to deal with life in the public eye.
The 21 year old also believes that his family upbringing in Clayton, three miles from the city centre of Manchester, also had a major impact on him.
“Respect is one of the biggest values instilled within me by my family. Being a good person is way more important than being a good player because being a good player only lasts so long. Being a good person lasts your whole life”.
The Luton defender also credits Kieran McKenna for his role in developing him but most of all, trusting him, as he stated, “Kieran believed in me”.
The Clayton man detailed the influence that United legends Michael Carrick, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer and Wayne Rooney had on his development.
The defender labelled Carrick a “good coach” and claimed “Ole Gunnar Solskjaer was a real, real nice man. He allowed me to start training with the first team regularly, gave me my debut”.
The Luton centre back also credited Rooney’s role in his education by bringing him to Derby on loan and stated, “Wayne was really good with me. He helped me through everything. That was my first real taste of the Championship, men’s football”.
However, despite the successful loan spell at Derby, he endured an injury-ravaged loan at Birmingham the next year.
The signing of Lisandro Martinez by Erik ten Hag in 2022 was another obstacle to the first team put in front of him, therefore, Mengi soon realised that he was never going to get the chances he craved at Old Trafford.
“As soon as I heard about Luton, I had to do what was best for me”. The United academy product was delighted after a phone call with Luton’s manager, Rob Edwards and this sealed the deal from the Englishman’s perspective.
An example of the type of management style that Mengi appreciates about his current coach was after a poor performance against Aston Villa where Moussa Diaby gave him a torrid afternoon.
Speaking on his reaction after the game, he said “I made a lot of mistakes that cost the team. The person that I am, once something bad happens to me on the pitch, I need to rectify that as soon as possible.
“That’s where Luton and Rob are very good. I texted Rob straight away, I apologised and said, ‘I feel I’ve let the team down’. He said, ‘Don’t apologise, we will go over this’”.
Mengi has gone from strength to strength this year, playing 20 times for Luton this season and even scoring his first goal for the club in November.
The defender has even bigger ambitions for the future that include international football.
Speaking on the prospect of earning an England call up he said, “That’s the level I am aspiring to get to in my career. I am eligible for Angola and DR Congo. Angola has definitely shown interest. I want to play for England. That’s always been a dream that I’m working towards. That doesn’t come easy. It will take a lot of graft and dedication. I have to earn it”.
The former United player has already had experience with the senior England squad when in 2021 he was on duty with the under-21s and the senior team were short a centre back for training.
The defender received a text from Gareth Southgate and asked him to join the senior session. On the experience he claimed, “I was nervous making my debut for United and then it’s a different type of nerve level going with the England senior team. Luckily, I had Jesse Lingard, Jadon Sancho and Luke Shaw there, all these United players, so I was with them”.
Mengi will be hoping his Luton side can take a valuable three points on Sunday and that he can perhaps show a few people at Old Trafford that maybe he deserved more chances in the United first team. A decision to leave could then have been a little more difficult to make.
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