Manchester United youngster Joe Hugill is set to join Burton Albion on a six-month loan.
Alan Nixon (The Sun) reveals United will “send” the 20-year-old to the League One side until the end of the season.
Burton Albion are currently 17th in the league table, five points clear of the relegation zone. They have struggled for goals this year with only three teams having scored fewer than they have in League One.
As such, additional reinforcements up front will be a welcome sight for fans at the Pirelli Stadium.
Hugill has scored seven goals in nine appearances for United in the First Division of the Premier League 2 this year. He has also provided one assist. It was a similar story last season where the striker scored eleven goals in twelve games in the same competition.
Signed from Sunderland in 2020 for around £300,000, Hugill is highly-rated by the academy staff at United and has trained with the senior squad on multiple occasions.
Erik ten Hag was said to be “impressed” with what he saw from the young striker in these sessions.
Though the 20-year-old is yet to make his debut for the first team, he has been included in multiple match-day squads. He was on the bench for the recent trip to Wigan Athletic in the FA Cup, while he was also an unused substitute as United welcomed Bayern Munich to Old Trafford.
Despite not seeing any minutes on the pitch, Hugill’s inclusion speaks to the belief Ten Hag holds in him, as he would not merely be included on the bench for the sake of it.
This faith was rewarded in the form of a new contract offer, agreed upon last week, that keeps Hugill at Old Trafford until 2026. There is then a further one-year extension the club can automatically trigger.
Hugill spent last season on loan to National League side Altrincham. He has been attracting attention from both League Two and League One sides this year who have “registered their interest” with United this month. However, Nixon believes it is Burton who have won the race to secure Hugill’s services for the remainder of the year.
With the League One side’s desperation for goals, as well their stadium being only a two-hour drive from Manchester, they appear the perfect landing spot for the 20-year-old striker.
