Ferdinand sends message to England boss Southgate about Mason Greenwood

Rio Ferdinand has urged Gareth Southgate to bring Mason Greenwood back into the England fold following his stunning strike for Manchester United in their 1-1 draw with Young Boys.

The United striker fired his side ahead after just nine minutes in spectacular fashion by acrobatically volleying home Luke Shaw's cross.

Fabian Rieder made the most of a mistake from Donny van de Beek to ensure that Young Boys held United in their final game in the Champions League group stage.

New interim boss Ralf Rangnick rang the changes; naming an entirely different starting line-up from the 1-0 win over Crystal Palace at the weekend.

But it was Greenwood who stood out in a youthful Manchester United team. And Ferdinand urged England boss Southgate to recall Greenwood; who hasn't played for his country since being handed his bow by Southgate back in September 2020.

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"England are missing out at the moment because he can come in and add value to that team," Ferdinand said after the game of Greenwood, who it emerged last month, had asked Southgate to be excused from selection for England until next year.

"I love him, there's not enough words for me to describe what I feel about this boy as a player seriously because he's a beautiful footballer," Ferdinand added.

"When he came into the team everyone spoke about his finishing because that's what you see straight away but when you actually break his game down he's so efficient in what he does. Receiving the ball, his body angles his movement to receive the balls and what I like about him is very rarely do you see him get tackled.

"A lot of young players on that pitch got tackled today. There were a lot of turnovers but he's very elusive with the ball. He takes the ball away from defenders.

"There are so many things you can love about his game, yes there are things to work on he's a young kid that's inevitable but the ceiling for this kid is so high.

"Even pressing I've seen his stats in terms of sprints and high intensity runs. What he could be if he dedicates himself to the game like he is at the moment and continues and keeps that growing and taking the opportunity like he is at the moment."

Ferdinand's fellow BT Sport pundit, former United midfielder Owen Hargreaves, was also full of praise for Greenwood's display.

"He's pretty special," added Hargreaves. "There's a lot of players out there that have cost a lot of money that have been brought from other teams. Mason is through the academy and he's probably the most talented one.

"Ralf gets to see him in a live setting and see him score a goal like that. He's one of the best finishers at the club, can play multiple positions he's good on the ball, people always talk about his finishing but his ability to use the ball, receive the ball, doesn't get enough credit.

"I think he's going to be one of those who will be in the starting XI soon."