Ethan Laird made his debut for Birmingham City at the weekend after leaving Manchester United earlier in the summer.
Manchester United and Ethan Laird parted ways last month with the young right-back keen to avoid being loaned out for a fifth time.
Laird, now 22, signed for Birmingham City on a permanent basis and made his debut at the weekend.
He was selected as a starter against Swansea City, one his former loan clubs, and impressed in a 1-1 draw.
Ethan Laird stands out on Birmingham City debut
Ethan Laird played 70 minutes of the Championship opener and was a force on both sides of the ball.
Birmingham ended up drawing the game 1-1, with Swansea scoring an equaliser minutes after Laird had been substituted off.
Laird was rated as the man of the match via FotMob with a rating of 8.3/10.
He completed six successful dribbles, making 76 touches in total, and won six tackles and three aerial duels.
Laird made a further three interceptions and Birmingham will be reflecting that they have probably landed themselves a bargain.
Manager praises Ethan Laird
The challenge for Ethan Laird is the one which dogged him during his Manchester United academy career, and disrupted his QPR loan last season; fitness.
Laird came into the game with limited pre-season action, which is why he did not complete all 90 minutes.
Manager John Eustance was impressed with what he saw, talking highly of Laird’s contribution to their away draw.
He told the club website: “Ethan, obviously, hasn’t trained for two weeks since the Cheltenham game. He declared himself fit yesterday which was a massive bonus for us and to get an hour out of him you could see he was awesome.”
His words are a ringing endorsement which any player wants to hear after their debut, especially a young one who has just made the first permanent move of his career.
Laird has a strong platform to build from, and he is can stay fit, he could have a terrific season.
