Nick Powell was tipped as the next wonderkid of English football when he signed for Manchester United in 2012.
The midfielder left a lasting impression on Sir Alex Ferguson when the Scot watched him in action for Crewe.
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Ferguson was so sure of Powell’s talent that he tipped him to take over from Paul Scholes and described the teenager as ‘an absolute certainty to be in the England team one day.’
But things didn’t go to plan for Powell who struggled with a lack of game time when he arrived at Old Trafford.
A deeper problem was manifesting. Powell was suffering with a lack of confidence, something he associates with being a ‘perfectionist.’
Soon after, Powell found himself isolated from the United dressing room, feeling he did not have a place at the club.
Former teammate Patrice Evra gave his version of events in his autobiography and explained where he believed Powell got things wrong.
“He (Powell) didn’t integrate, wasn’t part of the group and you had no idea what he was thinking as he looked through you,” Evra wrote. “He was only a young lad, but you’re not too young to be judged at United.”
The midfielder admits sharing a good relationship with Evra and despite the Frenchman’s claims, Powell says his teammate did not know the full picture.
“I get on with most people,” Powell told The Athletic. “I got on with Patrice. It was purely that I didn’t feel like I was a United player and that was grinding away at me.
“I found it hard to believe I should be there. ‘I don’t want to do this,’ I’d think. ‘I didn’t come to Man United not to play.’ And yes, it did segregate me a bit because I was thinking, ‘What the f*** am I doing here?’ That was probably my biggest issue.
“I’d go home and try to forget it all. That’s part of the reason why people get the perception I didn’t care. I didn’t want to bring it home because it would annoy me even more. So I’d play Call of Duty, PlayStation, things like that, just to forget about the fact I was not playing football.”
Powell looks back on his United spell with disappointment tinged with frustration. Much of that frustration came from being unable to apply training methods into a match.
In one particular training ground incident, he recalls an altercation with Scholes that started as an accident but went on to end in retribution for the United legend.
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“I remember one day I accidentally slipped and took out Scholesy on United’s training ground,” Powell said. “I’m saying to him, ‘I’m sorry, I slipped’ and everyone’s p****** themselves.
“The next time I get the ball, he just f****** nails me. Everybody was laughing. Brilliant, here we go.”
Powell has been open in his self-critique of his Old Trafford stint but did reveal his dislike of certain criticisms at the club, referring to an incident with first-team coach Phil Neville upon his return from an end-of-season operation.
“I couldn’t pass this ball. I knew I was doing crap. He pulled me aside and started going, ‘You’ve got to be miles better than that if you want to play for Man United’.
“I was thinking, ‘No s***!’ I was coming back from injury, not having really played for a year, still not feeling like a Man United player. Little things like that annoyed me, got my back up. I didn’t need to be told. It was just a coach being a coach – and I’ve nothing against Phil – but that p***** me off a bit.”
Powell is now 29-years-old and enjoying life at League Two club Stockport County who were denied promotion in the play-off final after losing to Carlisle United on penalties.
“I’m really happy to be here and to be a part of what’s happening at County right now,’ Powell said. ‘I think everyone can see what an exciting journey the club is on.
“The ambitions that the owner has for the club, and that was something that really appealed to me when deciding on my next move. The boys came so close to promotion last season.
“We all know the aim is to take that next step this time round and be a League One club, which is where a club the size of County belong. Hopefully I can play my part in making that a reality.”
