Manchester United add Atletico Madrid chief scout Gerardo Guzman to backroom staff

Atletico Madrid chief scout Gerardo Guzman has joined Jose Mourinho's backroom staff at Manchester United.

Spanish daily AS says Guzman agreed a deal with the Red Devils on 31 August and will start work at Old Trafford this month.

He becomes the third fresh addition to Mourinho's backroom staff following Brazilian scout Sandro Orlandelli and Tottenham youth coach Kieran McKenna.

Guzman joined Atletico in 2009 and was tasked with scouting players under the age of 23.

The Madrid club have established themselves as one of the top clubs in Europe since that time, winning the La Liga title in 2014 and reaching the Champions League final in both 2014 and 2016.

Koke and Saul Niguez are among the players who have emerged from Atletico's academy to hold down a spot in the first team during Guzman's time at the club.

Atletico have hired Natanael Cano from Spanish third-tier outfit San Fernando as Guzman's replacement.

Rashford praise

Mourinho is reportedly keen to work with the brightest young players in England and give them a chance to shine in the Premier League.

On 27 August, 18-year-old England international Marcus Rashford became the first teenager to score a Premier League goal under the Portuguese coach when he netted a dramatic late winner for United against Hull City.

"Marcus is working extremely well and both times when the team was in trouble and needed one goal – the Community Shield with the score at 1-1 and today when the score was 0-0 – he came on and gave a special contribution," Mourinho told MUTV after the match at the KCOM Stadium.

"Everybody is speaking about him and [Zlatan Ibrahimovic] – they can play together as they showed today.

"I think with more work he can play coming from one of the sides but I think the kid is a striker and when we play with him and Ibra together we give different problems to the opposition."