Manchester United: Assessing the Performance of James Wilson vs. Stoke City

While Manchester United fans were surely unhappy about the absences of Wayne Rooney and Angel Di Maria on Tuesday, a starting berth for James Wilson was largely welcomed.

Wilson, who is only 19 years old, has been hailed as a huge talent by Ryan Giggs. He burst onto the scene last May with a two-goal outing against Hull City.

Tuesday night against Stoke City was his first start since then, and for the most part, it was an encouraging performance.

Throughout the match, as Robin van Persie's younger and pacier strike partner, Wilson worked hard to chase the ball and generally pester the Stoke defense.

His pressure led to an early Robin van Persie interception, which should have resulted in an Ander Herrera goal.

He was rewarded for his defensive diligence with two successful tackles and one interception, and he forced Ryan Shawcross and Phil Bardsley into two "bad touches" apiece, per WhoScored.com.

When Wilson actually had the ball at his feet, he continued to make a positive impact. He completed 76.5 percent of his passes—a respectable number for a teenager—and completed three dribbles, almost scoring on one impressive venture down the middle of the field.

Wilson's first half was relatively quiet, but it was in the second half when he caused the United faithful to rise to their feet by terrorizing the Stoke defense. Like usual, he looked comfortable playing on the wings as well, showcasing his blistering speed and impressive dribbling ability.

"

James Wilson played well yesterday, he's got star quality and can see him being a top footballer #MUFC https://t.co/jyexspu9zK

— Gupsy Aujla (@GupsyAujla) December 3, 2014"

Admittedly, while Wilson was impressive, his performance was not perfect. He had the fewest completed passes of any United starter, had four "bad touches" and was dispossessed twice. Until he went on a few marauding runs in the second half, he impacted the game, but not overly so.

Wilson is still a raw talent at this point in his career, and he is largely being fielded for his athletic ability, but that is perfectly acceptable.

He showcased his speed on multiple occasions, and despite his limited touches on the ball, his movement and pressure caused the defense problems and opened up the field for his teammates.

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All in all, Wilson put in an impressive shift, and he gave Louis van Gaal more selection problems for the future.

All stats and info via WhoScored.com