Manchester United vs. Club America: Andreas Pereira Stakes a Claim

Manchester United vs. Club America featured two different lineups and the attacking star of the second-half XI was Andreas Pereira.

Operating on the left side of a 4-4-1-1, Pereira was lively throughout the 45 minutes in which he featured. He pulled off a couple of nice dribbles and put in some very decent crosses.

It was a performance which, if replicated throughout the International Champions Cup campaign, will see Pereira force his way into his manager's thoughts.

His performance on Friday brought to mind Adnan Januzaj's impressive turn in Rio Ferdinand's testimonial. Held just before the start of the 2013/14 season, Sevilla were the opponents at Old Trafford. It was obviously Ferdinand's day but Januzaj caught the eye.

His confidence was evident, and it came as little surprise when he translated that form into competitive fixtures after David Moyes had brought him into the senior side. Of course, his trajectory has levelled off since, but the point stands.

It has been a good summer for Pereira, whose Under-21 form last season was mixed—in spite of winning the award for player of the season at that level, he was not always impressive.

This summer, though, he caught the eye and repeatedly found the net in Brazil's run to the Under-20 World Cup final. That form has been carried over into United's pre-season.

His performance during his first appearance in the ICC—combined with Louis van Gaal's fitness and match rhythm oriented pre-season rotation policy—essentially guarantees he will see action again during this tour. If he can repeat the quality of Friday night's showing, there are two key factors that suggest he could become part of the manager's thinking.

The first is that Van Gaal has a long, consistent track record of bringing through exceptional young talent. The list is often trotted out, but some of its greatest hits are worth repeating, given the sheer number of football's elite players in whose development Van Gaal has had a hand.

Xavi, Andres Iniesta, Edwin van der Sar and Thomas Muller all served time under Van Gaal early in their careers. Bastian Schweinsteiger was a right-sided midfielder before Van Gaal converted him into the central-midfield maestro whom United have now signed.

Last season saw the manager gamble on talent from the academy when his squad was threadbare through injuries in a way that has not happened at Old Trafford for a while.

There is also evidence to suggest that a good pre-season campaign will influence the way Van Gaal perceives a player. Last season it was Ashley Young whose bright performances convinced his manager he could be an important player for United, and so the season proved.

The second key factor is that there is room in the side for the Brazilian.

Although competition for attacking places is pretty fierce, the chances are that there will be a minimum of two spots in any team in which he could play.

That could be more, depending on the system Van Gaal uses. Pereira looked extremely comfortable on the left of the 4-4-1-1 used on Friday. He has all the talents necessary to play more centrally or on the right in the same system.

Currently he is competing for places with Januzaj, Angel Di Maria, Memphis Depay, Ashley Young and Juan Mata. Incomings and outgoings could change this, but assuming a similar level of quality and quantity exists in the squad, the task is daunting rather than insurmountable.

Given Van Gaal's reputation for prizing performance over reputation, and given how many games United will have next season—should they get through their August Champions League qualifier—Pereira can force his way into his manager's plans.

Tom Hauck/Associated Press

If he keeps playing like he did on Friday, it will be impossible to ignore him.

Bleacher Report is Official Media Partner of the International Champions Cup North America.