Manchester United head coach Erik ten Hag has said that Facundo Pellistri and other young players at the club must "battle for" a spot in the first team.
The 20-year-old moved to Old Trafford from Penarol in October 2020, but he is yet to make his first-team debut for the club, spending two separate loan periods at Alaves in La Liga.
Pellistri featured on 35 occasions for Alaves during his time at the club, following on from the 37 first-team outings for Penarol ahead of a switch to the 20-time English champions.
The youngster has scored three times and registered one assist in nine appearances for Man United Under-21s but is still waiting to make his first-team debut.
The South American was unavailable at the start of the season due to an ankle injury that he picked up against Atletico Madrid in a friendly.
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However, he has now been in the squad for Man United's last five Premier League matches, in addition to their last two Europa League games with Omonia.
Ten Hag was asked about Pellistri ahead of Thursday's European affair at home to Sheriff Tiraspol.
The Dutchman suggested that the door was open for the attacker to secure first-team outings, but he would have to "battle" the other players in the forward areas.
"He was injured, [for a] long period," Ten Hag told reporters. "[Against] Atletico Madrid, [he got a] bad injury. So he is now returning.
"We have some young players in the background in offensive positions. Quite good competition there and they have to battle for it to convince us, to convince me to be in the team, and he is one of the options."
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Earlier this year, Pellistri called the 2022-23 campaign "very important" for his development, having had his first taste of European football at Alaves.
"Right now, I want to feel good again after the holidays, well-trained, more than anything because this year is very important both at club and national team level," he told Ovacion at the time.
"You have to be ready for everything and prepare well. I want to have the maximum continuity of minutes to try to arrive well.
"I'm not looking for a particular league. It's easy to say 'earn minutes' because nobody promises them to you, and you have to earn them. It's a complicated search, but I'm going to try to find the best option to play, show myself and feel good."
Pellistri has been capped on seven occasions by Uruguay and is in contention to earn a spot in their squad for the 2022 World Cup, which begins in less than a month.
Matt Law
