Former Chelsea and Tottenham Hotspur midfielder Gus Poyet has claimed that Facundo Pellistri's lack of action at Manchester United could harm his chances of being involved for Uruguay in the 2022 World Cup.
Pellistri has been capped on six occasions by his country, with all of his outings coming this year, and he is in a strong position to be named in the squad for the upcoming World Cup.
However, the 20-year-old is yet to be involved for Man United during the 2022-23 campaign.
Red Devils boss Erik ten Hag said last month that the South American would not be available for selection until the middle of September due to a foot problem that he suffered in pre-season.
Pellistri is likely to struggle for action ahead of the World Cup, though, due to the number of players ahead of him in the pecking order for starts at Old Trafford.
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"Yes, Pellistri will struggle to get game time. It would be good for him to go somewhere and play, because the World Cup is around the corner and he is very important for the Uruguay team because the coach [Diego Alonso] has lots of faith in his ability, he's a proper winger," Poyet told Midnite.
"He needs to find a place to play, like Luis Suarez who is playing at Nacional week in week out, training with the first team and getting game time three months before the World Cup, Pellistri should do something similar."
Pellistri joined the Red Devils 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.
The youngster spent the second half of the 2020-21 campaign on loan with the club before returning to El Glorioso for 2021-22, making 34 appearances in all competitions.
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Ahead of the new campaign, Pellistri said that he 'wants to feel good again' and is eyeing "maximum continuity of minutes" during the 2022-23 season in order to continue his development.
"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.
"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 netted three times and registered one assist in eight outings for Man United Under-23s, and he has a contract with the English giants until June 2025.
Matt Law
