AARON WAN-BISSAKA had no one but his PlayStation when he first arrived at Manchester United in 2019.
The full-back has opened up on the loneliness he felt when he swapped the safety of Crystal Palace for the bright lights of Old Trafford.
At £50m, he was the fifth-most expensive player United had ever signed and remains now the priciest ever uncapped Englishman.
Then manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer described the then 21-year-old as “one of the best upcoming defenders in the Premier League.”
Wan-Bissaka quickly earned the trust of the fans with Jamie Carragher coining him the “best one-on-one defender in world football” in 2020.
But he initially struggled to adapt to life in Manchester off the pitch as it took time for the South London boy to settle in.
He told The Standard: “It was difficult. Very difficult. I went on my own and it was my first time moving away from home. I had no one up there, apart from my PlayStation.
“Because Manchester’s smaller, everyone’s aware of everything that’s happening. You have to be mentally strong to avoid the negative stuff it comes with.”
In fact, he felt so isolated that he would travel back to London after training most afternoons to spend time with his family, before heading back up North that same night.
But Wan-Bissaka admitted that the tiredness of travelling forced him to settle as the reality set in that he was a United player.
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Wan-Bissaka added: “I came back as a man. More mature, more grounded, more focused.”
He became a staple at right-back for two seasons, as United finished third in his debut campaign and runners-up the following term.
But he eventually started slipping down the pecking order as the need for a more modern attacking full-back became increasingly important.
And Erik ten Hag didn’t favour him either, instead deploying Diogo Dalot with Wan Bissaka only starting 20 games last season.
Explaining how his exit from United came to be – after being linked with a move away for some time – he said both parties agreed it was mutually beneficial for him to leave.
He said: “I spoke to the club and they thought this opportunity was best for me.
“They gave me some time to think about it. In the moment, I didn’t, but I spoke to family and friends about it and we all decided it was the right time.”
Now Wan-Bissaka is back in his hometown of London playing for West Ham, who have struggled this season.
He has started eight of their first 10 Prem games after joining Julen Lopetegui’s side for £15m in the summer.
The 26-year-old played a full 90 minutes as the Hammers beat his former team 2-1 last month – which saw Ten Hag sacked the following morning.
He played a total of 190 times across five seasons at United and won two trophies – the Carabao Cup in 2023 and FA Cup in May.
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