Norwich City centre-back Emmanuel Adegboyega has bounced back from adversity to reach new heights in his impressive loan spell at Dundee United.

Adegboyega joined the Terrors this summer on a year-long deal having made his mark with League Two Walsall last term, and has already become a regular starter north of the border.

He made the Irish under-21 squad for the first time in October and has already registered 13 appearances for United, whose manager Jim Goodwin described his last as “his best performance in a Dundee United shirt”.

But it hasn't all been plain sailing for the 21-year-old, and he had to recover quickly after his error led to the late winner in a 2-1 loss to Motherwell last month.

He says the ability to move on from that mistake was key in returning to form, having produced another good performance in a 1-1 draw with Hibernian.


“I needed mental strength for what happened over the midweek,” he told the Courier. “But at the same time the best players have short memories, so you need to move on and hit the ground running again.

“I think it’s my first real mistake this season, so it was quite hard, but it’s football. Once the final whistle goes, I leave the stadium, it’s over. It’s done. I focus on the next game.

“As you’ve seen by the past results where this has happened before, we never give up. We just keep going. It was one of those games where it was tough, a very tough game, but if you don’t win, you make sure you don’t lose.”

Goodwin praised Adegboyega after that under-21s call-up, highlighting the multiple strings to his bow.

“Manny is a young centre-back who is developing continuously, and we’re working really hard with him,” he said. “He’s got a great profile: size, physicality, good pace, and he’s comfortable on the ball.”