Leny Yoro reveals how Rio Ferdinand convinced him to join Man United and opens up on playing against Kylian Mbappe in his first interview as an Old Trafford player after £52m move

New Manchester United defender Leny Yoro has hailed Rio Ferdinand's impact in his move to the club after sealing a £52m transfer from Lille.

Yoro was rushed into training at the club's Carrington training base and was named as a starter by Erik ten Hag in United's pre-season victory over Rangers on Saturday.

The 18-year-old has been hailed as a 'generational talent' with United beating both Real Madrid and Liverpool to his signature as the centre-back opted to move to the Premier League.

United legend Ferdinand hailed Yoro's arrival on social media and the centre-back has revealed how the club icon helped convince him to choose Old Trafford as his next destination.

Revealing the conversations he held with Ferdinand, Yoro hailed interactions with the 45-year-old as an 'honour' as the pair spoke about the club's trophy-laden history.

'This is Rio Ferdinand, this is a legend in Man United, so for me this is an honour. This is a big defender, a legend, so yeah, big honour for me,' said Yoro.

'It was like two weeks ago. He called me, so first of all I was really impressed to speak with him and yeah , we spoke like 10 minutes about Man United, so he helped me a lot to make my choice. So yeah, it was really an honour to speak with him.

'Yeah, he spoke to me about the club, and [that] this is a historic club with a big story, and if I go there I need to fight for the club, to be ready, because this is the biggest club in the world. So, yeah, for me it was really good to speak about this.

'When I was younger, Rio was one of the best defenders in the world. I think everyone watched United when he was young and, for me, it was a dream to play for this club,' he added.

Yoro was presented with a surprise pre-recorded video message from Ferdinand at his official unveiling, beaming throughout the exchange as his childhood idol raved over the transfer.

'Leny, Leny, Leny! How you doing bro? Listen, congratulations. Welcome to Manchester United, man. I wish you all the best. I know you're going to work hard and that's the secret man: work hard, work hard, work, work, work on all your parts of your game,' he said. 

'You've got all the potential, you've got all the tools man, you've got everything there, ready to rock and roll to go and make a big impact at this club. It's the best club in the world. It's a beautiful place to be. Go and enjoy yourself man, alright, and I'll see you soon. Good luck, good luck man. Let's go, let's go, let's go. Leny, Leny, Leny!' added Ferdinand.

Yoro described the exchange as 'crazy' upon being surprised by the message from the Premier League and England legend. 

Meanwhile, the promising defender will attempt to prepare himself for the demands of the English top-flight during United's pre-season tour of the United States and recalled how playing against Kylian Mbappe has helped improve his all-round game.

The former Lille star impressed in previous clashes against the France national team captain in Ligue 1 and explained taking on Ollie Watkins in the Europa Conference League last year was a good challenge. 

'I really liked to play against of course Mbappe. It was a really big, big, big, deal, so yeah for me it helped me a lot to improve myself. 

'It was good against Ollie Watkins, because this is a big striker here and, yeah, it was really good,' he said.