Hannibal spent last season in the Championship and Birmingham's assistant manager Matt Gardiner helped his development.
You only get one chance to make a first impression and Hannibal Mejbri didn't waste it when he signed for Birmingham City on loan.
United fought off interest from Tottenham, Barcelona and Bayern Munich to sign Hannibal in August 2019 and, four years on since his arrival in Manchester from Monaco, he's now getting the first-team opportunities he dreamt of. Gardiner spoke warmly, in his thick Brummie accent, about Hannibal during the conversation and he painted a picture of a likeable, hardworking young player who was desperate to improve himself and help his team.
But what about his initiation song in English and French? "He got up straight away and it was very good," Gardiner laughed. "Not everyone can do that and it sometimes looks easier than it is, which is a testament to his personality." Hannibal had to wait until February to score his first Birmingham goal but it was worth the wait, with the youngster demonstrating initiative to score directly from a free-kick by catching West Brom's goalkeeper flat-footed.
"I’d love to take credit for it," Gardiner said about the goal. "Our goalkeeper coach, Maik Taylor, spotted that and Hannibal's football brain executed it, so when I talk about having X-factor, that’s what I mean. "The Championship is relentless, it’s 46 games and we’ve just had three games in six days as I'm speaking to you. I think he learnt very quickly how to prepare, how to recover and get ready for the matches, which was great for us.
Gardiner's description of Hannibal aligns with what United staff think at Carrington. Sources have described him as 'always positive around the place' and he's known to stay late to do extra work in the gym most days. The youngster received 11 yellow cards last season but he was never shown a red. "I think it comes from wanting to win and that passion he has. Ultimately he loves to play football and that’s got to be a good trait," Gardiner said.
"That suggested they could progress to the next level. It’s a testament to themselves, their families and their coaches and we might only be with them for a small period of time, but you can just tell which players will go to the next level.
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