Revealed: Ralf Ragnick left impressed from the stands after watching the wonder kid who he is set to bring to his first team .

 Hannibal Mejbri recently missed out on 

featuring for Manchester United in the recently

 rotated side against Young Boys.

Alas, losing out on a few substitute minutes

 has given him an even richer experience, 

starring for his country in the inaugural 

FIFA Arab Cup.

Hannibal was in action yesterday in 

Qatar, as Tunisia took on Egypt in front 

of a half-full 40,000 stadium which had the 

atmosphere of a full house.

This was Hannibal’s fifth game of the 

tournament, following group games against 

Mauritania, Syria, UAE, and a quarter-

final against Oman.

A last minute winner in this game courtesy 

of an Egypt own goal gave Tunisia the victory

 and booked a place in the final. Hannibal

 is just one win away from clinching international

 silverware.

The win for Hannibal was a sad result 

for former Manchester United assistant boss

 Carlos Queiroz, the Egypt manager.

Hannibal has been a regular starter in this 

side at just 18. It is not a team made up 

of youngsters. Striker Naim Sliti, 29, leads 

the attack along with 28-year-old 

 Jaziri, and 31-year-old Ben Ifa in defence.

The young Manchester United prospect looks

 at ease in the team and is more than ready

 for ‘men’s football’. He earned his first 

international caps last summer and has 

continued to make a name for himself 

at this tournament.

He had to contend with some rough challenges

 from the Egypt players, and was able to 

pick himself up, dust himself off, and carry

 on, like a young Ronaldo. Hannibal is used

 to being singled out at United. His eye-

catching hair helps him stand out, and this

 often brings him extra unwanted attention.

Hannibal made his first team debut for United

 at the end of last season. His performances

 at this tournament underline that he is 

ready for a bigger challenge than the

 under-23s.

The young attacker could be ideal for 

Ralf Rangnick’s 4-2-2-2 system, in either 

midfield role, although it is in the attacking

 number 10 role he has starred for Tunisia.

Hannibal played 81 minutes of the semi

-final and will fancy his chances of featuring 

in the final on Saturday. He could well end 

up being called into Tunisia’s squad for the 

forthcoming AFCON tournament early next

 year too if the tournament goes ahead.

While that will limit his time to make a quick

 impression on Rangnick, returning to 

Carrington later this month with a winner’s 

medal will help him stand out. He is just 

one game away.

Here is a look at how Twitter reacted to 

Hannibal’s performance in the sem-final…