Manchester United winger Amad travelled to Brighton and Hove Albion for Saturday's Premier League clash while mourning the death of his father's wife, who he saw as a mother. He announced the tragic news on social media on Friday, a day before United visited Amex Stadium in their first away game of the season, and proved his admirable commitment to the cause in a chat with Erik ten Hag.
Amad is well-positioned to finally enjoy a breakout season with the Red Devils three years after joining from Atalanta in a £37million deal.
The 22-year-old played a prominent part in pre-season before starting in the Community Shield match against Manchester City at Wembley and when Old Trafford played host to Fulham last week.
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On Saturday, Erik ten Hag named Amad in his starting lineup for the fifth consecutive Premier League game, emphasising his meteoric rise in the Dutchman's pecking order.
According to the Manchester Evening News, Amad asked to play against the Seagulls despite his difficult week away from the pitch.
The United No. 16 faces an exciting battle with fellow starlet Alejandro Garnacho for a starting berth on the right of the attack this season.
Garnacho has started the first three games of the campaign on the bench after being among the late returnees to Carrington due to his Copa America involvement with winners Argentina.
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While the 20-year-old regains his match sharpness, Amad has gone above and beyond to ensure he makes use of the opportunity to make an impact.
On the eve of the trip to the south coast, Amad posted an image of his father's wife holding him as an infant on Snapchat, captioning it: "Rest in peace Mum, may Allah forgive you."
He later took to X (formerly Twitter) to address confusion by clarifying that he hadn't lost his biological mum, but rather his step mum.
"Guys I wanted to clarify. She is not my biological mother; she is my brother's mother and my sister was also my mother. May she rest in peace," Amad wrote.
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The Ivory Coast international has registered three goals and two assists in 23 senior appearances for United.
He has been on the periphery of Ole Gunnar Solskjaer and Ten Hag's squads since his arrival, spending loan stints at Rangers and Sunderland.
But Amad has tussled his way into contention at Old Trafford with his performances at the end of last season and during the summer preparations.
His desire to feature against Brighton is a testament to his grit and determination to succeed as a United player, and it would have undoubtedly propelled him further up Ten Hag's estimations.
