Aaron Wan-Bissaka has opened up on his feelings about leaving Manchester United, where he had felt settled despite a rocky start to life in the city.

Aaron Wan-Bissaka has opened up on his initial struggles to adapt to life as a Manchester United player following his £50m move in 2019 from Crystal Palace, but admits he was hesitant to leave Old Trafford this summer.

The right-back was sold to West Ham for £15million in August as Erik ten Hag honed in on former Ajax defender Noussair Mazraoui. Wan-Bissaka said he grew into “a man” at United, for whom he made 190 appearances.

But his first steps up north were far from a walk in the park. “It was difficult, very difficult,” he confessed to the Standard. “I went [to Manchester] on my own and it was my first time moving away from home. I had no one up there, apart from my PlayStation.”

Wan-Bissaka unpacked how, at first, he struggled being in an environment where scrutiny is intensified. “Because Manchester’s smaller, everyone’s aware of everything that’s happening,” added. “You have to be mentally strong to avoid the negative stuff it comes with.”

Aged 21 at the time of his move, Wan-Bissaka initially used to travel back down to hometown London after training to spend time with friends and loved ones before returning in the evening. And repeat the day next.

He eventually put a stop to that. “It got tiring!” he stated. “It wasn’t the right idea for me to be doing that. I had to try and settle up there, and I ended up doing that.”

Asked whether he thought the move to United came too soon, the full-back replied: “I’ve thought about that. It could have gone any way.

“I could have told myself it was too early but the other side of me was asking, ‘Is this opportunity going to come again?’

“So, I thought, let me just take it. If it doesn’t work out, it doesn’t work out. At least I’d have tried and given it my all. That was my mentality.”

Wan-Bissaka admitted he wasn’t fond of the idea of moving on this summer when the club suggested so. United had triggered his one-year contract extension in January with his prior deal due to expire in June.

His last competitive game for United came in May’s FA Cup final triumph over Manchester City. He started that game having only come on at half-time in the League Cup victory over Newcastle United 15 months earlier.

“The experience of lifting [the cup], going through all of it in that moment, it’s something I’d like to get used to. I just didn’t want that day to end,” he said.

On how his move to West Ham came to fruition, Wan-Bissaka – who now describes himself as more of a “grounded” person – explained: “I spoke to the club and they thought this opportunity was best for me.

“They gave me some time to think about it. In the moment, I didn’t, but I spoke to family and friends about it and we all decided it was the right time.

“It could have gone another way. They said it in a way which kind of opened my eyes to see what was actually best for me.”